Principal PostgreSQL Database Administrator
About The Position
Optum’s UnitedHealthcare Medicare & Retirement Technology team is seeking an experienced Principal PostgreSQL Database Administrator to manage, maintain, and optimize PostgreSQL environments across on-premises and cloud platforms. The role leads high-availability enterprise database operations, disaster recovery, cloud migration, and performance tuning for critical healthcare applications. It also uses automation and intelligent technology solutions to streamline workflows, enhance database architecture, and drive continuous operational improvement across enterprise data platforms. The position can be performed remotely from anywhere in the U.S. Employees hired in the Minneapolis or Washington, D.C. area must work in the office at least four days per week. Remote employees must follow UnitedHealth Group’s Telecommuter Policy.
Requirements
- At least 7 years of experience as a PostgreSQL Database Administrator or Data Engineer in enterprise environments.
- At least 5 years of hands-on experience with PostgreSQL architecture, including memory management, WAL, MVCC, vacuum processes, indexing, and query tuning.
- At least 3 years of experience with repmgr clustering technology, failover handling, and cluster node recovery.
- At least 3 years of experience designing and executing database migration strategies from on-premises environments to cloud platforms such as GCP or Azure.
- At least 3 years of experience configuring and managing logical replication, streaming replication, backup, recovery, and disaster recovery procedures in production environments.
Nice To Haves
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related technical field.
- Experience using enterprise automation tools or modern technology solutions to optimize workflows and system reliability.
- Experience with automation and infrastructure-as-code tools such as Ansible or Terraform for database deployments.
- Hands-on experience with database monitoring tools such as pgAdmin, Prometheus, or Grafana.
- Proficiency in Shell, Python, or similar scripting languages for database task automation.
- Experience with cloud-native database services on GCP or Microsoft Azure.
Responsibilities
- Install, configure, and maintain PostgreSQL databases in production and non-production environments, ensuring security, stability, and performance.
- Perform database refreshes between environments and execute patching and upgrades.
- Analyze PostgreSQL architecture, including memory management, indexing, WAL, MVCC, and query execution plans, to tune configurations and resolve complex performance issues.
- Implement and manage repmgr clustering for high availability and failover, and resolve cluster node failures to minimize downtime.
- Design and execute migration strategies from on-premises environments to cloud platforms such as GCP or Microsoft Azure.
- Establish and execute logical and physical backup, recovery, and disaster recovery procedures using native PostgreSQL tools and third-party solutions.
- Configure and manage logical and streaming replication for data synchronization across environments.
- Design, develop, and deploy intelligent automation solutions and data platforms to streamline database management and address enterprise technical challenges.
- Evaluate emerging data technologies, database tools, and platform innovations to inform solution design, architecture, and modernization.
Benefits
- Comprehensive benefits package
- Incentive and recognition programs
- Equity stock purchase
- 401(k) contribution
- Career development opportunities
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Principal
Education Level
No Education Listed
