Principal Data Analyst

Requisition Number: 2378606
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 diversity and inclusion, talented peers, comprehensive benefits and career development opportunities. Come make an impact on the communities we serve as you help us advance health equity on a global scale. Join us to start Caring. Connecting. Growing together.
In healthcare, evolution doesn't just happen. It takes innovation, imagination, and a passion for solving problems in new and better ways. At Optum, we are continually advancing our clinical analytics solutions to help clients make better decisions and achieve improved health outcomes. As our portfolio of clinical products grows, ensuring the integrity, relevance, and transparency of the methodologies underpinning these solutions becomes increasingly important.
The Role:
We are seeking a highly analytical and detail-oriented professional to join our Advanced Clinical Analytics team as a Principal Analyst focused on Clinical Solution Methodology Governance.
In this role, you will serve as a key steward of the methodologies that power our established clinical analytics solutions, including areas such as Utilization Management, Medication Adherence, Medication Therapy Management (MTM), and other client-facing clinical products. You will be responsible for periodically reviewing and validating analytical methodologies, ensuring alignment between documented business logic, stakeholder expectations, and production implementations.
The successful candidate will possess a unique blend of technical expertise, business acumen, and communication skills. They will be comfortable interpreting complex Databricks-based codebases, translating technical logic into business-focused documentation, and partnering with clinical and operational stakeholders to refine analytical methodologies over time.
This position offers a unique opportunity to influence the quality, consistency, and evolution of high-visibility clinical analytics products that are used by clients and internal stakeholders across the organization.
Why This Role Matters:
The methodologies behind our clinical analytics solutions directly influence strategic decisions, client outcomes, and healthcare value. This role will serve as a critical guardian of analytical integrity, ensuring that our solutions remain clinically relevant, technically accurate, and clearly understood by stakeholders across the organization.
Schedule:
Full-time position with standard working hours of Monday - Friday, 9am - 5pm.
Careers with Optum offer flexible work arrangements and individuals who live and work in the Republic of Ireland will have the opportunity to split their monthly work hours between our Dublin or Letterkenny office and telecommuting from a home-based office in a hybrid work model.
Primary Responsibilities:

• Lead periodic reviews of established clinical analytics solutions to ensure methodologies remain accurate, relevant, and aligned with business objectives
• Validate analytical logic through detailed reviews of Databricks notebooks, SQL code, Python scripts, and associated data pipelines
• Develop, maintain, and enhance algorithms, performance measures, and reporting frameworks used to monitor the effectiveness, quality, and outcomes of clinical programs and analytics solutions
• Assess the consistency between documented methodologies, stakeholder requirements, and production implementations
• Partner with clinical, product, operations, and analytics stakeholders to review, clarify, and refine solution methodologies
• Identify opportunities to improve methodological rigor, consistency, transparency, and operational efficiency
• Create and maintain comprehensive methodology documentation for client-facing and internal clinical analytics solutions
• Develop clear executive-level presentations that communicate complex analytical concepts and methodology updates to both technical and non-technical audiences
• Support governance processes related to clinical analytics solutions, ensuring appropriate review, approval, and change management practices
• Conduct impact assessments for proposed methodology changes and communicate implications to key stakeholders
• Serve as a subject matter expert for analytical methodology questions from business partners, clients, and leadership teams
• Promote best practices in analytical documentation, reproducibility, and solution transparency across the Clinical Analytics organization

You will be rewarded and recognized for your performance in an environment that will challenge you and give you clear direction on what it takes to succeed in your role, as well as providing development for other roles you may be interested in.
Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree (or higher) in Analytics, Statistics, Mathematics, Computer Science, Health Economics, Data Science, or a related quantitative discipline, or equivalent professional experience
• Proven significant experience in healthcare analytics, business analytics, clinical analytics, or related analytical disciplines
• Demonstrated solid SQL proficiency and experience working with large and complex healthcare datasets
• Proven experience reviewing, validating, and troubleshooting analytical code written in SQL, Python, or Spark-based environments
• Demonstrated ability to translate technical methodologies into clear business requirements and documentation
• Proven experience working directly with business stakeholders to gather requirements, review methodologies, and drive consensus
• Demonstrated solid presentation and communication skills, with the ability to explain analytical concepts to diverse audiences
• Proven ability to manage multiple priorities while maintaining attention to detail

Preferred Qualifications:

• Proven experience within healthcare, Pharmacy Benefit Management (PBM), managed care, or pharmaceutical analytics environments
• Proven experience working with Databricks, Spark, or cloud-based analytical platforms
• Demonstrated familiarity with clinical quality measures, medication adherence programs, utilization management, formulary analytics, or population health solutions
• Proven experience establishing or participating in analytic governance and quality assurance processes
• Demonstrated knowledge of healthcare claims data, pharmacy data, and clinical program evaluation methodologies
• Proven experience developing executive presentations and communicating findings to senior leadership
• Demonstrated familiarity with version control tools such as Git and collaborative development practices

Please note you must currently be eligible to work and remain indefinitely without any restrictions in the country to which you are making an application. Proof will be required to support your application.
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.
Diversity creates a healthier atmosphere: Optum is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to gender, civil status, family status, sexual orientation, disability, religion, age, race, and membership of the Traveller community, or any other characteristic protected by law. Optum is a drug-free workplace. © 2026 Optum Services (Ireland) Limited. All rights reserved.
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