Senior MLOps Engineer

Would you like to use your data engineering expertise to enhance the safer use of medicines and vaccines? Do you excel in diverse, multicultural teams and find satisfaction in tackling problems that deliver tangible benefits? Are you eager to drive a dynamic development culture that transforms research discoveries into impactful products? Then this position is right for you!

Since 1978, Uppsala Monitoring Centre (UMC) has been dedicated to developing, supporting, and expanding the field of pharmacovigilance science and practice. As a World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre, we support work around the world to examine the potential adverse effects of medicines and vaccines and contribute to safer, more informed care of patients. We are a diverse, international group of pharmacists, physicians, data scientists, system developers, communicators, and many other professionals motivated by a deep belief that the work we do matters.

We are seeking a skilled senior MLOps engineer to join our Research team. This role is crucial in helping our data scientists deploy models on Azure, manage CI/CD processes, ensure proper experiment tracking, and deploy API backends for both internal use and future external integration. The ideal candidate will also contribute to automating deployment pipelines and enhance team delivery and code quality by implementing best practices in software development.

You will report to the Head of Data Science within the Research department, working alongside a team of data scientists to transform proof-of-concept research into production. You will be in a unique position to leverage research outputs, adding value for both internal and external stakeholders within a fun and dynamic multidisciplinary department.

What you will do

- Model deployment and management- Collaborate with data scientists to deploy machine learning models on cloud platforms.- Ensure deployed models are continuously monitored and retrained as necessary.- Design scalable systems to handle increased load and data size.
- CI/CD and automation- Design and manage CI/CD pipelines for continuous deployment and integration of models.- Automate deployment pipelines to streamline model deployment processes.
- Experiment tracking and reproducibility- Implement proper experiment tracking during model development to ensure reproducibility.
- API development and management- Deploy API backends in the cloud, setting up API keys and access controls for internal and potentially external use.- Implement security best practices for model deployment and API management.
- Collaboration and training- Teach the team best practices in software development, including version control, code reviews, and testing.- Work with different teams to integrate deployed models with various applications.- Create comprehensive documentation for deployed systems and provide training to team members.- Work in close collaboration with our Azure infrastructure team to ensure harmonisation.
- Optimisation and cost management- Optimise cloud resources to manage and reduce costs effectively.
- Innovation and improvement:- Propose and implement initiatives for automation and harmonisation to improve team efficiency.- Stay updated on the latest trends and best practices in machine-learning engineering and MLOps.
Who you are

- Bachelor's or master's degree in computer science, data science, or a related field.
- Proven experience with cloud platforms (preferably Azure).
- Strong knowledge of Python and machine learning frameworks, knowledge of R is a plus.
- At least 5 years of experience in MLOps and designing and managing CI/CD pipelines.
- Proficiency in Git.
- Knowledge of one IaC language is a plus.
- Understanding of API development and management, including security best practices.
- Experience with experiment tracking tools (such as MLflow, Weights & Biases).
- Excellent problem-solving skills and the ability to troubleshoot complex issues.
- Good understanding of cloud security best practices and compliance standards.
- Rigour in documentation and testing.
- Strong interpersonal skills and comfortable working with multiple stakeholders from different backgrounds and nationalities.
- Innovative, independent, driven, and can quickly devise fit-for-purpose deployment solutions.
- Generous and enjoy helping others to solve problems.
- Certification in cloud platforms or machine learning is a plus.
- Experience of deploying open LLMs on VPCs is a big plus.

Uppsala Monitoring Centre (UMC) is a non-profit foundation established in 1978 through an agreement between the World Health Organization (WHO) and the government of Sweden as a WHO Collaborating Centre for International Drug Monitoring.

UMC is custodian of the WHO global database of adverse event reports for medicines and vaccines and strengthens global safety surveillance through science and innovation, signal analysis and pharmacovigilance tool development, standardisation with the WHODrug dictionary, and education and communication.

UMC’s working language is English. We normally apply a probationary period to new appointments.

UMC follows the collective agreements between the Swedish Agency for Government Employers and Saco-S and ST. Union representatives are Malin Zaar (Saco-S) and Jessica Avasol (ST), +46 (0)18-65 60 60.