Senior Data Analyst - Simulation

London, Greater London, UK

About Ocado Technology

“We are on a mission: to transform the future of online grocery through cutting-edge technology innovation.”

Ocado Technology is changing the way the world shops using advanced Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Robotics, Big Data, Cloud and IoT. We develop the innovative software and hardware systems that power Ocado.com, as well as the unique ‘Ocado Smart Platform’ which is being implemented by ambitious retailers across the world from Europe to America, Asia and beyond. 

We build everything in-house: from intelligent, frictionless e-commerce platforms to highly automated warehouses, our employees are skilled specialists with expertise across a wide range of technologies. We’re working on cutting-edge innovations that are shaping the future of our society.

We are a fast-growing, global company. Today we have colleagues in development centre across the world - London, Hatfield, Welwyn Garden City (UK), Krakow, Wroclaw (Poland), Sofia (Bulgaria), Barcelona (Spain), Stockholm (Sweden), Las Vegas, San Francisco (USA) and Toronto (Canada).

Our Values

We champion a value-led culture to get our teams working at their very best and to help create a collaborative working environment with inspiring projects that our people love. Core values of Trust, Autonomy, Craftsmanship, Collaboration and Learn Fast help drive our innovative culture.  But don’t just take our word for it, have a look at what our people are saying about us on Glassdoor

Building this cutting edge technology is only possible through extensive simulation, which drives decisions around warehouse design, business planning and control algorithms. We have recently developed a brand new simulation tool to help us understand the performance of our In Store Fulfilment (ISF) offering, and are looking for an analyst who can build a deep understanding of both the simulation tool and behaviour, and use it to deliver meaningful insight to the rest of our business. 

We’re looking for someone to join our Fulfilment Analyst team, working alongside the other analysts to build a true data-driven approach across our Fulfilment operation, while specialising in how to unlock additional insight through simulation. You will work closely with diverse stakeholders to understand their requirements, then configure the appropriate simulations and convert the results into clear and meaningful analysis. Through research, experimentation and collaboration, combining real-world and simulated data, you will become an expert in some of Ocado’s most advanced and complex technology. You will help to define the way we use simulation, from processes and best practices for analysis through to our interaction with stakeholders.

While developing insights through simulation will be the primary focus of the role, there will also be opportunities to work with other analysts in the team to analyse data related to Ocado’s fulfilment applications. Insights and recommendations produced from this analysis will then be shared with relevant product teams to help shape their future roadmaps.

The team...

The Analyst team helps product teams within the Fulfillment stream to use data to make better informed decisions.. You will also work with a range of stakeholders across the wider business (e.g. sales teams) who need simulation data to help with their decisions. Currently, the Analyst team comprises four members in London and Bulgaria, with varying skills and experience. This will be our first simulation analyst hire for the Fulfilment stream, but there are a number of other simulation analysts in the wider Ocado Technology division, who can provide support and guidance as required.

About the role...

A typical piece of analysis work may involve:

  • Liaising with stakeholders to understand their requirements
  • Determining how best to answer these questions, which might be existing data, a spreadsheet model, a suite of simulations, or even not to answer at all
  • Anticipating any additional functionality required (to the simulation, algorithms or tooling), and communicating with the relevant development teams
  • Planning and configuring appropriate simulation studies
  • In-depth analysis of the results, building a complete picture of the simulation behaviour
  • Running further experiments and investigations into any unexpected or interesting behaviours
  • Producing an accessible and understandable summary of the results, at the appropriate level of detail, with a clear description of the limitations and assumptions made

The analysis will typically involve using some of the following (previous experience desirable): Microsoft Excel / Google Sheets, Python (e.g. Jupyter, Pandas), Google Data Studio, SQL, Google BigQuery.

About you

We'd love to speak to you if you have... 

  • Proven numeracy skills 
  • Demonstrable experience of generating insight from data, preferably working as an analyst or consultant
  • Demonstrable experience of generating insight from data
  • A keen eye for detail, with the inquisitiveness and drive to understand things in depth
  • Speed of learning, ability to quickly pick up new ideas and use a wide range of tools to solve challenging problems
  • Ability to communicate clearly and precisely with technical and non-technical teams, both verbally and in writing
  • Drive to continually improve themselves and their team, and to find better ways of working
  • Proven experience using SQL and Python (e.g. Jupyter, Pandas)

It would be great but it's not essential if you have experience in... 

  • Professional or academic data-driven research
  • The use of simulation to understand complex systems
  • Applied statistics (e.g. significance testing, regression, machine learning
  • Retail operations, or Ocado’s Customer Fulfillment Centre technology
  • Business process mapping within operations or technology 

What we can offer you

Our employee benefits are designed for you, we care about people and we’ve ensured we have a wealth of benefits that focus on your well-being. We regularly review our benefits to ensure we are supporting our employees appropriately. Currently, we offer technically stretching work, a competitive salary and;

  • Hybrid working patterns meaning part of the working week can be spent working remotely (typically 3 days per week). However, your working pattern will depend upon your role/team).
  • 30 days ‘working from anywhere’ policy 
  • Wellbeing support through Apps such as Unmind and an Employee Assistance Programme
  • 25 days annual leave, rising to 27 days after 5 years service (plus optional holiday purchase)
  • Pension scheme (various options available including employer contribution matching up to 7%)
  • Private Medical Insurance
  • 22 weeks paid maternity leave and 6 weeks paid paternity leave (once relevant service requirements complete) 
  • Train Ticket loan (interest-free)
  • Cycle to Work Scheme
  • Free shuttle bus to and from Hatfield Train Station to the Hatfield offices 
  • Free shuttle bus to and from Welwyn Garden City Train Station to the Welwyn Garden City offices
  • Opportunity to participate in Sharesave and Buy as You Earn share schemes
  • 15% discount on Ocado.com and free delivery for all employees
  • Income Protection (can be up to 50% of salary for 3 years) and Life Assurance (3 x annual salary)

We also have regular divisional socials, sports clubs not to mention the Ocado Technology Academy for a packed schedule of courses, conferences and events. If you think you have what it takes to make a difference, please submit your application below.

We are thrilled to welcome applicants from across the world. Whilst we are able to offer visa sponsorship, please note that we are only able to cover costs relating to the Certificate of Sponsorship and the Immigration Skills Charge only. For all employment offers made for UK roles, it is expected that you will be based in the UK in commutable distance, ready for your first day of work, so please keep this in mind. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

Due to the energising nature of Ocado's business, vacancy close dates, when stated, are indicative and may be subject to change so please apply as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. If you have applied and been rejected for this role in the last 6 months, or applied and been rejected for a role with a similar skill set, we will not re-evaluate you for this position. After 6 months, we will treat your application as a new one. All benefits information is subject to change and the terms of the individual arrangements.

Be bold, be unique, be brilliant, be you. We are looking for individuality and we value diversity above gender, sexual orientation, race, nationality, ethnicity, religion, age, disability or union participation. We are an equal opportunities employer and we are committed to treating all applicants and employees fairly and equally. 

* Salary range is an estimate based on our AI, ML, Data Science Salary Index 💰

Tags: Big Data BigQuery Data Studio E-commerce Excel Jupyter Machine Learning Pandas Python Research Robotics SQL Statistics Testing

Perks/benefits: Career development Competitive pay Conferences Equity Health care Insurance Medical leave Parental leave Team events

Region: Europe
Country: United Kingdom
Job stats:  2  0  0
Category: Analyst Jobs

More jobs like this

Explore more AI, ML, Data Science career opportunities

Find even more open roles in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Natural Language Processing (NLP), Computer Vision (CV), Data Engineering, Data Analytics, Big Data, and Data Science in general - ordered by popularity of job title or skills, toolset and products used - below.