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About This Role
Company Description About AbbVie
AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas including immunology, oncology and neuroscience - and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at www.abbvie.com. Follow @abbvie on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube.
Job Description
The Principal Data Scientist is the senior technical and scientific leader for AbbVie's omnichannel engagement analytics, a data- and analytics-driven engagement optimization program spanning channel mix, content, field representative call planning, and orchestration. Operating within the APEX Enterprise Advanced Analytics and Innovation team, this role sets the multi-year science vision for personalized commercial engagement and is accountable for the technical strategy, methodology, and scientific rigor of the AI/ML and statistical solutions that power it. Reporting to the Associate Director, Data Science, the Principal is a thought partner to commercial and analytics leadership: shaping which problems are worth solving, forming and defending a point of view on how AI creates measurable business value, and partnering with product owners to turn that vision into scalable solutions. The role combines deep, hands-on expertise in applied machine learning, generative AI, causal inference, and experimentation with the consultative skill to align a complex stakeholder ecosystem around the right answer.
Key Responsibilities
- Define the Data Science vision: Own the multi-year Data Science vision and technical roadmap for omnichannel engagement analytics, anticipating where both the business and the field of AI are heading.
- Shape how AI creates business value: identify, size, and prioritize opportunities where AI can drive measurable commercial impact, build the business case, and influence senior leadership decisions on where to invest.
- Lead hands-on with Gen-AI: Personally use AI-assisted development and agentic tools to prototype, test hypotheses, and demonstrate value quickly; build LLM-backed systems using advanced RAG and context engineering, paired with rigorous scientific evaluation frameworks to scale highly reliable omnichannel recommendations.
- Lead the design of predictive and causal models: Develop next-best-action, recommendation, and sequential decision models that inform customer engagement and resource allocation using complex, multi-source data.
- Own measurement science: set the standard for measuring effectiveness, incrementality, and business impact using experimental and quasi-experimental methods, so that AI investments are evaluated rigorously.
- Partner with product owners to shape problems, not just fulfill requirements: co-define business outcomes, scope, and success metrics, and translate them into scalable technical solutions.
- Navigate a complex stakeholder ecosystem: build alignment across brand and marketing leaders, field sales and operations, Medical, Legal and Regulatory (MLR), Compliance, BTS, Digital Lab, and external vendors; reframe requests into well-posed problems and resolve competing priorities.
- Communicate with executive impact: translate complex methods and findings into clear recommendations and compelling narratives for executive and non-technical audiences.
- Productionize at scale: Partner with BTS, Digital Lab, engineering, and platform teams to deploy, monitor, and manage the lifecycle of AI/ML solutions.
- Raise the bar for scientific rigor: establish best practices in model development, code quality, reproducibility, peer review, and responsible AI across the data science community.
- Be a thought leader: stay at the forefront of research and practice in machine learning, generative AI, and causal inference; bring new ideas into the team; provoke rigorous analytical debate; and represent AbbVie's point of view internally and in the broader analytics community.
Supervisory / Management Responsibilities
This role does not carry formal direct report responsibilities but is expected to act as a technical leader and mentor across the broader data science community, raising the bar on scientific rigor and hands-on AI practice. The Principal Data Scientist may lead technical workstreams with external analytics vendors and partners, including oversight of deliverable quality and methodology validation.
Key Competencies
- Scientific Engineering Depth: Deep expertise in machine learning, causal inference, and generative AI, combined with strong engineering discipline in reproducibility, deployment, and enterprise integration.
- AI Fluency and Bias to Action: Uses AI hands-on in daily work to prototype, analyze, and build; critically evaluates AI output; and turns ideas into working solutions quickly.
- Business Judgment and Problem-Framing: Translates ambiguous business challenges into well-scoped problems, connects technical choices to commercial value, and sets long-term technical direction while staying close to delivery.
- Stakeholder Navigation and Executive Influence: Reads organizational dynamics to build alignment across commercial, regulatory, and technology partners, earning trust as a thought partner to win support from senior leaders.
- Thought Leadership: Challenges conventional thinking and sparks meaningful analytical debate with peers and executives.
Qualifications Education
Bachelor’s Degree in Statistics, Mathematics, Computer Science, Engineering, or another quantitative discipline required; Master’s or PhD in a quantitative field strongly preferred.
Required Experience
- 8+ years of experience in data science, machine learning, or applied science (or 6+ years with a PhD), with a track record of delivering production-quality models that drove measurable business impact.
- Demonstrated experience setting technical direction for a portfolio of AI/ML solutions and influencing decisions of senior business leaders.
- Experience building personalization, recommendation, decision-optimization, or marketing-science solutions, in any industry.
- Deep hands-on expertise in causal inference and experimentation, including A/B testing and quasi-experimental methods, to measure business impact.
- Demonstrated hands-on experience using generative AI and AI-assisted development tools (e.g., LLM APIs, AI coding assistants, agent frameworks) to prototype and deliver solutions, with concrete examples that can be walked through during the interview process.
- Expert proficiency in Python and SQL, with experience in deep learning frameworks (e.g., PyTorch, TensorFlow) and distributed data processing.
- Experience productionizing AI/ML solutions in cloud environments, including deployment, monitoring, and lifecycle management.
- Track record of leading initiatives across complex, cross-functional stakeholder environments and presenting to executive audiences.
Preferred Experience
- Commercial analytics experience in pharmaceutical, biotech, healthcare, or life sciences, including familiarity with data sources such as IQVIA, Symphony Health, APLD, or similar Rx, claims, and engagement data.
- Experience in omnichannel analytics, such as journey analysis, touchpoint measurement, closed-loop measurement, or next-best-action for HCP or patient engagement.
- Experience with advanced ML and optimization methods, including reinforcement learning, multi-armed bandits, transformers, and other approaches for sequential or recommendation use cases.
- Experience building LLM-based and agentic AI systems, including orchestration frameworks, evaluation, and integration through APIs and pipelines.
- Experience with cloud ML platforms and MLOps tools such as Azure ML, Databricks, and MLflow.
- External visibility through conference talks, publications, patents, open-source contributions, or recognized industry thought leadership.
- Experience working in agile product development environments.
Additional Information
Applicable only to applicants applying to a position in any location with pay disclosure requirements under state or local law:
- The compensation range described below is the range of possible base pay compensation that the Company believes in good faith it will pay for this role at the time of this posting based on the job grade for this position. Individual compensation paid within this range will depend on many factors including geographic location, and we may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range. This range may be modified in the future.
- We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off (vacation, holidays, sick), medical/dental/vision insurance and 401(k) to eligible employees.
- This job is eligible to participate in our long-term incentive programs.
Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, incentive, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole and absolute discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole and absolute discretion, consistent with applicable law.
AbbVie is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to operating with integrity, driving innovation, transforming lives and serving our community. Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled.
US & Puerto Rico only - to learn more, visit https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/equal-employment-opportunity-employer.html
US & Puerto Rico applicants seeking a reasonable accommodation, click here to learn more:
https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/reasonable-accommodations.html
Salary Context
This $124K-$236K range is above the median for Data Scientist roles in our dataset (median: $162K across 195 roles with salary data).
View full Data Scientist salary data →Role Details
About This Role
Data Scientists extract insights and build predictive models from data. In the AI era, many roles now include LLM-powered analytics, automated reporting, and integration with generative AI tools. The role has evolved from 'the person who runs SQL queries' to 'the person who builds AI-powered data products.'
Modern data science roles fall into two camps: analytics-focused (insights, dashboards, experimentation) and ML-focused (building predictive models, recommendation systems, NLP features). The best data scientists can operate in both modes. The AI shift means that even analytics-focused roles now involve building automated insight pipelines using LLMs, going well beyond one-off reports.
Across the 11,520 AI roles we're tracking, Data Scientist positions make up 4% of the market. At AbbVie, this role fits into their broader AI and engineering organization.
Data Scientist roles remain in high demand, though the definition keeps shifting. Companies increasingly want candidates who can bridge traditional statistics with modern ML and LLM capabilities. The 'pure insights' data scientist role is consolidating into analytics engineering, while the 'build models' data scientist role is merging with ML engineering.
What the Work Looks Like
A typical week includes: analyzing experiment results for a product feature launch, building a predictive model for customer churn, creating an automated reporting pipeline using LLM-powered summarization, presenting insights to stakeholders, and cleaning data (always cleaning data). The ratio of analysis to engineering varies by company, but expect both.
Data Scientist roles remain in high demand, though the definition keeps shifting. Companies increasingly want candidates who can bridge traditional statistics with modern ML and LLM capabilities. The 'pure insights' data scientist role is consolidating into analytics engineering, while the 'build models' data scientist role is merging with ML engineering.
Skills Required
Python, SQL, and statistical modeling are the foundation. Increasingly, roles want experience with LLMs for data analysis, automated insight generation, and building AI-powered data products. Familiarity with cloud data platforms (Snowflake, BigQuery, Databricks) and ML frameworks (scikit-learn, PyTorch) covers most job requirements.
Experimentation design and causal inference are underrated skills that separate strong candidates. Companies care about whether their product changes cause improvements, and can distinguish causation from correlation. A/B testing methodology, Bayesian statistics, and the ability to communicate uncertainty to non-technical stakeholders are high-value skills.
Good postings specify the data stack, the types of problems you'll work on, and the team structure. Look for companies that differentiate between analytics and ML data science. Vague 'data scientist' postings that list every skill under the sun usually mean the company doesn't know what they need.
Compensation Benchmarks
Data Scientist roles pay a median of $190,000 based on 1,564 positions with disclosed compensation. Senior-level AI roles across all categories have a median of $230,000. This role's midpoint ($180K) sits 5% below the category median. Disclosed range: $124K to $236K.
Across all AI roles, the market median is $213,480. Top-quartile compensation starts at $264,000. The 90th percentile reaches $318,400. For comparison, the highest-paying categories include AI Safety ($266,050) and AI Engineering Manager ($253,461). By seniority level: Entry: $112,320; Mid: $193,200; Senior: $230,000; Director: $272,250; VP: $235,830.
AbbVie AI Hiring
AbbVie has 12 open AI roles right now. They're hiring across Data Scientist, AI/ML Engineer, Research Scientist, AI Product Manager. Positions span North Chicago, IL, US, Mettawa, IL, US, Irvine, CA, US. Compensation range: $183K - $346K.
Location Context
Across all AI roles, 6% (708 positions) offer remote work, while 10,737 require on-site attendance. Top AI hiring metros: New York (3,257 roles, $221,000 median); San Francisco (2,766 roles, $260,550 median); Los Angeles (1,580 roles, $210,000 median).
Career Path
Common paths into Data Scientist roles include Data Analyst, Statistician, Quantitative Researcher.
From here, career progression typically leads toward Senior Data Scientist, ML Engineer, AI Product Manager.
Start with statistics and SQL. Build a real analysis project on public data that demonstrates insight generation alongside model building. The market values data scientists who can communicate findings clearly to business stakeholders. If you want to move toward ML engineering, invest in software engineering fundamentals and production deployment skills.
What to Expect in Interviews
Interviews combine statistics, coding, and business acumen. SQL is almost always tested, often with complex joins and window functions. Expect a case study round where you're given a business problem and asked to design an analysis plan. Coding rounds focus on pandas, statistical modeling, and visualization. The strongest differentiator is how well you communicate insights to non-technical stakeholders during presentation rounds.
When evaluating opportunities: Good postings specify the data stack, the types of problems you'll work on, and the team structure. Look for companies that differentiate between analytics and ML data science. Vague 'data scientist' postings that list every skill under the sun usually mean the company doesn't know what they need.
AI Hiring Overview
The AI job market has 11,520 open positions tracked in our dataset. By seniority: 140 entry-level, 5,630 mid-level, 4,176 senior, and 1,574 leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level). Remote roles make up 6% of the market (708 positions). The remaining 10,737 roles require on-site or hybrid attendance.
The market median for AI roles is $213,480. Top-quartile compensation starts at $264,000. The 90th percentile reaches $318,400. Highest-paying categories: AI Safety ($266,050 median, 70 roles); AI Engineering Manager ($253,461 median, 58 roles); Research Engineer ($252,000 median, 476 roles).
Data Scientist roles remain in high demand, though the definition keeps shifting. Companies increasingly want candidates who can bridge traditional statistics with modern ML and LLM capabilities. The 'pure insights' data scientist role is consolidating into analytics engineering, while the 'build models' data scientist role is merging with ML engineering.
The AI Job Market Today
The AI job market spans 11,520 open positions across 16 role categories. The largest categories by volume: AI/ML Engineer (8,769), AI Software Engineer (586), AI Product Manager (511). These three account for the majority of open positions, though smaller categories often have higher per-role compensation because of specialized skill requirements.
The seniority mix tells a story about where AI teams are in their maturity. Entry-level roles (140) are outnumbered by mid-level (5,630) and senior (4,176) positions, reflecting that most companies are past the 'build a team from scratch' phase and need experienced engineers who can ship production systems. Leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level) total 1,574 positions, representing the bottleneck between technical execution and organizational strategy.
Remote work availability sits at 6% of all AI roles (708 positions), with 10,737 requiring on-site or hybrid attendance. The remote share has stabilized after the post-pandemic correction. Senior and specialized roles (Research Scientist, ML Architect) are more likely to be remote-eligible than entry-level positions, partly because experienced hires have more negotiating power and partly because these roles require less hands-on mentorship.
AI compensation is structured in clear tiers. The market median sits at $213,480. Top-quartile roles start at $264,000, and the 90th percentile reaches $318,400. These figures include base salary with disclosed compensation. Total compensation (including equity, bonuses, and sign-on) runs 20-40% higher at companies that offer those components.
Category matters for compensation. AI Safety roles lead at $266,050 median, while Prompt Engineer roles sit at $140,000. The spread between highest and lowest-paying categories reflects the premium on specialized technical skills versus broader analytical roles.
The most in-demand skills across all AI postings: Python (2,267 postings), Aws (1,178 postings), Azure (972 postings), Rag (924 postings), Gcp (715 postings), Pytorch (586 postings), Claude (572 postings), Kubernetes (559 postings). Python dominates, appearing in the vast majority of role descriptions regardless of category. Cloud platform experience (AWS, GCP, Azure) is the second most common requirement. The newer entrants to the top skills list (RAG, vector databases, LLM APIs) reflect the shift from traditional ML toward generative AI applications.
Frequently Asked Questions
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