Recommended expert

Michael Tsardakas

Data Lead

Michael Tsardakas
London, United Kingdom

Experience

Jan 2021 - Present
5 years 1 month
London, United Kingdom

Data Lead

Gower Street Analytics

  • Reduced ML deployment time from weeks to days by building robust inference endpoints of various complexity (AWS Lambda, Flask, FastAPI, Dagster).
  • Increased data processing capacity 100x (200GB to 20TB) by implementing a scalable AWS data lake (Iceberg, Parquet).
  • Optimized core SaaS PostgreSQL database on AWS RDS (read replicas, schema redesign, query optimization), enabling expansion from 6 to 90 markets.
  • Cut manual metadata work by 90% through agentic workflows (ChatGPT, Playwright, Python), accelerating data ingestion.
  • Developed film revenue forecasting and film similarity models (TSLib, scikit-learn, HDBSCAN) that secured 3 major studio partnerships.
  • Worked closely with the executive team to define the strategic roadmap for data-driven products and shape the future direction of the company’s offerings.
  • Delivered real-time analytics dashboards (Metabase) reducing ad-hoc requests by 40% and support tickets by 80%.
  • Designed automated PDF reporting system (Polars, LaTeX), achieving 96% positive feedback and helping win two $500k contract renewals.
  • Built and led a high-performing data team: led hiring (data scientists, software engineers), onboarding, mentoring, and line management.
Jan 2019 - Dec 2021
3 years
London, United Kingdom

Senior Data Scientist

Gower Street Analytics

  • Developed and deployed a time series analysis model to predict film ticket prices in multiple countries (USA, UK, Germany, Australia), achieving an average accuracy of 93% over a 12-month period.
  • Engineered a gradient-boosted model (pandas, scikit-learn, PostgreSQL) to predict lifetime film earnings from partial data, achieving a mean percentage error of 1% and saving analysts approximately 10% of their weekly time.
  • Automated the generation and deployment of weekly reports for both internal and external stakeholders, leveraging a tech stack including AWS Athena, R/KnitR/LaTeX, Github, Drone, and Docker Swarm.
  • Established and maintained a Docker-based environment for data science projects on remote servers, which promoted team collaboration and enabled rapid experimentation. Mentored colleagues on best practices and usage.
Jan 2016 - Dec 2019
4 years
Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Data Scientist & Mathematical Modeller

Skyscanner

  • Developed, tested, and deployed statistical and mathematical models to optimize budget allocation across advertising markets and channels, directly informing monthly decisions on budgets exceeding $6,000,000. These models led to a 9% year-on-year increase in advertising ROI.
  • Conducted advanced machine learning work, including revenue attribution modeling, customer lifetime value prediction, causal impact analysis, and ad revenue and cost-per-click optimization.
Jan 2012 - Dec 2016
5 years
Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Teaching Assistant

Heriot-Watt University

  • Assisted with lectures, tutorials and marking in the following modules: Data Analysis, Probability & Statistics, Financial Mathematics, Differential Equations, Mathematical Modelling.

Skills

  • Python (Pandas, Polars, Scikit-learn, Numpy, Streamlit)
  • R (Shiny, Knitr)
  • Sql
  • Latex
  • Aws (Rds, Lambda, Athena, Terraform)
  • Docker
  • Iceberg
  • Duckdb
  • Parquet
  • Metabase
  • Dagster
  • Spark
  • Langchain
  • Xgboost
  • Tslib
  • Optuna
  • Scipy
  • Mathematica
  • Stan
  • Git
  • Github
  • Postgresql
  • Unix/macos
  • Windows

Languages

Greek
Native
English
Advanced
German
Intermediate

Education

Heriot-Watt University

Ph.D. · Mathematical Modelling · Edinburgh, United Kingdom

National Technical University of Athens

B.Sc. - M.Sc · Applied Mathematical and Physical Sciences · Athens, Greece

Profile

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Frequently asked questions

Do you have questions? Here you can find further information.

Where is Michael based?

Michael is based in London, United Kingdom.

What languages does Michael speak?

Michael speaks the following languages: Greek (Native), English (Advanced), German (Intermediate).

How many years of experience does Michael have?

Michael has at least 14 years of experience. During this time, Michael has worked in at least 4 different roles and for 3 different companies. The average length of individual experience is 3 years and 6 months. Note that Michael may not have shared all experience and actually has more experience.

What roles would Michael be best suited for?

Based on recent experience, Michael would be well-suited for roles such as: Data Lead, Senior Data Scientist, Data Scientist & Mathematical Modeller.

What is Michael's latest experience?

Michael's most recent position is Data Lead at Gower Street Analytics.

What companies has Michael worked for in recent years?

In recent years, Michael has worked for Gower Street Analytics.

Which industries is Michael most experienced in?

Michael is most experienced in industries like Media, Entertainment and Publishing, Information Technology (IT), and Education. Michael also has some experience in Tourism and Hospitality.

Which business areas is Michael most experienced in?

Michael is most experienced in business areas like Business Intelligence, Information Technology (IT), and Strategy and Planning. Michael also has some experience in Research and Development (R&D) and Marketing.

Which industries has Michael worked in recently?

Michael has recently worked in industries like Media, Entertainment and Publishing and Information Technology (IT).

Which business areas has Michael worked in recently?

Michael has recently worked in business areas like Business Intelligence, Information Technology (IT), and Strategy and Planning.

What is Michael's education?

Michael holds a Doctorate in Mathematical Modelling from Heriot-Watt University and a Master in Applied Mathematical and Physical Sciences from National Technical University of Athens.

What is the availability of Michael?

Michael is immediately available part-time for suitable projects.

What is the rate of Michael?

Michael's rate depends on the specific project requirements. Please use the Meet button on the profile to schedule a meeting and discuss the details.

How to hire Michael?

To hire Michael, click the Meet button on the profile to request a meeting and discuss your project needs.

Average rates for similar positions

Rates are based on recent contracts and do not include FRATCH margin.

1000
750
500
250
Market avg: 750-910 €
The rates shown represent the typical market range for freelancers in this position based on recent contracts on our platform.
Actual rates may vary depending on seniority level, experience, skill specialization, project complexity, and engagement length.