Senior Principal Data Scientist - Remote

Requisition Number: 2373203
Optum Tech is a global leader in health care innovation. Our teams develop cutting-edge solutions that help people live healthier lives and help make the health system work better for everyone. From advanced data analytics and AI to cybersecurity, we use innovative approaches to solve some of health care's most complex challenges. Your contributions here have the potential to change lives. Ready to build the next breakthrough? Join us to start Caring. Connecting. Growing together.
This is a senior AI leadership role focused on advancing Clinical Documentation Improvement and coding intelligence solutions through state-of-the-art machine learning and generative AI technologies. The ideal candidate brings deep expertise across traditional ML, deep learning, LLMs, RAG, and agentic systems, coupled with a proven ability to translate research into scalable healthcare products. Success in this position requires solid technical leadership, stakeholder influence, healthcare data experience, and the ability to drive measurable business and model performance improvements in a highly regulated environment.
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.
Primary Responsibilities:

• Lead the design, development, and deployment of advanced AI/ML solutions to identify and drive clinical documentation improvement (CDI) opportunities across large-scale healthcare datasets
• Research, prototype, and productionize state-of-the-art AI approaches, including sequence models, Mamba architectures, CNNs, gradient boosting (e.g., XGBoost), and emerging LLM/GenAI techniques (RAG, prompt optimization, agent-based systems)
• Partner closely with product, engineering, clinical SMEs, and AI research teams to translate innovative AI approaches into scalable, production-ready solutions
• Serve as a technical leader and subject matter expert, guiding architecture decisions, model strategy, and experimentation frameworks to achieve step-change improvements in model accuracy and performance
• Drive model evaluation, benchmarking, and continuous improvement practices to meet stringent customer expectations and contractual performance commitments
• Collaborate with onshore stakeholders and customers, including participation in onsite engagements, to align AI solutions with real-world clinical workflows and business needs
• Navigate complex data environments with regulatory and offshore constraints, ensuring compliant, secure, and effective use of healthcare data
• Influence AI strategy and roadmap for key initiatives (e.g., OIO, CDI Reimagined, Chart Intelligence), while proactively assessing competitive and third-party technology risks
• Uphold responsible AI practices by embedding fairness, transparency, and accountability into model development and deployment lifecycles
• Mentor and elevate other data scientists, fostering a culture of technical excellence, innovation, and continuous learning

You'll 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 provide development for other roles you may be interested in.
Required Qualifications:

• 6+ years of experience applying machine learning, AI, and advanced analytics techniques, including experience developing and deploying production-grade AI/ML solutions
• Experience working with large, complex datasets and building scalable data science solutions
• Solid experience with LLM/GenAI techniques, including retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), prompt engineering, and agent-based workflows
• Demonstrated expertise in multiple ML paradigms, including deep learning, sequence modeling, and tree-based methods, with hands-on experience across diverse model architectures
• Solid Python programming expertise and experience with modern ML frameworks (e.g., PyTorch, TensorFlow)
• Proven track record of driving measurable improvements in model accuracy, business outcomes, or product capabilities in high-stakes environments
• Demonstrated solid collaboration and communication skills, with experience working directly with business stakeholders, customers, and cross-functional teams

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in healthcare, clinical data, or coding intelligence (ICD, CPT, SNOMED) domains
• Experience leading or influencing AI strategy across large programs or portfolios
• Experience working in regulated environments with data privacy, compliance, and security considerations
• Experience collaborating with geographically distributed teams, including onshore/offshore delivery models
• Working knowledge of SQL and data querying techniques
• Familiarity with clinical documentation improvement (CDI) workflows and healthcare revenue cycle processes
• Demonstrated ability to drive innovation in ambiguous, high-risk, and high-impact environments

*All employees working remotely will be required to adhere to UnitedHealth Group's Telecommuter Policy
Pay is based on several factors including but not limited to local labor markets, education, work experience, certifications, etc. In addition to your salary, we offer benefits such as, a comprehensive benefits package, incentive and recognition programs, equity stock purchase and 401k contribution (all benefits are subject to eligibility requirements). No matter where or when you begin a career with us, you'll find a far-reaching choice of benefits and incentives. The salary for this role will range from $134,600 - $230,800 annually based on full-time employment. We comply with all minimum wage laws as applicable.
Application Deadline: This will be posted for a minimum of 2 business days or until a sufficient candidate pool has been collected. Job posting may come down early due to volume of applicants.
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.
UnitedHealth Group is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer under applicable law and qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, national origin, religion, age, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by local, state, or federal laws, rules, or regulations.
UnitedHealth Group is a drug-free workplace. Candidates are required to pass a drug test before beginning employment.