Machine Learning Engineer (Hands-On Builder) - Consultant Opportunity

Are you a passionate Machine Learning Engineer who thrives on building real-world ML solutions from the ground up? Robert Half is partnering with an innovative Philadelphia-based organization seeking a talented Consultant I (Contractor) to join their team. This exciting 9-week contract position offers hybrid flexibility (4 days onsite in Philadelphia, PA) and strong potential for extension or conversion to full-time. If you excel at transforming raw data into scalable, production-ready machine learning models, this role is your chance to make an immediate impact.

Philadelphia's booming tech scene needs hands-on ML experts like you. With a competitive W2 pay rate available upon application, this position combines cutting-edge technology with collaborative teamwork in one of America's most historic and dynamic cities.

About the Role

As a Machine Learning Engineer Consultant, you'll be the driving force behind developing end-to-end ML pipelines that solve real business challenges. This isn't about theoretical models - we're looking for a builder who can take data from ingestion to production deployment. You'll work closely with data scientists, engineers, product managers, and business stakeholders to deliver measurable results. The hybrid schedule (4x onsite weekly) ensures seamless collaboration while offering some remote flexibility. Perfect for Philadelphia-area ML professionals seeking contract work with conversion potential.

Key Responsibilities

Your day-to-day will focus on hands-on ML engineering excellence:

• Model Development: Design, build, train, and deploy production-grade machine learning models using modern frameworks and best practices.
• Pipeline Mastery: Construct complete ML pipelines covering data preprocessing, feature engineering, model training, rigorous evaluation, and seamless deployment to production environments.
• Business Translation: Partner with cross-functional teams to understand complex business requirements and translate them into practical, impactful ML solutions.
• Stakeholder Communication: Break down sophisticated technical concepts into clear, actionable insights for non-technical executives, product teams, and decision-makers.
• Documentation Excellence: Maintain comprehensive documentation of models, methodologies, hyperparameters, and decision rationale to ensure full transparency, reproducibility, and team knowledge sharing.

Expect to work with real datasets, production constraints, and business KPIs that matter.

Required Qualifications

We're seeking proven ML builders with:

• 3+ years of hands-on experience developing production ML systems end-to-end
• Deep expertise in Python, plus ML frameworks like TensorFlow, PyTorch, or Scikit-learn
• Strong skills in data preprocessing, feature engineering, and model optimization techniques
• Demonstrated success deploying models to cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure) or on-premises environments
• Excellent communication abilities - must explain ML concepts to business audiences effectively
• Experience with MLOps practices, version control (Git), and containerization (Docker)
• Familiarity with SQL, ETL processes, and big data tools (Spark, Hadoop) is highly desirable
• Bachelor's/Master's in Computer Science, Data Science, Statistics, or equivalent experience
• Local to Philadelphia area or willing to work hybrid (4x onsite weekly)
• Contractor mindset with ability to ramp quickly and deliver results

Why Join Us

This Robert Half contract offers more than just a paycheck. Gain exposure to enterprise-level ML projects, collaborate with top talent, and position yourself for full-time opportunities in Philadelphia's competitive tech market. Enjoy Robert Half's legendary contractor support including dedicated account management, compliance assistance, and career guidance. The potential for extension or conversion makes this ideal for serious ML engineers building their careers.

Philadelphia Tech Advantage: Work in the heart of Philly's innovation corridor with access to world-class networking, cultural amenities, and growing AI/ML community events. Hybrid model balances collaboration with flexibility.

Ready to build ML that matters? Apply now through Robert Half and elevate your machine learning career. Positions like this fill quickly in Philadelphia's hot job market.