A leading company in the payments and lending space was looking for a head of data sciences. The person would have to create and build the data sciences department from scratch, work with other business heads and form a third pillar along with tech and product teams. However most importantly, the main task would be to transform the way the company does business by creating a data-centric approach. Apart from this, the person would have to be comfortable in being hands-on, entrepreneurial, and eventually be the face of data science internally and externally.

Before launching the search we worked with the founder to identify the role’s key attributes. We quickly realised that in addition to the standard requirements of being a rock solid data science expert, the successful candidate would also need to have the ability to manage various internal and external stakeholders.

While focusing our search, we started with candidates whose experience demonstrated that they thrived in fast paced environments. We then spoke to the shortlisted candidates at length to determine which ones also had the maturity and presence to represent the company at industry and stakeholder forums. We discussed the relative strengths and weaknesses of shortlisted candidates (including their soft skills) with stakeholders, refined the list further and ran a tight process with the company’s senior management and preferred candidate to deliver a successful conclusion.