Vail Systems, Inc.
Chicago, IL

Ph.D. Data Scientist

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Ph.D. Data Scientist

Vail Systems, Inc. Company Profile

The human voice is capable of conveying nuances and meaning that just can't be expressed through clicks and text messages. And for that reason, voice interactions have always had a special power to shape our perceptions and experiences. At Vail, we believe in the unique power of voice interactions to create more expressive, more intimate, and more efficient interpersonal interactions. Our experts work with Fortune 500 companies to help them serve their customers more efficiently and effectively through the use of various voice technologies. From basic network services to state-of-the-art IP telephony, to cutting edge real-time analytics, Vail technology makes millions of voice interactions better every day.

Ph.D. Data Scientist

As millions of interactions move through our networks, billions of packets of voice data are analyzed by our systems. Using proprietary technology, we're measuring things like voice clarity, emotion, and voice stress to better understand and react to changes in conversations. This analysis has opened the door to new solutions that measure customer satisfaction, speech intelligibility, and fraud propensity in real-time. These are practical applications of big data analytics at work.

We're looking to add a Data Scientist to our real-time analytics team. This team is on a mission to explore the wealth of voice data available, looking for insights that may lead to new and powerful business applications. Like the data we're analyzing, the work is unstructured and the solutions aren't always clear. It makes for a continual challenge that will require an individual who demonstrates:

  • An analytical and creative mind
  • A keen eye for pattern recognition
  • Mathematical ability
  • A computational mindset
  • A high tolerance for ambiguity
  • A highly collaborative disposition
  • A positive disposition and a can-do attitude
  • The maturity to perform research independently

Essential Responsibilities and Deliverables:

As a Data Scientist, you'll be analyzing and experimenting with interaction data to find patterns in system or user behavior that can be used to inform business actions. For example, you will be involved in the analysis of audio waveforms helping to uncover patterns of audible factors that represent negative conversational dynamics in a call center. You may also develop models that use semantic context to fill in garbled or unrecognizable utterances without changing the meaning of the underlying sentence or phrase. You'll then develop prototype applications in Python, MatLab, or R, that recognize these patterns to generate real-time event data that can be channeled into user applications. Most of your work will be done from either our Chicago Loop office or our Deerfield headquarters, however, you should also expect to interact directly with our clients from time to time.

To be considered for this position, you must have:

  • D. degree in computer science with an emphasis on NLP, or computational linguistics\
  • Peer-reviewed publications in machine learning, NLP, machine translation, or related fields
  • Experience in modeling frameworks (R, SciKit, Tensorflow, Keras)
  • Experience in Text-to-Speech and Speech-to-Text technologies
  • Knowledge of systems-related issues in NLP frameworks
  • Strong interest in statistical language models, statistical semantic models, language grammars and dialogue systems
  • Experience and knowledge in traditional machine learning algorithms and deep learning frameworks (recurrent neural networks, convolutional neural networks, LSTM, etc.) applied to NLP domain
  • Knowledge of word segmentation and entity extraction
  • Strong communications and writing experience

Ideally you will also be able to demonstrate:

  • Experience with statistical coding involving machine learning or pattern recognition especially in audio applications
  • An understanding of or interest in linguistics and conversational systematics
  • Curiosity about phonetics and languages
  • Experience in original scholarship in collaboration with a team
  • Experience extracting, manipulating and curating large datasets
  • Application development experience in an advanced object-oriented language such as C++, Python or Java

If you enjoy solving complex puzzles; if you are fascinated by the dynamics of human communication; if you want to help develop technology that helps people communicate more freely and effectively; talk to us!

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What are Vail Systems, Inc. Perks + Benefits

Vail Systems, Inc. Benefits Overview

Vail’s core values are integral to every aspect of our company, including how we support each employee’s health and happiness in and out of the workplace. We provide access to top-tier health and wellness benefits, opportunities for continued educational experience, and several other benefits that support a healthy work-life balance.

Culture
Partners with nonprofits
We partner with Seneca Foundation and Chicago Public Schools to educate Black and Latinx recent Chicagoland high school graduates with paid software development training opportunities.
Open door policy
OKR operational model
Pair programming
Open office floor plan
Employee-led culture committees
Hybrid work model
In-person all-hands meetings
Flexible work schedule
Remote work program
Each employee’s balance of remote and on-site work is based on how they work best, and when in-person collaboration is most effective.
Diversity
Documented equal pay policy
Mandated unconscious bias training
We provide training to all employees who participate in our interview process on unconscious biases and interview best practices.
Mean gender pay gap below 10%
Hiring practices that promote diversity
Health Insurance & Wellness Benefits
Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
Covers Health, Limited Purpose, Commuter, and Dependent Care.
Disability insurance
Dental insurance
Three (3) plan options through Cigna, including PPO, Buy-up PPO, and HMO.
Vision insurance
Health insurance
Three (3) plan options through Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, including PPO, High Deductible PPO (HSA), and HMO. All plans ensure prescription coverage.
Life insurance
All employees receive Basic Life coverage, provided by Vail Systems. Additional coverage is also available.
Pet insurance
Wellness programs
Team workouts
Mental health benefits
Access to ComPsych’s Employee Guidance Programs and services.
Financial & Retirement
401(K)
401(K) matching
Performance bonus
Charitable contribution matching
Pay transparency
Child Care & Parental Leave Benefits
Childcare benefits
Generous parental leave
New parents receive twelve (12) weeks paid leave for primary caregivers and two (2) weeks paid leave for secondary caregivers.
Family medical leave
Vacation & Time Off Benefits
Generous PTO
Employees receive fifteen (15) days of PTO and two (2) “float days” per year.
Paid holidays
Paid sick days
Floating holidays
Bereavement leave benefits
Office Perks
Commuter benefits
Pre-tax commuter plans are available to help employees cut back costs on transit (Metra, CTA) and parking.
Company-sponsored outings
Free snacks and drinks
Both our Chicago Loop and Deerfield office kitchens are regularly restocked with free snacks and beverages for our employees.
Some meals provided
Recreational clubs
Vail Systems sponsors a summer softball league and triathlon team.
Relocation assistance
Our relocation assistance plan offers a maximum reimbursement $1000 for relocations over 50 miles from previous home location.
Home-office stipend for remote employees
All full-time employees are eligible for a $100 reimbursement to help get their home office set up. 
Mother's room
Onsite gym
Professional Development Benefits
Job training & conferences
Tuition reimbursement
Lunch and learns
Promote from within
Continuing education stipend
Continuing education available during work hours
Online course subscriptions available
Customized development tracks
Paid industry certifications
Apprenticeship programs

Additional Perks + Benefits

Employee Referral Bonuses. Gym Memberships. Collaborative Work Space. Competitive Pay.

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