Senior Data Engineer

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.

As a Senior Software Engineer, you will drive the full data engineering lifecycle and design, build, and deploy enterprise-scale data and AI-powered solutions. In this role, you will lead data acquisition, integration, and architecture efforts to power analytics across healthcare domains while operationalizing machine learning and Generative AI pipelines. You will collaborate with cross-functional analytics and AI teams to build scalable RAG workflows, feature engineering frameworks, and robust data management solutions that adhere to responsible AI and enterprise governance standards.

You will enjoy the flexibility to telecommute* from anywhere within the U.S. as you take on some tough challenges. 

Primary Responsibilities:

• Design, develop, and deploy scalable data management and AI-powered solutions to address complex business challenges while driving responsible AI practices
• Lead data acquisition, integration, and ETL/ELT pipeline development across structured and semi-structured healthcare data systems to hydrate data warehouses and power analytics
• Operationalize ML and Generative AI pipelines, including building and optimizing LLM/RAG workflows, vector ingestion, embedding generation, and feature engineering frameworks
• Support data engineering project execution using Azure Cloud, Databricks, Spark, Scala, and Python to enhance data efficiency, reliability, and value
• Evaluate emerging technology trends and leverage enterprise-approved tools to streamline workflows, automate tasks, and drive continuous process optimization
• Detect data quality and integrity issues, manage data audits, and implement root-cause fixes using diagnostics and monitoring tools
• Partner with analytics and AI teams to recommend architectural improvements, establish design standards, and enable reusable, AI-ready datasets across domain
• Leverage DevOps, CI/CD, and pipeline monitoring tools to ensure code versioning, automated deployment, and technical debt reduction

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

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree or 5+ years of data engineering experience
• 5+ years of experience in data engineering, including data ingestion, normalization, transformation, structuring, and storage across relational, dimensional, or non-relational systems
• 5+ years of experience designing ETL/ELT solutions and managing data assets using SQL, Python, Scala, or similar technologies (e.g., PL/SQL, T-SQL, Informatica, DataStage)
• 4+ years of experience in Microsoft Azure Cloud, Azure Data Factory, Databricks, Spark, and Scala/Python
• 2+ years of experience working with healthcare data or supporting data solutions for healthcare organizations

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree in Information Technology, Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics, Analytics, or a related technical field (or equivalent experience)
• Expertise in data engineering, including data ingestion, Transformation  and storage across relational, dimensional, or non-relational systems
• Expertise in Databricks ( Spark or python) ,SQL, Terraform and Snowflake
• Experience with DevOps tools for CI/CD(Github,Git actions), version control, automated deployment, and data pipeline observability to monitor data drift and quality
• Proven ability to prepare high-level and detailed technical design documents and establish reusable data definition standards
• Experience working with healthcare data or supporting data solutions for healthcare organizations
• Knowledge on building Generative AI/LLM solutions, including RAG pipelines, prompt engineering, and integration with enterprise data platforms

*All Telecommuters 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 $91,700 to $163,700 annually based on full-time employment. We comply with all minimum wage laws as applicable.

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

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.

#RPO #GREEN