---
title: 'Data Scientist, Decisions - Central Market Management at Lyft'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/data-scientist-decisions-central-market-management-lyft-san-francisco-6dhfx3c19hfg'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-08'
---

# Data Scientist, Decisions - Central Market Management at Lyft

- **Company:** Lyft
- **Location:** San Francisco, CA
- **Posted:** 2026-01-16
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-08
- **Apply:** https://app.careerpuck.com/job-board/lyft/job/8376875002?gh_jid=8376875002

## Job description

At Lyft, our purpose is to serve and connect. We aim to achieve this by cultivating a work environment where all team members belong and have the opportunity to thrive.

Data Science is at the heart of Lyft’s products and decision-making. Data Scientists at Lyft operate in dynamic environments, moving quickly to build the world’s best transportation solutions. We tackle a wide range of challenges—from shaping long-term business strategy with data, to making critical short-term decisions, to developing algorithms and models that power both internal systems and customer-facing products.

We are looking for an experienced and highly motivated Data Scientist to join the Central Market Management team and lead key initiatives that enhance the quality of our overall decision-making. You’ll work cross functionally with other Data Scientists, Data Analysts, Product Managers, and Finance partners to make sure we are making the most financially efficient decisions to scale our business. You will identify gaps in our operational processes and measurements, and work to create strategies, frameworks, and models to help address them and deliver impact.

## Responsibilities

- Leverage data and analytical frameworks to identify opportunities for improving operational efficiency
- Define and implement decision frameworks, measurement strategies, and scientific methodologies that bring consistency and rigor to business decisions and forecasts, balancing opportunity and uncertainty
- Deliver integrated, high-quality analytical outputs spanning multiple projects while navigating ambiguity, cross-team dependencies, and open-ended scope
- Define and implement a robust attribution framework to evaluate the performance of high-stakes decisions
- Act as a technical lead, guiding other Data Scientists and fostering a culture of analytical excellence
- Write efficient, clean, production-level code (Python, SQL), ensuring reproducibility, documentation, and long-term maintainability of analytical assets
- Be proactive in pursuing opportunities and have a true ownership mindset to get things done
- Contribute to the Science community (hiring, onboarding, documentation, knowledge-sharing, tooling improvements), helping make Decision Science at Lyft more effective and scalable

## Experience

- Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD in a quantitative field such as Statistics, Economics, Computer Science, Engineering, Applied Mathematics, or related discipline; or equivalent practical experience.
- 3+ years of industry experience in decision science, analytics, statistics, or data science, with a track record of influencing strategy and business outcomes through data.
- Demonstrated ability to own multi-project analytical scopes with ambiguous problem definitions and cross-functional integration.
- Expertise in metric design, diagnostic analysis, forecasting, behavioral analytics, decision frameworks and measurement strategy is a plus.
- Proficiency in SQL, Python, and tools for data manipulation, statistical modeling, visualization, and reproducible pipelines.
- Ability to translate analytical insights into clear, actionable recommendations for both technical and executive audiences.
- Proven success driving alignment and influencing cross-functional teams in fast-paced, ambiguous, high-stakes environments.
- Strong communication, critical thinking, and prioritization skills, including the ability to challenge assumptions, propose alternatives, and balance short-term vs. long-term tradeoffs.
- Experience working with financial data is a plus.
- Experience building and scaling monitoring systems and business health dashboards that identify anomalies, trends, and opportunities.

Benefits:

- Great medical, dental, and vision insurance options with additional programs available when enrolled
- Mental health benefits
- Family building benefits
- Child care and pet benefits
- 401(k) plan to help save for your future
- In addition to 12 observed holidays, salaried team members have discretionary paid time off, hourly team members have 15 days paid time off
- 18 weeks of paid parental leave. Biological, adoptive, and foster parents are all eligible
- Subsidized commuter benefits
- Lyft Pink - Lyft team members get an exclusive opportunity to test new benefits of our Ridership Program

Lyft is an equal opportunity employer committed to an inclusive workplace that fosters belonging. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regards to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, age, genetic information, or any other basis prohibited by law. We also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with applicable federal, state and local law.

Lyft highly values having employees working in-office to foster a collaborative work environment and company culture. This role will be in-office on a hybrid schedule — Team Members will be expected to work in the office 3 days per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Lyft considers working in the office at least 3 days per week to be an essential function of this hybrid role. Your recruiter can share more information about the various in-office perks Lyft offers. Additionally, hybrid roles have the flexibility to work from anywhere for up to 4 weeks per year. #Hybrid

The expected base pay range for this position in the San Francisco area is $128,000 - $160,000, not inclusive of potential equity offering, bonus or benefits. Salary ranges are dependent on a variety of factors, including qualifications, experience and geographic location. Your recruiter can share more information about the salary range specific to your working location and other factors during the hiring process.

## About Lyft

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Lyft operates a ride-hailing, bikeshare, and scooter platform that connects drivers and riders, aiming to reduce personal car ownership and make cities more livable.
- **Entity Type**: Public (NASDAQ: LYFT)
- **Headquarters**: San Francisco, California, USA
- **Founded**: 2012
- **Founders**: Logan Green and John Zimmer

## Core Business
- **Primary industry/industries**: Mobility, Transportation, Ride-hailing, Micromobility
- **Target customers**: B2C (riders and drivers), B2B (Lyft Business for enterprise commutes), and public sector (transit partnerships)
- **Mission or purpose statement**: "To serve and connect" — building a more connected world, ride by ride.

## Products & Services
- **[Lyft Rideshare]**: The core on-demand ride-hailing service connecting passengers with drivers. Type: Platform / Service.
- **[Lyft Pink]**: A subscription membership offering perks like discounted rides, priority airport pickups, and free bike/scooter unlocks. Type: Subscription.
- **[Lyft Business]**: A suite of tools for companies to manage employee commutes, client rides, and delivery logistics. Type: B2B SaaS / Service.
- **[Lyft Bikes & Scooters]**: Shared electric bikes and scooters available in select cities, including the Bixi network in Montreal. Type: Micromobility Service.
- **[Lyft Flexdrive]**: A car rental program for drivers who don't own a vehicle, enabling them to earn on the platform. Type: Service / Fleet Management.
- **[Lyft Ads]**: In-app advertising platform allowing brands to reach riders and drivers. Type: Ad Tech / Marketplace.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Approximately $4.5 billion (as of mid-2025, market cap fluctuates). **Not publicly available** for private valuation — public company.
- **Key Metric**: Annual Revenue of approximately $4.4 billion (FY 2023), with $1.3 billion in Q1 2025 reported revenue.
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Major institutional investors include Fidelity, Vanguard, and BlackRock. Key partners include Uber (in some markets, e.g., transit data sharing), Motivate (bikeshare operator), and various municipal transit agencies.
- **Growth Signals**: Launched Lyft Ads in 2024; expanded into autonomous vehicle partnerships (Waymo, Motional); opened new offices in Toronto (2024) and Mexico City (2022); strong recovery in ride volumes post-pandemic.

## Competitive Advantages
- **Differentiated brand and culture**: Known for a friendlier, more community-oriented brand compared to competitors, with a focus on driver and rider safety.
- **Integrated multimodal platform**: Combines ride-hailing, bikes, scooters, and public transit info in one app, making it a one-stop mobility solution.
- **Strong transit partnerships**: Deep integrations with city transit agencies (e.g., Montreal's Bixi, LA Metro) provide a unique public-sector moat.
- **Data & network effects**: Large dataset on urban mobility patterns enables better routing, pricing, and demand prediction.

## Strategic Focus
- **Autonomous vehicle (AV) readiness**: Building partnerships and infrastructure to integrate AVs into the platform, positioning for a future without human drivers.
- **Advertising revenue**: Scaling Lyft Ads to create a new high-margin revenue stream, leveraging its large user base.
- **International expansion**: Selectively entering new markets (e.g., Canada, Mexico) and deepening presence in existing ones via bikeshare and transit.
- **Profitability**: Continued focus on operational efficiency and cost discipline to achieve sustained GAAP profitability.

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: Lyft emphasizes a welcoming, inclusive culture with core values like "Be yourself," "Make it happen," and "Uplift others." The company fosters a strong sense of belonging through Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) and community events.
- **Remote/Hybrid/Office Policy**: Hybrid model — employees are expected in the office a few days a week, with flexibility. Offices are designed with tech-equipped workspaces, stocked kitchens, and themed rooms.
- **Notable Perks**:
    - **Health & Well-being**: Comprehensive medical, dental, vision; free One Medical membership; free access to therapists via Modern Health.
    - **Time Off**: Unlimited paid vacation for salaried US employees; generous PTO for hourly employees.
    - **Parental Leave**: 18 weeks of paid leave for all new parents (biological, adoptive, foster).
    - **Financial**: 401(k) plan with financial training sessions.
    - **Commute**: Free Lyft Pink membership; pre-tax commuter benefits.
    - **Learning**: Udemy subscription for professional development; mentorship programs for interns and new grads.
    - **Office Environment**: Dog-friendly offices; regular team offsites and social events.
- **Engineering Culture**: Known for high-impact work on large-scale distributed systems, machine learning, and mobile engineering. Early-career talent is highly valued, with structured mentorship and real project ownership.

## Sources
1. [Lyft Careers](https://www.lyft.com/careers)
2. [Lyft Life at Lyft](https://www.lyft.com/careers/life-at-lyft)
3. [Lyft Early Talent Programs](https://www.lyft.com/careers/early-talent)
4. [Lyft Homepage](https://www.lyft.com/)
5. [LinkedIn Lyft](https://www.linkedin.com/company/lyft)

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