Principal Architect - Remote

Overview

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.

The Principal Architect will collaborate with product and engineering teams to define the solution architecture for a platform that enables development of cross-domain agentic workflows and supports the broader AI/ML strategy. The role will partner with enterprise architecture teams to ensure alignment with evolving enterprise standards and governance models. In addition, the Principal Architect will mentor architecture and engineering teams to foster AI‑first innovation, promote best practices, and drive architectural consistency across initiatives.

An individual in the Architecture job family is a strategic resource for United Health Group. This individual could be involved across many aspects of architecture, design, build, engineering and implementation of technical solutions and capabilities providing technical leadership. Responsible for communicating overall architecture vision, technical strategies, and trade‑offs across various levels in the organization to gain buy‑in. Will provide recommendations and technical guidance to improve performance, reliability, and reusability within the constraints of budget, resource and business dependencies.

In base and mid‑level roles, engages across teams in a capacity that ranges from assisting on in‑flight initiatives, up to technical briefings and demonstrations of new technologies across the organization. In senior level roles, leads business solutions, capabilities, and is a solid influencer that engages with client executives and stakeholders.

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.

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.

• 7+ years of experience in software solution architecture, with a focus on AI/ML systems
• 7+ years of experience architecting scalable platforms and microservices, including RESTful API design and cloud‑native development
• 3+ years of experience designing agentic workflows or autonomous systems
• 3+ years of experience communicating architectural vision and strategy across cross‑functional teams
• 3+ years of experience with cloud platforms (Azure, AWS, GCP) and data integration tools
• 1+ years of experience with AI/ML concepts including responsible AI principles, multi‑agent solutions, generative AI, MCP and A2A
• 1+ years of experience with MLOps tools for deploying and managing models in production

• Bachelor's in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field
• 1+ years of experience integrating AI solutions into existing enterprise systems while ensuring alignment with evolving architecture standards

* All employees working remotely will be required to adhere to United Health 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 401(k) 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…