Principal Architect - Remote

Requisition Number: 2374072
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.
Join us in shaping the future of customer engagement as a Principal Architect supporting our enterprise contact center platform. In this highly visible role, you will provide technical leadership for the evolution of modern customer experience capabilities, helping drive innovation across cloud, AI, and contact center technologies. You'll partner with engineering, product, and business leaders to solve complex challenges, influence strategic direction, and deliver scalable solutions that improve experiences for both customers and employees.
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:

• Architectural Design & Strategy
  • Lead the design and architecture of Amazon Connect-based contact center solutions with integrated telephony systems
  • Focus on areas including Product Development, Data & Analytics, Observability & Business Continuity, Routing, Desktop/CTI, WFM/WFO, Amazon Platform Integration, SBC/Telephony, AI, and GenAI technologies
  • Develop and implement architectural best practices to ensure scalability, reliability, and security of the contact center platform
• Technical Leadership
  • Provide hands-on expertise to create accelerators and frameworks for engineering and delivery teams
  • Mentor and guide junior architects and engineers, fostering a culture of continuous learning and improvement
  • Stay current with industry trends and emerging technologies from vendors such as Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Oracle, etc., and integrate them into the architecture as appropriate
• Collaboration & Communication
  • Collaborate with cross-functional teams including engineering, delivery, and product management to gather requirements and translate them into technical specifications
  • Clearly communicate complex technical concepts and solutions in both written and verbal form to stakeholders at all levels
  • Utilize design tools such as Draw.io, PlantUML, Mermaid, PowerPoint, Miro, and Figma to create comprehensive architectural diagrams and documentation
• Problem Solving & Support
  • Address production and non-production issues, providing expert support to resolve technical challenges promptly
  • Lead the lifecycle from feature grooming to Day 2 support, ensuring quality deliverables and customer satisfaction
  • Analyze and understand protocol stacks and data entity models to troubleshoot and optimize system performance
• Innovation & Continuous Improvement
  • Evaluate and implement AI and GenAI solutions to enhance the contact center capabilities
  • Develop strategies for observability and business continuity to ensure system resilience
  • Drive innovation by integrating industry standards and technologies into the contact center platform
  • Collaborate with vendor product teams to align their product roadmap with future needs
  • Collaborate with vendor support teams to manage key issues on vendor platform

Technical Skills

• Solid knowledge of application, technology, and data architecture principles
• Proficiency in understanding and analyzing protocol stacks and data entities
• Hands-on experience with design and collaboration tools like Draw.io, PlantUML, Mermaid, PowerPoint, Word, Excel, Miro, and Figma
• Familiarity with cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud) and services
• Hands on experience with Cloud native tech stack: Experience working with diverse technologies: Java, Public Cloud (Azure), Cloud (Docker, Microservices/SpringBoot), RDBMS (MySQL) + nosql (Cassandra, MongoDB, Elastic), APIs (REST, Graph QL), API gateways (Kong etc.), Data Streaming (Kafka), Visualization (Grafana, Kibana), ELK stack (Elastic, Logstash, and Kibana); API Gateway, Gen AI, AI/ML

Soft Skills

• Experience working with multiple stakeholders, and working in matrix organizations
• Excellent communication and presentation skills
• Solid analytical and problem-solving abilities
• Ability to articulate thoughts clearly in both written and verbal communication
• Leadership skills with the ability to influence and inspire teams

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:

• Undergraduate degree or equivalent experience
• 7+ years of experience in solution architecture with a focus on contact center technologies and telephony systems. This could include experience as full stack engineer in the platforms mentioned
• Proven experience with Amazon Connect and integrating telephony solutions
• Extensive experience in Product Development, Data & Analytics, Routing, Desktop/CTI, WFM/WFO, and SBC/Telephony
• Demonstrated expertise in AI and GenAI technologies applied within contact center environments

Preferred Qualifications:

• Certifications such as AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional
• Experience working with vendors like Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and Oracle
• Knowledge of industry standards and best practices in contact center technologies
• Familiarity with agile methodologies and DevOps practices

*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.