The Role
Lead and execute mixed-method UX research for complex, regulated enterprise healthcare products. Define research strategy, run qualitative and quantitative studies, synthesize insights into actionable recommendations, support AI-driven product evaluation, partner cross-functionally, scale ResearchOps, and mentor junior researchers.
Summary Generated by Built In
Requisition Number: 2369837
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.
Primary Responsibilities:
Required Qualifications:
Core Skills:
Preferred Qualifications:
AI-Enabled Research Capabilities:
Tools & Skills (Desired):
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.
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.
Primary Responsibilities:
- Research Strategy and Planning
- Define and lead research strategies aligned to product priorities and roadmap decisions
- Identify key knowledge gaps and opportunities across complex enterprise workflows
- Design and execute mixed-method research (qualitative and quantitative)
- Advocate for user-centered thinking across cross-functional teams
- User Research Execution
- Conduct a wide range of research methods, including:
- In-depth interviews and contextual inquiry
- Usability testing (moderated and unmoderated)
- Concept and prototype validation
- Surveys and quantitative studies
- Synthesize findings into clear insights, themes, and opportunity areas
- Translate insights into actionable recommendations for product and design teams
- Conduct a wide range of research methods, including:
- Insight Generation and Storytelling
- Deliver compelling research artifacts such as:
- Research reports and executive summaries
- Personas and journey maps
- Experience principles and opportunity frameworks
- Communicate findings effectively to influence product strategy and prioritization
- Connect research insights to business outcomes, KPIs, and UX quality metrics
- Deliver compelling research artifacts such as:
- AI, Data & Emerging Research Practices
- Conduct research on AI-driven experiences (e.g., copilots, automation, decision support tools)
- Evaluate trust, explainability, and user adoption of AI systems
- Use AI-assisted tools for synthesis, pattern recognition, and insight generation
- Partner with data teams to triangulate behavioral analytics with user research
- Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Partner with Product Managers to define hypotheses and validate product direction
- Collaborate with designers to inform interaction and experience decisions
- Align with engineering and data science to ensure feasibility and measurement
- Mentor designers and junior researchers on research methods and best practices
- Operational Excellence & ResearchOps
- Contribute to research processes, templates, and standards
- Support participant recruitment strategies and vendor partnerships
- Help scale research practices through reusable frameworks, libraries, and insights repositories
- Advocate for ethical research practices, privacy, and compliance
- 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:
- Bachelor's or master's degree in computer science, Engineering, or a related field
- 5+ years of experience in UX Research, Human Factors, or related field
- Demonstrated experience in enterprise or complex software environments
- Experience influencing product and design decisions through research insights
- Solid expertise in qualitative and quantitative research methods
- Familiarity with regulated domains (e.g., healthcare, finance, compliance-driven systems)
- Proven ability to independently plan, execute, and synthesize research
- Proven solid storytelling and communication skills across technical and non-technical audiences
Core Skills:
- Systems thinking and service design mindset
- Stakeholder influence and facilitation
- Data storytelling and visualization
- Research Ops and scaling research practices
Preferred Qualifications:
- Experience researching AI-powered or data-intensive applications
- Experience supporting design systems with research-backed usability standards
- Experience evaluating trust, transparency, and usability of AI systems
- Experience contributing to research strategy at a program or portfolio level
- Experience working in Agile or PI planning environments
- Background in behavioral science, HCI, cognitive psychology, or related disciplines
- Familiarity with accessibility standards (WCAG) and inclusive research practices
AI-Enabled Research Capabilities:
- Prompting and AI-assisted synthesis (e.g., clustering insights, summarizing interviews)
- Using AI tools for rapid analysis of qualitative data sets
- Evaluating human-AI interaction patterns and feedback loops
Tools & Skills (Desired):
- Research Platforms & Tools
- User research platforms: Dscout, UserTesting, UserZoom, Maze, Optimal Workshop
- Survey tools
- Design & Collaboration
- Figma (Make, FigJam), Miro, Mural for synthesis and workshops
- Collaboration tools: Teams, Confluence, SharePoint
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.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's or master's degree in computer science, Engineering, or a related field
- 5+ years of experience in UX Research, Human Factors, or related field
- Demonstrated experience in enterprise or complex software environments
- Experience influencing product and design decisions through research insights
- Solid expertise in qualitative and quantitative research methods
- Familiarity with regulated domains (e.g., healthcare, finance, compliance-driven systems)
- Proven ability to independently plan, execute, and synthesize research
- Proven storytelling and communication skills across technical and non-technical audiences
- Systems thinking and service design mindset
- Stakeholder influence and facilitation skills
- Data storytelling and visualization skills
- ResearchOps experience and ability to scale research practices
- Experience researching AI-powered or data-intensive applications
- Experience supporting design systems with research-backed usability standards
- Experience evaluating trust, transparency, and usability of AI systems
- Experience contributing to research strategy at a program or portfolio level
- Experience working in Agile or PI planning environments
- Background in behavioral science, HCI, cognitive psychology, or related disciplines
- Familiarity with accessibility standards (WCAG) and inclusive research practices
- Prompting and AI-assisted synthesis experience (clustering insights, summarizing interviews)
- Experience using AI tools for rapid analysis of qualitative data sets
- Experience with user research platforms (Dscout, UserTesting, UserZoom, Maze, Optimal Workshop) and survey tools
- Familiarity with design and collaboration tools (Figma, FigJam, Miro, Mural) and collaboration platforms (Teams, Confluence, SharePoint)
Optum Compensation & Benefits Highlights
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Healthcare Strength — Health coverage offers copay and HSA medical options with dental, vision, company‑paid life and disability, and free or low‑cost virtual visits. Feedback suggests the offering is comprehensive and competitive on paper.
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Parental & Family Support — Time off and family supports include PTO, eight paid holidays plus a floating day, six weeks paid parental leave, up to two weeks paid caregiver leave, Bright Horizons back‑up care, and adoption assistance up to $10,000. Feedback suggests these resources are meaningful for caregivers and family needs.
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Retirement Support — Savings programs include a 401(k) with employer match (after one year, vesting after two) and a 10%‑discount Employee Stock Purchase Plan. These programs bolster long‑term financial security when combined with other savings resources.
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The Company
What We Do
Optum, part of the UnitedHealth Group family of businesses, 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. At Optum, we support your well-being with an understanding team, extensive benefits and rewarding opportunities. By joining us, you’ll have the resources to drive system transformation while we help you take care of your future. We recognize the power of connection to drive change, improve efficiency and make a difference in health care. Join a team where your skills and ideas can make an impact and where collaboration is key to creating technology that produces healthier outcomes.
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Optum Offices
Hybrid Workspace
Employees engage in a combination of remote and on-site work.
Optum has three workplace models that balance the needs of the business and the responsibilities of each role. These models, core on‑site (5 days/week), hybrid (4 days/week) and telecommute or fully remote, vary by country, role and location.
Typical time on-site:
Not Specified
