Director Software Engineering

Optum is a global organization that delivers care, aided by technology to help millions of people live healthier lives. The work you do with our team will directly improve health outcomes by connecting people with the care, pharmacy benefits, data and resources they need to feel their best. Here, you will find a culture guided by inclusion, talented peers, comprehensive benefits and career development opportunities. Come make an impact on the communities we serve as you help us advance health optimization on a global scale. Join us to start Caring. Connecting. Growing together.

The Director, Software Engineering is accountable for the end to end software product lifecycle, including research, architecture, design, development, testing, deployment, and ongoing maintenance of software solutions that support Optum’s products and services. This role provides technical and people leadership across multiple engineering teams, ensuring delivery of high quality, secure, and scalable software aligned with business outcomes and Optum’s technology strategy.

This role operates at a senior leadership level within the Software Engineering function, shaping engineering practices, driving capability maturity, and influencing future technology direction across the organization.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Engineering & Delivery Leadership
  • Own and oversee the full software development lifecycle, from concept and proof of concept through production deployment and sustainment
  • Ensure delivery of high quality, reliable, and maintainable software that meets product, customer, and regulatory needs
  • Drive consistency in engineering standards, methods, tools, and best practices across teams
• Technical Strategy & Architecture
  • Provide technical direction and architectural guidance across multiple products or platforms
  • Evaluate and introduce new tools, techniques, and engineering strategies to improve quality, velocity, and operational efficiency
  • Influence future technology capabilities and identify opportunities to apply technology in new and innovative ways
• People & Organization Leadership
  • Lead, coach, and develop managers and senior engineers, fostering solid engineering culture and accountability
  • Support career development using Optum’s Software Engineering Capability Model, including proficiency and growth expectations
  • Build inclusive, high performing teams aligned with Optum’s values and leadership principles
• Operational Excellence
  • Embed quality, security, and compliance into all engineering outputs
  • Partner with cross functional teams (product, architecture, security, operations) to ensure solutions are resilient and scalable
  • Promote automation of common tasks and development of shared utilities to improve organizational efficiency
• Comply with the terms and conditions of the employment contract, company policies and procedures, and any and all directives (such as, but not limited to, transfer and/or re-assignment to different work locations, change in teams and/or work shifts, policies in regards to flexibility of work benefits and/or work environment, alternative work arrangements, and other decisions that may arise due to the changing business environment). The Company may adopt, vary or rescind these policies and directives in its absolute discretion and without any limitation (implied or otherwise) on its ability to do so

Required Qualifications:

• Extensive experience within the Software Engineering job function, including hands on technical leadership
• Solid understanding of software architecture, design patterns, and modern development practices
• Proven success leading multiple engineering teams or managers delivering complex software systems
• Demonstrated ability to influence technical direction and drive adoption of engineering standards

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience operating within large scale enterprise technology environments
• Demonstrated leadership in engineering transformation, automation, or modernization initiatives
• Track record of building engineering talent and growing organizational capability

Leadership Expectations

• Models Optum’s commitment to quality, innovation, and performance in every output
• Acts as a thought leader within Software Engineering, influencing future capabilities and opportunities
• Champions collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement across team

At UnitedHealth Group, our mission is to help people live healthier lives and make the health system work better for everyone. We believe everyone-of every race, gender, sexuality, age, location and income-deserves the opportunity to live their healthiest life. Today, however, there are still far too many barriers to good health which are disproportionately experienced by people of color, historically marginalized groups and those with lower incomes. We are committed to mitigating our impact on the environment and enabling and delivering equitable care that addresses health disparities and improves health outcomes – an enterprise priority reflected in our mission.