At a Glance
- Tasks: Develop and improve taxonomies for a global marketplace, enhancing consumer experiences.
- Company: Join DoorDash, a fast-growing tech company transforming local economies.
- Benefits: Enjoy premium healthcare, wellness perks, and paid parental leave.
- Other info: Collaborative environment with opportunities for personal and professional growth.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on e-commerce strategies and local businesses.
- Qualifications: 5+ years in taxonomy development and a Master's degree in a related field.
The predicted salary is between 60000 - 80000 € per year.
About the Team
Our New Verticals Strategy & Operations team is re-inventing the way consumers think about grocery, convenience, alcohol and retail delivery through both our first-party and third-party operations businesses. The Global Catalog team plays a critical role in shaping DoorDash’s e-commerce strategy, leading some of the company’s most strategic programs to drive catalog excellence. Their work is highly visible and impactful—spanning the entire New Verticals catalog across DoorDash, Deliveroo, and Wolt—and influences tens of millions of items on the platform.
About the Role
We are looking to hire an experienced Taxonomist to join the Global New Verticals Catalog team across DoorDash, Wolt, and Deliveroo. This role will focus on developing and improving the processes and models that power DoorDash’s three-sided marketplace—Merchants, Dashers, and Customers—as well as its emerging fourth side, Advertisers, with the goal of empowering and growing local economies. Achieving this requires a deep understanding of local businesses, the products and services they offer, and the consumers who interact with them. A strong grasp of the global ecosystem is essential to building and mapping complex taxonomies and entity relationships within local economies. This includes the design, implementation, and governance of large-scale taxonomies to accelerate product development and deliver high-quality consumer experiences.
As a Taxonomist on the Global Catalog team, this role will be responsible for Product Categories and Brands taxonomies, as well as the broader attribute platform. The position will work closely with Strategy & Operations, Machine Learning, Engineering, Product, and Data Science partners.
You’re excited about this opportunity because you will…
- Build and maintain the metadata schema, attribute systems, and entity relationships within a global ontology platform.
- Design and maintain taxonomies across consumer domains including grocery, alcoholic beverages, apparel and more, ensuring alignment with attribute models.
- Develop and apply best practices for taxonomy and ontology modeling, including hierarchy design, attribute standardization, and relationship definition.
- Identify and address gaps in catalog quality, completeness, and discoverability across international markets.
- Partner cross-functionally with Product, Operations, Analytics, and regional teams to design and operationalize taxonomy and ontology solutions globally.
- Evolve and scale taxonomy and ontology systems for New Verticals, aligning and unifying structures across DoorDash, Wolt and Deliveroo markets.
- Contribute to strategic initiatives that strengthen merchant catalogs and improve the customer shopping experience across international markets.
We’re excited about you because…
- You solve problems from first principles. You’re excited to think innovatively, and you resist “this is how it’s always been done” thinking.
- You are an operator. You don’t hesitate to get in the weeds and operate at the lowest level of detail, but you’re also able to think long-term. You will experience our operation first hand, to inform your strategy.
- You’re analytical. You can work with data across multiple sources, ask the right questions of a dataset, and communicate findings clearly, using whatever tools get you there fastest (e.g., SQL, BI tools or AI-assisted analysis).
- You have 5+ years of experience in developing complex taxonomies, ontologies, or structured classification systems in real-world applications.
- You have experience with taxonomy or ontology management tools (Graphite, PoolParty, Graphologi, etc.) and have designed taxonomies to support navigation, search, discovery, and analytics at scale.
- You have completed a Masters Degree in either Library and Information Science, Linguistics, Philosophy, or a related field.
Nice to Haves
- Experience with AI tools such as Claude Code and Cursor to accelerate problem-solving, analysis, or workflow execution.
- Proficiency in SQL.
- Familiarity with graph-based or triple-store systems (e.g., RDF, SPARQL) is a plus.
About DoorDash
At DoorDash, our mission to empower local economies shapes how our team members move quickly, learn, and reiterate in order to make impactful decisions that display empathy for our range of users—from Dashers to merchant partners to consumers. We are a technology and logistics company that started with door-to-door delivery, and we are looking for team members who can help us go from a company that is known for delivering food to a company that people turn to for any and all goods. DoorDash is growing rapidly and changing constantly, which gives our team members the opportunity to share their unique perspectives, solve new challenges, and own their careers. We're committed to supporting employees’ happiness, healthiness, and overall well-being by providing comprehensive benefits and perks including premium healthcare, wellness expense reimbursement, paid parental leave and more.
Ontologist in London employer: Deliveroo
At DoorDash, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that fosters a dynamic and inclusive work culture. Our Global New Verticals Catalog team is at the forefront of innovation in e-commerce, offering employees the chance to make a significant impact while enjoying comprehensive benefits such as premium healthcare and wellness reimbursements. With a strong commitment to employee growth and a fast-paced environment that encourages creative problem-solving, we empower our team members to thrive both personally and professionally in a rapidly evolving industry.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Ontologist in London
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to folks in the industry, attend events, and connect with people on LinkedIn. You never know who might have the inside scoop on job openings or can put in a good word for you.
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare for interviews by researching the company and its culture. Understand their products and services, especially in the grocery and retail delivery space. This will help you tailor your answers and show you're genuinely interested.
✨Tip Number 3
Practice makes perfect! Do mock interviews with friends or use online platforms. Focus on articulating your experience with taxonomies and how it relates to the role at DoorDash, Wolt, or Deliveroo.
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen. Plus, it shows you’re serious about joining our team and contributing to our mission of empowering local economies.
We think you need these skills to ace Ontologist in London
Some tips for your application 🫡
Tailor Your Application:Make sure to customise your CV and cover letter for the Ontologist role. Highlight your experience with taxonomies and ontologies, and how it aligns with our mission at StudySmarter. We want to see how you can contribute to our team!
Showcase Your Analytical Skills:We love data-driven decision-making! In your application, share examples of how you've used data analysis in your previous roles. This will help us understand your problem-solving approach and how you can bring that to our Global Catalog team.
Be Authentic:Let your personality shine through in your application. We value innovative thinkers who challenge the status quo. Don’t be afraid to share your unique perspective and how it can benefit our operations at StudySmarter.
Apply Through Our Website:We encourage you to apply directly through our website. It’s the best way for us to receive your application and ensures you’re considered for the role. Plus, it shows us you're keen on joining the StudySmarter family!
How to prepare for a job interview at Deliveroo
✨Know Your Taxonomies
Make sure you brush up on your knowledge of taxonomies and ontologies before the interview. Be ready to discuss your experience in developing complex classification systems and how they can be applied to the grocery and retail sectors.
✨Showcase Your Analytical Skills
Prepare to demonstrate your analytical prowess. Think of examples where you've used data to solve problems or improve processes. Familiarise yourself with tools like SQL or BI tools, as you might be asked about your experience with them.
✨Understand the Business Landscape
Research DoorDash, Wolt, and Deliveroo to understand their market positioning and how they operate. Being able to discuss how your role as a Taxonomist can impact their business will show that you're not just knowledgeable but also genuinely interested.
✨Be Ready for Problem-Solving Scenarios
Expect to tackle some hypothetical scenarios during the interview. Practice thinking through problems from first principles and be prepared to explain your thought process clearly. This will highlight your innovative thinking and operational mindset.
