Director Data Science & Engineering

Job Title: Director Data Science & Engineering

Remote – US and British Columbia Only

About Cylinder

Founded in 2021 and offered as an employer benefit, Cylinder (formerly Vivante Health) delivers personalized, clinician-backed care to those suffering from digestive issues through its virtual health platform. Cylinder’s tech-forward, human-first program connects members to the right level of support at the right time through an easy interface, bringing the healthcare ecosystem together to align around member needs. Cylinder’s dedicated care teams help members proactively address their gut health from every angle – decreasing costs, reducing absenteeism, and improving their quality of life, at scale. Cylinder’s vision is to create a world where people receive convenient, personalized, and affordable access to the quality digestive healthcare they need to improve their overall health.

Position Summary

We are seeking an experienced and visionary Director of Data Science & Engineering to lead our efforts in leveraging data as a strategic asset. In this role, you will oversee data science leadership and strategy, data infrastructure and engineering, operationalization of data science solutions, data ownership and integration, and data governance. Additionally, you will build and mentor a high-performing team, ensuring that our data systems and solutions align with our mission to improve healthcare outcomes.

This is a highly collaborative role working closely with other Engineering teams, and fostering close partnerships with the Product, Clinical, Operations and Finance teams. Your work will empower Cylinder Health to harness the power of data for actionable insights, operational efficiency, and cutting-edge innovations in healthcare.

Why This Role is Exciting

• Impactful Problem Domain: You’ll drive innovation by integrating and analyzing diverse datasets—including patient health records, lab results, medical claims, and population health data—to create groundbreaking insights that improve healthcare outcomes.

• Early-Stage Influence: It’s still early enough that there are many decisions and discoveries to be made. This is your opportunity to shape the future of our data ecosystem.

• Mission-Driven Culture: Join a team that’s passionate about improving clinical outcomes for members and advancing the field of GI health.

Key Responsibilities:

Data Science Leadership & Strategy

• Help define and execute a strategic vision for data science and engineering that aligns with business goals.

• Partner with Product and Clinical teams to identify and prioritize opportunities to leverage data science for impactful solutions.

Data Infrastructure & Engineering

• Oversee the development and maintenance of scalable, reliable data pipelines and infrastructure.

• Ensure efficient data ingestion, transformation, and storage solutions that support analytics and machine learning models.

• Lead efforts to integrate various data systems and platforms to create a unified patient centered dataset.

Operationalization of Data Science Solutions

• Lead efforts to operationalize machine learning models and analytical insights into production environments.

• Collaborate with Software Engineering and DevOps teams to integrate data-driven solutions into the product ecosystem.

Business Intelligence Support

• Improve data access by enabling data discovery for faster innovation and efficiency.

• Develop data-driven strategies to enhance decision-making, enable the application of AI solutions, and increase operational efficiencies

• Develop training programs to empower non-technical stakeholders to leverage BI tools effectively.

Data Governance

• Establish and enforce best practices for data quality, privacy, security, compliance (e.g., HIPAA) and ethical data usage.

• Improve operational efficiency by ensuring a 'single source of truth' for all analytics data. 

Team Building & Mentorship

• Build and grow a high-performing team of data scientists, data engineers, and analytics engineers.

• Foster a culture of innovation, continuous learning, and collaboration within the organization.

• Provide mentorship and clear career growth paths for team members.

You’ll Be a Good Fit Here If You Are:

• A Team Player: You thrive in cross-functional environments and enjoy collaborating closely with stakeholders across disciplines.

• Security-Oriented: You prioritize the stewardship of sensitive healthcare data, ensuring privacy and compliance at all times.

• Comfortable with Ambiguity: You excel in startup environments where roles and challenges evolve quickly.

• A Creative Problem Solver: You bring innovative solutions to complex problems and execute them effectively.

Desired Qualifications:

• Proven experience (10+ years) in data science, data engineering, or related fields, with at least 5 years in leadership roles, including at the Director level or equivalent.

• Demonstrated ability to define and execute strategic roadmaps for data science and engineering initiatives.

• Strong expertise in modern data engineering tools and frameworks (e.g., DBT, Airflow, Google Cloud Platform), with a focus on scalability and operational excellence.

• Experience overseeing data governance, security, and compliance programs in regulated industries.

• Outstanding communication and interpersonal skills, with a proven track record of influencing executive stakeholders and aligning cross-functional teams.

• Experience hiring, mentoring, and scaling high-performing technical teams to meet organizational goals.

Bonus Qualifications

• Familiarity with healthcare data standards such as FHIR, OHDSI, or similar.

• Experience in a startup environment.

• Advanced degree in Data Science, Computer Science, or a related field.