City of New York

Job Description

• This position may be eligible for remote work for up to 2 days per week, pursuant to the Remote Work Pilot Program. **

The NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) protects and enhances the daily economic lives of New Yorkers to create thriving communities. DCWP licenses more than 45,000 businesses in more than 40 industries and enforces key consumer protection, licensing, and workplace laws that apply to countless more. By supporting businesses through equitable enforcement and access to resources and, by helping to resolve complaints, DCWP protects the marketplace from predatory practices and strives to create a culture of compliance. Through its community outreach and the work of its offices of Financial Empowerment and Labor Policy & Standards, DCWP empowers consumers and working families by providing the tools and resources they need to educate consumers and to achieve financial health and work-life balance. DCWP also conducts research and advocates for public policy that furthers its work to support New York City’s communities. For more information about DCWP and its work, call 311 or visit DCWP at nyc.gov/dcwp or on its social media sites, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

The Division of Technology and Strategic Solutions’ (DoTSS) Data Analysis and Research Team (DART) plays a critical role in providing timely and accurate operations data to stakeholders in order to comply with public reporting needs, increase the agency’s transparency generally and, provide direct informational support to our decision makers as they shape DCWP’s policies, practices, and procedures. The DART team plays a critical role bridging the knowledge gap between the technical expertise of IT and the operational and policy expertise of the agencies leadership teams and operational units. In addition to operational reporting, the unit coordinates collaboration on quality improvement initiatives, designs and implements performance management systems and tools, and recommends new analyses and analytic projects to improve agency outcomes.

DCWP is seeking an experienced Data Scientist with a strong track record of applying appropriate data analysis and statistical analytical techniques to solve complex organizational and operational challenges, and an entrepreneurial spirit with the ability to conceptualize, design and implement novel solutions. Working in close contact with the Manager of Data Analytics and Reporting and other Analytics team members, the selected candidate will be responsible for spearheading analytic, innovation and reporting efforts across the agency to ensure efficiency, accountability, and transparency with a particular focus on DCWP’s new youth financial empowerment initiative and new license categories.

As a Data Scientist you will:

• Report to the Manager of Data Analytics and assist with developing and implementing analytic, policy, and planning strategies to achieve agency-wide goals;
• Be responsible for analyzing DCWP’s systems and data to understand patterns, trends, and relationships within the data;
• Clean and structure raw data to ensure accuracy and consistency for analysis; identify data quality issues and propose systemic solutions for improving data quality, accuracy, and research capabilities;
• Conduct routine data analysis designed to enhance understanding of agency operations and to support consumer protection and financial empowerment objectives;
• Utilize self-authored SQL and the agency’s business intelligence platforms to provide critical information and reporting to divisions and senior leadership, and respond to ad-hoc data and analysis requests;
• Work with operational units to identify program objectives, and provide research and analytic support for special initiatives and projects;
• Coordinate with External Affairs and Communications divisions in the provision of agency data to the press, elected officials, and other stakeholders;
• Collaborate on the design, development, and deployment of internal and public-facing web-based tools designed to enhance agency transparency, including NYC Open Data publications and the Mayor’s Management Report.

The optimal candidate will be able to demonstrate a track record of success in the following areas:

• Promoting innovative analytic approaches that provide greater insight into organizational operations and outcomes and how outcomes impact communities;
• Excellent quantitative and problem-solving skills. Demonstrated commitment to data-driven decision making;
• Superior written and oral communication skills and demonstrated ability to present findings through compelling charts, graphs, and other visual aids
• Ability to manage multiple ad-hoc and long-term projects simultaneously;
• Data acquisition, cleaning and wrangling techniques and best practices;
• Ability to improve data quality by identifying and resolving data quality issues;

CITY RESEARCH SCIENTIST - 21744

Qualifications

1. For Assignment Level I (only physical, biological and environmental sciences and public health) A master's degree from an accredited college or university with a specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological or environmental science or in public health.

To be appointed to Assignment Level II and above, candidates must have:

1. A doctorate degree from an accredited college or university with specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological, environmental or social science and one year of full-time experience in a responsible supervisory, administrative or research capacity in the appropriate field of specialization; or

2. A master's degree from an accredited college or university with specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological, environmental or social science and three years of responsible full-time research experience in the appropriate field of specialization; or

3. Education and/or experience which is equivalent to "1" or "2" above. However, all candidates must have at least a master's degree in an appropriate field of specialization and at least two years of experience described in "2" above. Two years as a City Research Scientist Level I can be substituted for the experience required in "1" and "2" above.

NOTE:

Probationary Period

Appointments to this position are subject to a minimum probationary period of one year.

Additional Information

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.