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.
We are seeking an accomplished Senior Manager - Java Engineering to provide hands-on technical leadership across solution design, development, testing, release, and production readiness. The role partners closely with Product Owners, business stakeholders, Subject Matter Experts, QA, and support teams to translate complex business needs into scalable, resilient, and well-documented technology solutions.
The successful candidate will combine deep expertise in Java, Spring, Azure, DevOps, Kafka, Spark, and relational databases with solid leadership in AI-assisted software engineering. This individual will coach teams on the effective use of Codex, Claude, and related AI development capabilities while ensuring engineering quality, governance, and delivery accountability
Primary Responsibilities
- Solution Design and Business Partnership
- Collaborate with Product Owners, business stakeholders, Subject Matter Experts, and users to evaluate business requirements and assess existing or proposed systems
- Translate complex business requirements into detailed solution designs, technical specifications, and implementation-ready documentation from which programs can be developed
- Lead technical design walkthroughs with Business, SME, QA, development, and Production Support teams, incorporating feedback and resolving design questions
- Ensure proposed solutions align with enterprise architecture standards, security expectations, cloud patterns, and operational requirements
- Engineering Leadership and Delivery
- Lead the coding, testing, implementation, debugging, and documentation of complex enterprise applications and Spark jobs
- Provide technical direction on Java, Spring, Azure, DevOps, Kafka, microservices, distributed systems, and application architecture patterns
- Guide teams in setting up Kafka streams and implementing reliable producer and consumer integrations
- Ensure timely delivery of assigned work, proactively managing dependencies, risks, technical issues, and quality expectations
- Independently resolve moderate to complex technical problems and provide guidance on advanced programming and solution design
- AI-Enabled Engineering
- Promote practical adoption of AI-assisted software development across design, coding, unit testing, documentation, defect analysis, and modernization activities
- Use and guide teams on tools such as Codex and Claude, with emphasis on effective prompt practices, validation of generated outputs, secure usage, and measurable productivity improvement
- Optimize the responsible use of available AI credits by prioritizing high-value engineering scenarios and avoiding unnecessary consumption
- Apply AI Builder knowledge to identify and support suitable automation and application-development opportunities
- Testing, Quality, and Release Readiness
- Prepare test plans, define test data requirements, establish test environments, and execute testing activities based on project needs
- Participate in design reviews, test case reviews, and Production Support readiness reviews for new releases
- Support QA, UAT, release, and post-release phases through defect analysis, root cause identification, change maintenance, and issue resolution
- Promote test automation and ensure adherence to coding standards, documentation standards, quality controls, and delivery governance
- Confirm that solutions meet functional, technical, performance, supportability, and timeline requirements before release
- Documentation and Stakeholder Communication
- Create and maintain technical design documents, architecture decisions, program specifications, test evidence, operational procedures, and release artifacts
- Compile information from current systems, analyze program requirements, and support project planning with accurate technical estimates and dependencies
- Communicate solution options, risks, progress, and recommendations clearly to technical and non-technical stakeholders
- Partner with project and program leadership to ensure delivery commitments remain aligned with business priorities
- 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
- 12+ years of software engineering experience, including technical leadership for large-scale enterprise applications
- Solid hands-on expertise in Java, Spring Framework, Spring Boot, REST APIs, microservices, Azure Cloud, DevOps, and CI/CD practices
- Good hands-on experience establishing Kafka streams and building reliable Kafka producers and consumers
- Experience designing, developing, testing, debugging, documenting, and optimizing complex Spark jobs
- Experience with relational database platforms such as Oracle, SQL Server, and DB2, including SQL development and performance considerations
- Working knowledge of QA processes, test planning, defect management, test automation, release management, and production support
- Solid understanding of cloud-native design, distributed systems, resilience patterns, application architecture patterns, and API integration
- Demonstrated ability to work independently while leading cross-functional technical delivery
- AI and Modern Engineering Capabilities
- Knowledge of AI Builder and AI-enabled development workflows
- Proficiency with Codex, Claude, or comparable AI-assisted engineering tools
- Proven ability to coach developers on safe, effective, and outcome-oriented use of AI tools and credits
- Proven ability to validate AI-generated code and documentation for security, correctness, maintainability, compliance, and alignment with engineering standards
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience in Pharmacy Benefit Management, healthcare, insurance, or other highly regulated enterprise domains
- Experience working in Agile or Scrum delivery models across geographically distributed teams
- Knowledge of AS/400 or IBM i platforms and legacy application modernization
- Exposure to production-critical batch processing, high-volume data pipelines, and enterprise integration platforms
Leadership Competencies
- Strategic technical leadership
- Connects architecture decisions to business outcomes and long-term platform direction
- Problem solving and analysis
- Breaks down complex issues, identifies root causes, and drives pragmatic resolution
- Communication and influence
- Explains technical topics clearly and builds alignment across business and engineering groups
- Ownership and accountability
- Operates independently, follows through on commitments, and escalates risks early
- Team enablement
- Coaches engineers, raises technical standards, and accelerates adoption of modern and AI-enabled practices
- Quality mindset
- Builds quality, testability, security, resilience, and supportability into delivery from the outset
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.