Engineering Manager - AdTech Data Science

Fluent is building the next-generation advertising network, Partner Monetize & Advertiser Acquisition. Our vision is to build an ML/AI-first network of advertisers and publishers to achieve a common objective — elevating relevancy in E-commerce for everyday shoppers.

As our Engineering Manager - AdTech Data Science, you will lead the team responsible for driving business value through machine learning and advanced analytics in the Adtech space. You will own ROAS optimization, audience propensity modeling, and deep learning powered capabilities that differentiate Fluent's advertising products and drive client success. We are seeking expert-level knowledge of sequence modeling (Transformers/Attention) and generative approaches for user behavior, moving beyond legacy logistic regression to implement deep architectures that solve for data sparsity and long-term user value.

This role combines hands-on ML expertise with people leadership, requiring you to set technical direction for modeling initiatives while building and developing a high-performing data science team.

This role is fully remote in the United States or Canada (Ontario), with occasional travel to NYC.

What You'll Do

Machine Learning & Modeling

• Drive the Deep Learning Evolution: Lead the architectural transition from legacy tree-based models (XGBoost) to advanced Neural Network architectures (Deep Learning) for audience propensity, lookalike modeling, and real-time segmentation.
• Own Value-Based Bidding (ROAS): Evolve our bidding strategy from simple conversion prediction to sophisticated ROAS-based optimization, developing models that predict user value (LTV) to maximize client returns within dynamic auction environments.
• Champion Agentic AI & Automation: Spearhead the exploration and adoption of autonomous agentic workflows to enhance decisioning and operational efficiency, moving beyond static models to self-correcting systems.
• Build Production Deep Learning Systems: Oversee the end-to-end engineering of high-scale inference pipelines, including embedding layers, real-time feature stores, and low-latency serving infrastructure such as ONNX, TensorRT etc.
• Advance MLOps & Experimentation: Establish rigorous MLOps practices for model versioning and drift detection while shifting further into multi-armed bandit strategies (Exploration vs. Exploitation) that optimize directly for business outcomes (Revenue/GP) rather than just model metrics.

Leadership & Collaboration

• Lead and grow the Data Science team: hiring, mentoring, performance management, and career development.
• Partner with Product and Client Success to translate business requirements into ML solutions and communicate model capabilities.
• Coordinate with Data Platform team to ensure reliable data foundations and feature pipelines for modeling.
• Translate complex ML concepts into actionable insights for business stakeholders and executives.
• Set technical direction and foster a culture of innovation, rigor, and continuous improvement.

Requirements

• PhD (preferred) or Master’s Degree in Computer Science, Mathematics, or other Quantitative Field.
• 8+ years of experience in Data Science or ML Engineering, with at least 2 years managing or leading technical teams.
• AdTech Deep Learning Architecture Expertise: Deep hands-on experience with modern ranking and retrieval architectures (e.g., DLRM, DCNv2, Two-Tower), with a focus on multi-objective learning (MMoE) to jointly optimize for clicks, conversions, and revenue.
• Strategic Ownership of Agentic AI: Demonstrated passion for and aptitude in defining the roadmap for autonomous agentic systems. You must be ready to learn, champion, and own the evolution from static RAG to production-grade agentic orchestration.
• Real-Time Inference & Engineering: Experience deploying complex models into high-throughput, low-latency production environments (familiarity with ONNX, TensorRT, or feature stores).
• Commercial & Business Acumen: Ability to translate improved model performance (AUC/LogLoss) into tangible business metrics (GP, RPM) and prioritize R&D efforts based on ROI and unit economics.
• Strong Python skills with a focus on Deep Learning frameworks (PyTorch, TensorFlow) as well as traditional ML libraries (XGBoost, scikit-learn).
• Proven people management skills: Experience hiring, mentoring, and developing high-performing data science talent.
• Excellent communication skills for translating technical concepts to business stakeholders and executives.

Nice-to-Haves

• Hands-on Agentic Framework Experience: Familiarity with graph-based orchestration such as LangGraph, multi-agent systems (CrewAI), or emerging standards like Model Context Protocol (MCP).
• ROAS optimization and campaign performance modeling.
• Databricks and MLflow experience.
• Experience with audience/customer modeling: propensity, lookalike, segmentation, or recommender systems.

About Us

Fluent, Inc. (NASDAQ: FLNT) is a commerce media solutions provider connecting top-tier brands with highly engaged consumers. Leveraging diverse ad inventory, robust first-party data, and proprietary machine learning, Fluent unlocks additional revenue streams for partners and empowers advertisers to acquire their most valuable customers at scale. Founded in 2010, Fluent uses its deep expertise in performance marketing to drive monetization and increase engagement at key touchpoints across the customer journey. For more insights visit:https://www.fluentco.com/

Benefits

At Fluent, we like what we do, and we like who we do it with. Our team is a tight-knit crew of go-getters; we love to celebrate our successes! In addition, we offer a fully stocked kitchen, catered lunch, and our office manager keeps the calendar stocked with activity filled events. When we’re not eating, working out, or planning parties, Fluent folks can be found participating in networking events, and bonding across teams during quarterly outings to baseball games, fancy dinners, and a variety of activities. And we have all the practical benefits, too…

• Competitive compensation
• Ample career and professional growth opportunities
• New Headquarters with an open floor plan to drive collaboration
• Health, dental, and vision insurance
• Pre-tax savings plans and transit/parking programs
• 401K with competitive employer match
• Volunteer and philanthropic activities throughout the year
• Educational and social events
• The amazing opportunity to work for a high-flying performance marketing company!

Salary Range: $160,000 to $225,000 base, + competitive bonus. The base salary range represents the low and high end of the Fluent salary range for this position. Actual salaries will vary depending on factors including but not limited to location, experience, and performance.

Candidates may be at risk of targeting by malicious actors seeking personal information. Fluent recruiters will only reach out via LinkedIn or email with an @fluentco.com domain. Any outreach by Fluent via other sources (e.g. text, other domains etc) should be ignored.

Fluent participates in the E-Verify Program. As a participating employer, Fluent, LLC will provide the Social Security Administration (SSA) and, if necessary, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), with information from each new employee’s Form I-9 to confirm work authorization. Fluent, LLC follows all federal regulations including those set forth by The Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC). The OSC enforces the anti-discrimination provision (§ 274B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), 8 U.S.C. § 1324b.