Associate Director - Program Management - Six Sigma

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.  

Drive enterprise-scale transformation across Clinical, Shared Services, Underwriting, Contact Centre & other US Healthcare capabilities by leading a portfolio of high-impact programs. This role will own end-to-end program execution, governance, and outcomes, while building and mentoring a team of transformation leads (including consultants/senior consultants).

The role will work at the intersection of business, technology, and analytics, driving adoption of AI/GenAI, automation, and digital solutions to solve complex healthcare challenges and deliver measurable business impact.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Program & Portfolio Leadership
  • Own and manage a portfolio of transformation initiatives aligned to strategic business priorities
  • Define and drive multi-year transformation roadmap, ensuring delivery against timelines, value realization, and KPIs
  • Ensure strong governance, risk management, and stakeholder alignment across programs
  • Lead execution of enterprise-level transformation programs (multiple strategic charters)
• Transformation Delivery & Innovation
  • Drive process re-engineering initiatives across enterprise and keep the rigor
  • Identify and deploy next-gen solutions (GenAI, ML, NLP, RPA, Digital workflows) to solve business problems
  • Partner with Technology & Analytics teams on solution design, architecture, and implementation
• Stakeholder & Cross-Functional Leadership
  • Collaborate with senior business leaders and Stateside stakeholders to drive alignment and outcomes
  • Act as a trusted advisor, influencing decisions on transformation priorities and investments
  • Drive execution in partnership with Automation, Product, Tech, and Data Science teams
• People Leadership & Capability Building
  • Lead and mentor a team of Six Sigma Black Belts, Program Managers, and Consultants (including Associate-level roles)
  • Build a high-performance consulting culture focused on problem-solving, innovation, and measurable outcomes
  • Provide continuous coaching, feedback, and capability development
  • Drive talent pipeline, succession planning, and hiring
• 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:

• MBA Mandatory (Top Tier B School)
• Certifications in Project/Program Management or Lean Six Sigma (Black Belt preferred)
• 10+ years of experience in Transformation / Program Management / Consulting
• Experience managing large-scale transformation portfolios and roadmaps
• Hands-on experience with automation and emerging technologies (RPA, AI/ML, GenAI, NLP)
• Experience in change management and enterprise-wide transformation initiatives
• Solid exposure to US Healthcare / Payer operations (Claims, Provider, Contact Center, Clinical, RCM)
• Exposure to Design Thinking & Agile methodologies
• Demonstrated success in stakeholder management across leadership levels

Preferred Qualifications:

• Clinical Background or knowledge in US Health Care 

Core Competencies & Leadership Attributes

• Combines strategic thinking with strong execution rigor, governance, and delivery management
• Applies LEAN & Six Sigma-driven problem solving to translate business needs into tech-enabled solutions
• Drives stakeholder alignment through strong consulting, influencing, and executive communication skills
• Aligns teams to a shared vision and drives outcomes through data-driven decisions
• Champions innovation while balancing execution and continuous improvement
• Builds, coaches, and develops high-performing teams

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.