Founding Data Engineer Jobs in Elmhurst, IL (NOW HIRING)

Company Description

With a history that dates back over 80 years, Starcom is a global communications planning and media leader. We are an agency still grounded in our founding principle that people are at center of all we do. Each day, we apply this belief to harness the transformative power of data and technology to inspire and move people and business forward. With more than 7,000 employees in over 100 offices around the world, Starcom partners with the world's leading marketers and brands, including Bank of America, Best Buy, Kellogg Company, McDonald's, Novartis, Samsung, Visa and more.

Overview

The Data Scientist at Starcom will play a hands-on role in creating, testing and scaling analytics solutions within the Databricks environment. Sitting within our Analytics + Technology (A+T) team, this role partners closely with internal Strategists and Consumer Insights teams to transform client growth opportunities into actionable data science outputs.  They will work under the guidance of senior data science leaders to deliver impactful, data-driven solutions for both internal teams and external clients.

We are looking for someone with 1-2 years of applied data science experience who is eager to lean in, experiment with new approaches, and help shape how advanced analytics drives audience development, campaign activation, and media performance. This is an opportunity to grow technical expertise while taking ownership of meaningful projects that directly impact clients and internal teams.

The ideal candidate is curious, entrepreneurial, and detail-oriented-with the technical skills to build and validate solutions, and the communication ability to make those solutions clear and impactful to non-technical stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop analytics applications and solutions using Python, SQL, and PySpark in Databricks.
• Build, refine and prototype new approaches to campaign-specific audience development in partnership with Strategists and Consumer Insights teams.
• Perform quality assurance checks to validate audience definitions, confirm audience sizes, and ensure delivery readiness.
• Push approved audiences from Databricks into downstream environments, enabling non-technical teams to activate audiences seamlessly.
• Collaborate with media, marketing, and strategy teams to rethink growth opportunities and translate them into scalable, data-driven solutions.
• Explore and apply statistical and machine learning methods under the guidance of senior data scientists (e.g., regression, classification, clustering, forecasting).
• Identify opportunities to automate processes and improve workflows across analytics and audience development.
• Document audience logic, data sources, and methodologies to ensure clarity, repeatability and scalability.
• Pilot and test emerging techniques, sharing learnings and recommendations with the broader analytics team.
• Support integration of data science outputs into dashboards, pipelines, and reporting platforms.
• Communicate findings and insights clearly, bridging the gap between technical and non-technical partners.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in a quantitative field (e.g., Statistics, Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, Economics) or equivalent experience.
• 1-2 years of applied experience in data science, analytics, or a related field.
• Proficiency in Python (Pandas, NumPy, SciPy, Scikit-learn, Matplotlib/Plotly) and SQL; exposure to PySpark and distributed data processing a plus.
• Familiarity with Databricks or other cloud-based analytics platforms preferred.
• Basic understanding of statistical modeling and machine learning techniques (regression, classification, clustering, forecasting).
• Strong attention to detail and ability to perform data QA.
• Ability to work in collaboration with technical and non-technical team members.
• Interest in media, advertising, or marketing analytics is a plus.
• Familiarity with data visualization tools (e.g., Tableau, PowerBI) is helpful.

Additional Information

Starcom is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Our employment decisions are made without regard to actual or perceived race, color, ethnicity, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, age, disability, medical condition as defined by applicable state law, genetic information, marital status, military service and veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local laws and ordinances.

The Power of One starts with our people! To do powerful things, we offer powerful resources. Our best-in-class wellness and benefits offerings include:

• Paid Family Care for parents and caregivers for 12 weeks or more
• Monetary assistance and support for Adoption, Surrogacy and Fertility
• Monetary assistance and support for pet adoption
• Employee Assistance Programs and Health/Wellness/Comfort reimbursements to help you invest in your future and work/life balance
• Tuition Assistance
• Paid time off that includes Flexible Time off Vacation, Annual Sick Days, Volunteer Days, Holiday and Identity days, and more
• Matching Gifts programs
• Flexible working arrangements
• 'Work Your World' Program encouraging employees to work from anywhere Publicis Groupe has an office for up to 6 weeks a year (based upon eligibility)
• Business Resource Groups that support multiple affinities and alliances

The benefits offerings listed are available to U.S. based employees, are reviewed on an annual basis, and are governed by the terms of the applicable plan documents.

Compensation Range: $110,580 - $158,865 annually. This is the pay range the Company believes it will pay for this position at the time of this posting. Consistent with applicable law, compensation will be determined based on the skills, qualifications, and experience of the applicant along with the requirements of the position, and the Company reserves the right to modify this pay range at any time. Temporary roles may be eligible to participate in our freelancer/temporary employee medical plan through a third-party benefits administration system once certain criteria have been met. Temporary roles may also qualify for participation in our 401(k) plan after eligibility criteria have been met. For regular roles, the Company will offer medical coverage, dental, vision, disability, 401k, and paid time off. The Company anticipates the application deadline for this job posting will be 10/15/2025.

If you require accommodation or assistance with the application or onboarding process specifically, please contact USMSTACompliance@publicis.com.  All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

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 Compensation Range: USD $110,580.00 - USD $158,865.00/Annually. This is the pay range the Company believes it will pay for this position at the time of this posting. Consistent with applicable law, compensation will be determined based on the skills, qualifications, and experience of the applicant along with the requirements of the position, and the Company reserves the right to modify this pay range at any time. Temporary roles may be eligible to participate in our freelancer/temporary employee medical plan through a third-party benefits administration system once certain criteria have been met. For regular roles, the Company will offer medical coverage, dental, vision, disability, 401k, and paid time off. The Company anticipates the application deadline for this job posting will be 9/30/2025.Employment Type: OTHER