Senior Operational Readiness Manager

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 diversity and inclusion, talented peers, comprehensive benefits and career development opportunities. Come make an impact on the communities we serve as you help us advance health equity on a global scale. Join us to start Caring. Connecting. Growing together.

The Senior Operational Readiness Manager is accountable for designing, establishing and leading the organisation's operational readiness capability for Chart Coding Operations. This includes creating an end to end operational readiness and implementation model in an environment where no formal framework currently exists.

This is a senior, foundational role responsible for defining governance, standards, lifecycle stages and controls for leading complex client operational readiness implementations while the program and supporting processes are being built.

The role acts as the single point of accountability for operational readiness related risk and for the governance and control of client configuration change.

Careers with Optum offer flexible work arrangements and individuals who live and work in the Republic of Ireland will have the opportunity to split their monthly work hours between our Dublin or Letterkenny office and telecommuting from a home-based office in a hybrid work model.

What you will do:

Operational Readiness Program Ownership

• Design and own the end to end Operational Readiness program from first principles
• Define the lifecycle, governance model, stage gates, readiness criteria and success measures
• Establish clear roles, responsibilities, escalation paths and ways of working

Delivery in Ambiguous and Under Defined Environments

• Lead complex operational implementations in the absence of established processes or frameworks
• Translate ambiguous objectives into structured, outcome driven delivery
• Balance program design and execution in parallel

Client Configuration & Change Governance

• Own governance and change management for client configurations impacting operational readiness
• Assess operational, regulatory and risk impacts of configuration change
• Act as the single point of governance for operational readiness requirements

Risk Ownership & Go Live Accountability

• Own the operational readiness risk register, including methodology, mitigation, escalation and acceptance
• Ensure material risks are visible, actively managed and formally accepted at the appropriate senior level
• Own go live and stabilisation decisions, including acceptance of residual risk

Governance, Capability & Continuous Improvement

• Establish and chair operational readiness governance forums covering delivery, configuration change and risk
• Build and mature the organisation's operational readiness capability over time
• Define and track KPIs related to readiness, configuration stability, risk exposure and client satisfaction

Senior Stakeholder Leadership

• Act as the senior operational authority for readiness, configuration toll gates and risk management
• Influence Directors, Senior Managers and functional leaders without direct reporting lines
• Facilitate senior level decision making involving scope, timing, quality and risk trade offs

You will be rewarded and recognized for your performance in an environment that will challenge you and give you clear direction on what it takes to succeed in your role, as well as providing development for other roles you may be interested in.

What you will bring:

• Proven extensive experience leading complex process implementations, programs or operational transformation initiatives
• Demonstrated experience designing and leading an operational readiness, onboarding or implementation capability from first principles
• Proven ability to deliver outcomes while simultaneously defining structure, governance and ways of working
• Proven solid track record of operating effectively in ambiguous, evolving and under defined environments
• Proven experience owning delivery risk, including maintaining a risk register and facilitating senior level risk acceptance
• Demonstrated ability to influence senior stakeholders and subject matter experts without line authority
• Proven background in complex, regulated or operationally intensive environments

Other useful skills and experience include:

• Proven global or multi region process implementation experience
• Proven experience contributing to the design or maturation of an enterprise level operating capability

Skills & Leadership Capabilities:

• Program and operating model design
• Senior stakeholder influence and decision facilitation
• Client configuration and change governance
• Risk ownership and risk based decision making
• Leadership in ambiguous environments
• Structured, outcome driven delivery

What we offer:

• Opportunities for professional development  
• Inclusive and supportive team culture  
• Key benefits: Private health insurance, wellness programs, matching pension contribution, lunch provided by the company, training opportunities, employee donations matching and others

Please note you must currently be eligible to work and remain indefinitely without any restrictions in the country to which you are making an application. Proof will be required to support your application.  

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.


Diversity creates a healthier atmosphere: Optum is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to gender, civil status, family status, sexual orientation, disability, religion, age, race, and membership of the Traveller community, or any other characteristic protected by law. Optum is a drug-free workplace. © 2026 Optum Services (Ireland) Limited. All rights reserved.