Director, External Audiences and Channels - Hybrid in MN or Remote

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.

This role will be responsible for leading Optum Communications' approach to external audiences and channel activation, ensuring stories, campaigns and enterprise priorities reach the right audiences through the most effective owned and shared channels, platforms and digital experiences.

You'll enjoy the flexibility to work remotely * from anywhere within the U.S. as you take on some tough challenges. For all hires in the Minneapolis or Washington, D.C. area, you will be required to work in the office a minimum of four days per week.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Audience & Channel Strategy
  • Develop audience and channel strategies that support enterprise priorities, campaigns and storytelling initiatives 
  • Identify the most effective channels, formats and distribution approaches for key audiences 
  • Lead audience segmentation, targeting and channel planning 
  • Partner with teams across the enterprise that manage external channels and digital platforms
• Owned & Shared Channel Activation
  • Lead publishing, distribution and amplification strategies for priority stories, campaigns and executive communications
  • Coordinate content activation across social, digital and other external communications channels
  • Optimize content for channel performance, audience engagement and user experience
  • Monitor audience trends, sentiment and engagement
  • Analyze performance and translate insights into actionable recommendations
  • Drive continuous improvement through testing, experimentation and emerging technologies, including AI
• Team Leadership & Capability Building
  • Lead, coach and develop a team focused on audience engagement and channel effectiveness 
  • Establish priorities, goals and operating rhythms aligned to communications objectives 
  • Build capabilities in digital engagement, analytics and audience strategy 
  • Drive adoption of new tools, technologies and best practices

What Success Looks Like

• Stories, campaigns and enterprise priorities consistently reach the right audiences 
• Increased awareness, engagement and content effectiveness 
• Communications decisions informed by audience and performance insights 
• Solid partnerships that maximize the impact of enterprise-owned channels and digital experiences 
• A high-performing team recognized for audience expertise and channel effectiveness

Key Capabilities

• Expertise in audience behavior, digital engagement and content consumption trends 
• Solid understanding of social, digital and emerging channel ecosystems 
• Ability to translate data and insights into actionable communications strategies 
• Experience optimizing content distribution and audience engagement 
• Proven people leadership, coaching and team development skills 
• Solid collaboration and influence skills within complex, matrixed organizations 
• Excellent prioritization, project management and stakeholder management capabilities 
• Curiosity and adaptability in a rapidly evolving digital and AI landscape

You'll 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 provide development for other roles you may be interested in.

Required Qualifications:

• 10+ years of experience in communications, digital strategy, social media, audience engagement or related fields
• 5+ years of people leadership experience
• Experience developing audience, channel or content distribution strategies within large, complex organizations
• Experience overseeing content publishing, distribution and performance optimization 
• Experience using audience and performance insights to drive communications decisions 
• Experience working across multiple teams and stakeholders in a matrixed environment

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in healthcare, technology or other highly regulated industries
• Experience leading enterprise social, digital or audience engagement programs
• Experience building or scaling audience and channel capabilities 
• Experience leveraging emerging technologies to improve communications effectiveness

*All employees working remotely will be required to adhere to UnitedHealth Group's Telecommuter Policy

Pay is based on several factors including but not limited to local labor markets, education, work experience, certifications, etc. In addition to your salary, we offer benefits such as, a comprehensive benefits package, incentive and recognition programs, equity stock purchase and 401k contribution (all benefits are subject to eligibility requirements). No matter where or when you begin a career with us, you'll find a far-reaching choice of benefits and incentives. The salary for this role will range from $134,600 - $230,800 annually based on full-time employment. We comply with all minimum wage laws as applicable.

Application Deadline: This will be posted for a minimum of 2 business days or until a sufficient candidate pool has been collected. Job posting may come down early due to volume of applicants.

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.

UnitedHealth Group is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer under applicable law and qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, national origin, religion, age, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by local, state, or federal laws, rules, or regulations.

UnitedHealth Group is a drug-free workplace. Candidates are required to pass a drug test before beginning employment.