Director-Research Scientist

Job Description

- What is the Director - Research Scientist - AI & Optimization responsible forThe core mandate of this role is to bring innovative digital investment products and solutions to market, leveraging a patented and innovative digital WealthTech/FinTech product - Goals Optimization Engine (GOE) - built with several years of academic research in mathematical optimization, probability theory and AI techniques at its core. The mandate also extends to leveraging cutting edge AI, such as Generative AI, in addition to Reactive AI to create value within various business functions within Franklin Templeton such as Investment Solutions, Portfolio Management, Sales & Distribution, Marketing, and HR functions, among others, in a responsible and appropriate manner. The possibilities are limitless here and present a fantastic opportunity for a self-motivated and driven professional to make significant contributions to the organization and to themselves.
- What are the ongoing responsibilities of a Director - Research Scientist - AI & OptimizationAs a Principal Research Scientist - AI and Optimization, you will play a pivotal role in driving innovation, product research, and proof of concepts for our AI research and Goals Optimization Engine (GOE) product roadmap. You will be responsible for mentoring and guiding a team of highly motivated research scientists, creating intellectual property, and ensuring successful client deployments and product development.

Key Responsibilities:

Innovation, Product Research, Proof of Concepts, Pseudocode & Design (40%):

- Lead and contribute to the multi-year Goals Optimization Engine (GOE) product roadmap, conceptualizing fitment against various industry use cases, creating product variants, and designing new features and enhancements across multiple distribution lines and geographies
- Mentor and guide a team of research scientists to achieve common objectives
- Serve as the Subject Matter Expert (SME) for a specific domain within AI and/or Optimization, acting as the go-to person for all internal stakeholders
- Develop pseudocode and working prototypes in a Python environment, collaborating closely with Product Managers and Product Developers
- Create well-articulated design documents and presentations to explain research to internal and external stakeholders, including clients and partners located globally
- Lead industry research and evaluate partnerships with third-party vendors and specialized service providers where appropriate
- Maintain a thorough understanding of boundary conditions, regulatory environments, data challenges, technology integrations, algorithmic dependencies, and operational process nuances to ensure nothing slips through the cracks
- Stay up to date with the latest developments in the Investment Management industry, Financial Mathematics, Portfolio Construction, and Portfolio Management

IP Creation, Paper Writing, and Thought Leadership (30%):

- Conceptualize and produce high-quality intellectual property for publication in top-tier academic and practitioner journals
- Peer-review the work of other research scientists and improve the outcome of their research output
- Create patent-worthy intellectual content, apply for patents, and win them
- Take responsibility for winning industry awards for exceptional product research and innovative work products
- Stay informed about the latest industry research and evaluate it objectively and in an unbiased manner
- Publish research works for conferences

Client Deployment, Product Development, and Vendor Due Diligence (30%):

- Act as the SME in initial client deployment discussions, showcasing the rigor of research, explaining the product or solution concept, and engaging in discussions with similar individuals/teams from the client/partner side
- Contribute to product development by ensuring alignment with research and design
- Provide hands-on support where required to complete time-critical work successfully
- Engage with third-party vendors and potential integration partners to understand their capabilities, methodologies, and algorithms, and perform rigorous due diligence to make clear recommendations on Go/No-Go decisions

Education:

- Bachelors and masters degree in STEM disciplines; a PhD in a relevant discipline (Optimization, Probability, Quant Finance, AI & ML, Computational Mathematics, Statistics, etc.) would be a +
- Relevant industry certifications

Experience - Core Skills:

- 10+ years of applied R &D experience in research departments of reputed organizations post-Masters or PhD
- Track record of real innovation generating impact is essential
- Demonstrated ability to create intellectual content, publish papers, and obtain patents
- Ability to effectively bridge the gap between academia and practice, ensuring research is practical and implementable
- Structured thinking and exceptional mathematical skills
- Excellent team player with the ability to work with ambiguity and thrive in chaos
- Familiarity with ML/DL/DRL, NLP, especially Large Language Models, dynamic programming, and/or convex optimization
- Solid experience with AWS and/or Azure
- Familiar with Python, PySpark, SQL, Hadoop, C++