Vice President of Software Engineering – Payment Integrity

UnitedHealth Group•Washington, DC

1d•$200,400 - $343,500•Hybrid

About The Position

As Vice President of Software Engineering for Optum Payment Integrity within the Optum Insight Payer Market Technology team, you will serve as an engineering delivery leader for one of our highest-value enterprise businesses. In this role, you will protect payment accuracy and program integrity for leading national health plans, including UnitedHealthcare and external commercial payer clients. Reporting directly to the CIO for Optum Insight Payer Market, you will lead a global, matrixed software engineering organization driving the end-to-end delivery of capital project portfolios and operational systems. You will accelerate AI/ML model adoption, operationalize modern cloud and interoperability standards, and foster an outcomes-driven engineering culture centered on speed, quality, financial discipline, and security. 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.

Requirements

15+ years of software engineering experience in enterprise-scale technology environments
8+ years of experience leading multi-layer, global engineering organizations (including managing directors and senior engineering managers) across onshore and offshore locations
5+ years of experience delivering complex, capital-funded technology portfolios with demonstrated budget and delivery management
3+ years of experience adopting and scaling AI/ML models, automated tooling, or AI-native development practices within production environments
Demonstrated experience operating in a regulated healthcare environment, ensuring compliance with HIPAA, HITRUST, and PHI/PII security requirements

Nice To Haves

Deep domain expertise in health plan payer operations, payment integrity, claims editing/coding, clinical validation, or Fraud, Waste, and Abuse (FWA) systems
Hands-on familiarity with healthcare data and interoperability standards (e.g., FHIR, X12, EDI, HL7)
Experience implementing human-in-the-loop controls, agentic AI governance, and statistical anomaly detection in operational workflows
Proven background applying FinOps disciplines and unit-cost governance across cloud and AI infrastructure
Track record of building succession pipelines and developing strategic technical leaders
Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical/business discipline

Responsibilities

Own end-to-end engineering execution and delivery for the Payment Integrity capital projects and operations portfolio, translating multi-year business strategy into predictable, on-time, and on-budget software releases
Lead, scale, and transform a global engineering organization across onshore and offshore locations, establishing high-performing pod structures, optimal spans-of-control, and clear team accountability
Integrate enterprise AI tools, set AI goals in team development plans, and align hiring with technical competencies to accelerate adoption while embedding transparency, fairness, and governance into regulated workflows
Execute within enterprise architecture, security, cloud, and interoperability standards (such as FHIR, X12, and EDI), ensuring seamless integration across claims editing, payment accuracy, and operational platforms
Partner with Product, Clinical, and Operations executives to align engineering delivery roadmaps with financial baselines, unit-cost targets, and revenue growth commitments
Drive engineering excellence, modern DevSecOps, automated testing, and FinOps practices, leveraging statistical anomaly detection, automated observability, and daily cost-out disciplines
Oversee reliability, compliance, and security posture across regulated payer workflows, adhering strictly to HIPAA, HITRUST, PHI/PII protection, and risk management criteria
Coach, mentor, and elevate senior engineering leaders and directors, fostering a culture of continuous learning, succession planning, and outcome-driven execution