Senior Applied Scientist, Forecasting

About the Team

The business forecasting group at Zillow plays a crucial role in shaping planning across various business units by integrating expertise from forecasting, economics, applied/data science, and data visualization. They focus on transforming housing market and business data into insightful, actionable forecasts using advanced data and statistical approaches. Transparency in their models ensures leadership can confidently base decisions on the forecasts.

Company Overview

Zillow Group is a strategic and mission-driven organization committed to delivering excellent experiences and measurable business results. Operating in a fast-paced, collaborative setting, the team blends strategic foresight with practical execution to drive significant impacts across diverse teams. Expansion in India is ongoing, aiming to strengthen workforce capabilities.

Role Summary

This position is for an Applied Scientist located in India focused entirely on creating and enhancing forecasting models for Zillow’s business segments. The role involves designing, executing, and refining complex statistical and machine learning models to achieve accurate and scalable forecasting solutions. Collaboration with colleagues and cross-functional partners is essential to streamline modeling efforts and convert complex data into practical business insights.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and assess statistical, econometric, and machine learning techniques to improve forecast quality and delivery speed.
• Innovate methods to forecast asset-level performance effectively.
• Construct backtesting and validation frameworks to evaluate forecast reliability and its impacts.
• Manage the full cycle of modeling tasks including scoping, feature engineering, model creation, experimentation, deployment, monitoring, and explanation.
• Communicate forecast insights clearly to senior management, outlining drivers, uncertainties, and strategic options.
• Assess and articulate uncertainty and model limitations for audiences with varying technical knowledge.
• Collaborate with finance, product, engineering, marketing, and operations teams to enhance forecasting tools and processes.
• Contribute to the enhancement of shared forecasting resources, data pipelines, and enterprise-wide modeling efforts.
• Work jointly with other scientists and data experts to innovate solutions to real estate and operational challenges.

Work Environment

This is an office-based role requiring attendance approximately 80-100% of the time at Zillow’s India office. Employees should reside within reasonable commuting distance, considering time and cost implications.

Compensation

The position offers a competitive base salary along with eligibility for incentive-based pay, subject to laws and company policies. Compensation varies by experience, performance, and location.

Candidate Profile

• Possession of a PhD or Master’s degree in Economics, Statistics, Operations Research, Data Science, Computer Science, Econometrics, Mathematics, or a similar quantitative discipline; or a similar degree with over 5 years of applied scientist professional experience.
• Demonstrated expertise in time-series forecasting, econometrics, or related quantitative modeling methods.
• Strong foundation in data engineering for scalable data solution design.
• Ability to clearly explain complex analytical models and concepts to non-technical stakeholders using relatable business context and actionable insights.
• Proven experience building applied statistical or machine learning models deployed in production to support business decisions.
• Proficiency in Python and SQL for tasks including data analysis, model building, validation, and deployment.
• Comfort handling messy, incomplete, or delayed data sources, and designing solid estimation strategies accordingly.

About Zillow

Zillow is revolutionizing the real estate journey — whether buying, selling, financing, or renting — making it easier and more confident for millions of customers. The India team provides critical contributions in technology, product, and operations to support this goal, collaborating globally to solve impactful problems.

Zillow has been recognized as a top workplace by prominent industry lists, reflecting its dedication to fostering an inclusive, innovative, and growth-oriented environment.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Zillow Group is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering an environment of innovation, inclusion, and fairness. It prohibits discrimination based on a wide spectrum of characteristics and will provide reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities according to applicable policies.