Company Description 

Every year, millions of seniors lapse or surrender their life insurance policies for little or no value in return from their insurance company. Life Settlements help seniors by giving them the option to sell their policy instead, receiving significantly more value than had they otherwise given up their policy. The money we pay seniors helps meet retirement needs, healthcare costs, long term care expenses, or whatever else they’d like. 

Lighthouse Life is a member of the growing group of companies owned by LHL Strategies, Inc. (“LHL” or “LHL Strategies”), providing vertically integrated services and solutions for asset managers to acquire and manage life policies and portfolios. Clients of the LHL companies benefit from working inside the industry’s only integrated platform for policy acquisition and trading, policy and portfolio valuation, management, and now, portfolio servicing.  

Our atmosphere encourages innovation and collaboration throughout the organization. We promote a healthy work-life balance and have created an open and fun environment. That said, we are driven to exceed expectations and want to share our days with those who raise their hand, step forward, and work hard. 

Our compensation package is highly competitive for the position and includes comprehensive benefits as well as a flexible and generous PTO policy. 

Lighthouse Life is a remote-first company. This role can be located anywhere within the U.S. with potential for travel for meetings and/or other events. Lighthouse Life’s offices are located in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, less than 10 miles outside of the city of Philadelphia, and steps from the regional commuter train line. 

Job Description 

We are seeking a Vice President of Data Science & AI to architect, build, and oversee our AI/ML capabilities across both internal initiatives and external vendor partnerships. This role is critical to LHL’s strategic vision of leveraging data science to enhance our competitive position in the life settlements market.  

Reporting directly to the Executive Leadership Team, you will define and execute our data science strategy, build a high-performing team, and ensure our AI/ML investments deliver measurable business value. You will be responsible for both developing proprietary analytical capabilities and providing technical oversight of third-party data and AI solutions. 

Responsibilities  

Strategic Leadership  

• Define and execute LHL’s data science and AI strategy aligned with business objectives  

• Partner with executive leadership (CEO, COO, CBO, CFO) to identify high-impact AI/ML opportunities  

• Establish KPIs and success metrics for data science initiatives 

• Manage departmental budget and resource allocation  

• Report on AI/ML program progress and ROI to leadership  

AI/ML Architecture & Development  

• Architect scalable, production-grade AI/ML systems for life settlement analytics  

• Lead development of predictive models for:  

• Life expectancy (LE) enhancement and validation  

• Policy pricing optimization and bid strategy  

• Portfolio risk assessment and concentration analysis  

• Seller/advisor behavior and pipeline forecasting  

• Establish MLOps practices including model versioning, monitoring, and governance  

• Ensure responsible AI practices including bias detection, explainability, and compliance  

Vendor & Partner Oversight  

• Provide technical due diligence on AI/ML vendors and data providers  

• Evaluate and benchmark external LE providers and actuarial models  

• Oversee integration of third-party AI solutions into LHL’s technology stack  

• Negotiate technical requirements and SLAs with data vendors  

Team Building & Development  

• Build and lead a high-performing data science team (hire, mentor, develop)   

• Foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, and continuous learning  

• Establish best practices for data science workflows, code quality, and documentation  

• Collaborate cross-functionally with Operations, Finance, Technology, and Business Development  

Data Infrastructure & Governance  

• Partner with Technology team to ensure robust data infrastructure  

• Implement data governance frameworks appropriate for financial services  

• Ensure compliance with data privacy regulations and industry standards  

• Drive data quality initiatives across the organization  

Knowledge and Experience 

Education  

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Statistics, Mathematics, Physics, or related quantitative field  

• Master’s degree or PhD preferred  

Experience  

• 10+ years of progressive experience in data science, machine learning, or AI  

• 5+ years in leadership roles managing data science teams  

• Experience deploying production ML systems at scale  

• Track record of delivering measurable business impact through AI/ML  

Technical Skills  

• Expert proficiency in Python and SQL  

• Deep expertise in machine learning algorithms, statistical modeling, and predictive analytics  

• Experience with cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, or GCP)  

• Familiarity with modern data stack (Snowflake, Databricks, DBT, or similar)  

• Understanding of MLOps tools and practices (MLflow, Kubeflow, SageMaker, or similar)  

Domain Knowledge (Preferred)  

• Experience in financial services, insurance, or actuarial analytics  

• Familiarity with mortality/longevity modeling  

• Understanding of life settlements, life insurance, or related industries  

• Experience with regulatory compliance in financial services  

Leadership & Soft Skills  

• Exceptional communication skills – ability to translate complex technical concepts for business audiences  

• Strategic thinking with strong business acumen  

• Proven ability to build, motivate, and retain high-performing teams  

• Experience managing vendor relationships and technical partnerships 

• Collaborative approach with ability to influence without direct authority  

What Success Looks Like  

First 90 Days:   

• Complete assessment of current data science capabilities and vendor landscape   

• Identify 2-3 high-impact quick wins for AI/ML application 

• Develop strategic roadmap and budget proposal   

• Begin building relationships across the organization  

First Year:   

• Establish foundational data science team and processes   

• Deliver at least one production AI/ML system with measurable ROI   

• Implement model governance and monitoring framework    

• Complete vendor assessment and optimization recommendations 

Compensation & Benefits  

• Base Salary: Competitive, commensurate with experience   

• Bonus: Performance-based annual bonus  

• Benefits: Comprehensive health, dental, vision; 401(k); flexible PTO  

• Remote Work: Flexible remote/hybrid arrangement 

Personal Attributes 

• You are curious by nature. 

• You have a bias for action. 

• You have superior time management and organizational skills. 

• You have good interpersonal skills. 

• You enjoy working in a fast-paced, fast-growing organization. 

• You aren’t afraid to challenge the norm.