Machine Learning Engineer - Machine Learning Platform

It wasn’t so long ago that booking a trip to see the Eiffel Tower, stroll down New York’s iconic Madison Avenue or feel the sand between our toes on Copacabana Beach was simply a matter of a few taps on our smartphone. In fact, that’s what we do at Booking.com. We make it easier for everyone to experience the world. And while that world might feel a little farther away right now, we’re busy preparing for when the world is ready to travel once more. Across our offices worldwide, we continue to innovate. To solve for some of the most complex challenges in travel and technology, and to plan for the exciting developments that lie ahead. With strategic long-term investments into what we believe the future of travel can be, we are opening up new career opportunities that will have a strong impact on our mission. We are united in the belief that our very human desire to explore the planet’s beauty and discover more about other people and cultures will endure. The world is waiting for us. Together, we will be ready.

As a Machine Learning Engineer you are a driver of your field, who generates significant business impact directly and indirectly, and crafts the direction of product initiatives by being driven and having full ownership of your projects - from ideation to collecting data, annotating, feature engineering, productizing and training model pipelines, deploying experiments, measuring and iterating on them - as well as coaching other Machine Learning Engineers, Scientists, Data Engineers, Product Managers, etc to do the same.

At Booking.com, data drives our decisions. To do it more effectively we have built a platform for ML scientists. Our Machine Learning Platform is behind what makes Booking able to deliver personal experiences and you will be a part of its development helping to support multiple areas of the business as they use ML to tackle some of the hardest problems that we face, from detecting fraud to recommending which properties you should check for your next stay.

Key Job Responsibilities and Duties:

• Develop production-grade ML systems, from models to features and pipelines, accounting for reliability, scalability, real-time requirements, monitoring and retraining.
• Build readable and reusable code, applying code quality best practices and using standard libraries. Choose the right technology or coding methodology as well as refactor and simplify code when necessary.
• Take full ownership of your services end to end by actively monitoring the systems health, performance and business impact.
• Be responsible for business related data governance processes, the technical implementation and maintenance of data processing services and storage systems, and the implementation and maintenance of ML governance processes.
• Evaluate possible architecture solutions taking into account the business and technology requirements.
• Set the relevant service level objectives SLOs and act accordingly when they are not met.
• Build readable and reusable code, using the right technologies and coding methodologies applying knowledge of business area tools and product needs.
• Continuously evolve your craft by keeping up to date with the latest developments in ML/AI and related technologies and upskilling on these, as needed.
• Contribute to the internal ML/AI community by sharing your knowledge and participating in our internal ML programs.
• Coach others through evidence and clear communication, explaining advanced technical concepts in simpler terms.
• Maintain a highly cross-disciplinary perspective, solving issues by applying approaches and methods from across a variety of disciplines and related fields.
• Achieve mutually agreeable solutions by staying adaptable, communicating ideas in clear coherent language and practising active listening

Role Qualifications and Requirements:

• 3+ years of relevant work experience (or equivalent), involved with the application of Machine Learning to business problems in a commercial environment.
• Experience in areas like e.g. Recommender Systems, Deep Learning, Information Retrieval, Computer Vision, Speech Recognition, Causal Inference, MLOps, etc.
• Work experience (or equivalent), involved with the application of Machine Learning to business problems, preferably in a commercial environment.
• Knowledge of multiple machine learning facets, such as working with large data sets, experimentation, scalability and optimization.
• Experience with data-driven product development: analytics, A/B testing, etc.
• Strong working experience in one or more general purpose programming languages
• Experience of version control systems.
• Excellent English communication skills, both written and verbal.

What we offer:

Benefits & Perks: Global Impact, Personal Relevance

Booking.com’s Total Rewards Philosophy is not only about compensation but also about benefits. Our Total Rewards strive to make it easier for you to experience all that life has to offer on your terms so that you can focus on what really matters. We offer competitive compensation as well as thoughtful, valuable, and even fun benefits which include:

• Headquarters located in one of the most dynamic and cosmopolitan cities in Europe: Amsterdam.
• Contribute to a high scale, sophisticated, world-class product and see the real time impact of your work on millions of travelers worldwide.
• Be part of a truly international fast paced environment and performance driven culture.
• Full relocation support for you and your family to move to Amsterdam. We have fine-tuned this process by successfully relocating over 300 Technology professionals to Amsterdam in the last year alone!
• Performance-based company that offers 29 vacation days, career advancement, and lucrative compensation, including bonuses and stock potential.
• Discount on Booking.com accommodations with the “Booking Deal” including other perks and benefits.
• Company-sponsored family and social activities to help our employees become integrated with each other and Dutch culture.
• Diverse and creative colleagues from every corner of the world.
• Health, life, and disability insurance*
• Annual paid time off and generous paid leave scheme including: parent, grandparent, bereavement, and care leave.
• Hybrid working including flexible working arrangements, and up to 20 days per year working from abroad (home country).
• Industry leading product discounts for yourself, friends, and family, including automatic Genius Level 3 status and quarterly Booking.com wallet credit.
• Free access to online learning platforms, development and mentorship programs, and a complimentary Headspace membership
• On-site meals, coffee, and snacks, including healthy and vegan options, daily*

#ThinkInclusion: Wellbeing & Inclusion at Booking.com:

Inclusion, Diversity, Belonging, Wellbeing and Volunteering (IDBWV) have been a core part of our company culture since day one. This ongoing journey starts with our very own employees, who represent over 140 nationalities and a wide range of ethnic and social backgrounds, genders and sexual orientations.

Take it from our Chief People Officer, Paulo Pisano: “At Booking.com, the diversity of our people doesn’t just create a unique workplace, it also creates a better and more inclusive travel experience for everyone. Inclusion is at the heart of everything we do. It’s a place where you can make your mark and have a real impact in travel and tech.”

We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable adjustment to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment.

Pre-Employment Screening:

If your application is successful, your personal data may be used for a pre-employment screening check by a third party as permitted by applicable law. Depending on the vacancy and applicable law, a pre-employment screening may include employment history, education and other information (such as media information) that may be necessary for determining your qualifications and suitability for the position.