Quality Process Improvement Engineer - Remote

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.

At Optum Health, we aim to make healthcare operations more efficient and effective, allowing patients and members to focus on their health. We are committed to consistent and accurate quality practices across UnitedHealth Group, advocating for our patients and identifying process improvement opportunities to enhance quality and safety.

This position is part of the Optum Health QPS Process Improvement Team, which is responsible for reshaping the way Optum Health approaches quality, data analytics, and process design. We are looking for quality and process engineers who want to transform processes through data analysis and process evaluation. Ideal candidates will be able to identify and solve complex opportunities while telling a compelling story with facts and data to senior leaders in a corporate environment.

The Quality Process Improvement Engineer will be integral in driving new quality perspectives while implementing and deploying a continuous improvement mindset towards achieving our Patient Safety and Quality mission. In this role you will lead the identification, application and implementation of quality principles and process approaches within a highly matrixed environment. You will assess processes, identify opportunities for improvement, implement long term permanent corrective actions, develop statistical data insights and analysis, and deliver new process designs with quality built-in to process. Our Quality Process Improvement Engineers are responsible for defining business requirements, producing supporting process documentation, evaluating large data sets, telling a compelling story, and driving customer-centric process improvements that improve metrics, cost, and experience. The Quality Process Improvement Engineer will apply critical thinking, problem-solving methodologies, statistical analysis, and a systemic approach towards design/implementation of transactional process improvements. In this role you will be a part of a strategic shift that requires the ability to lead, mentor, guide, train, and support other project resources within Optum Health and effectively lead and manage work efforts whether value stream mapping, problem solving, FMEA or end-to-end business process improvements.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Effectively assess processes, identify opportunities for improvement, quantify impact and translate customer needs into efficient, effective, and streamlined processes within our corporate business operations
• Execute transformational quality initiatives through the application of Value Stream Mapping, Systemic Problem Solving, Statistical Data Analysis and End-to-End Process Improvements including process re-design where applicable
• Review, Analyze and Report Statistical findings through critical thought and storytelling of key findings and opportunities within a matrixed organization
• Liaise and work closely with Optum Health Lines of Business, teams, and other business partners to own the delivery of short-term containment and long-term strategic projects to support our Quality mission and vision
• Interact with stakeholders to share diagnostics, build future state processes, and implement those designs while building error proofing into processes
• Drive forward a culture of continuous improvement and efficiency
• Partner to identify critical to quality metrics, and support the operationalization of monitoring and management to deliver improved process performance
• Leverage a broad base of quality engineering tools and problem-solving methodologies to deliver continual process improvements
• Analyze processes, data, and systems to identify improvement opportunities and make improvement recommendations
• Create effective and compelling visual materials/presentations that support the process improvement impact to the organization and adequately represent the impact to quality, cost, and time
• Define, track, and monitor key success measures associated with projects
• Develop and maintain appropriate relationships with all stakeholders to facilitate the successful accomplishment of key quality initiatives. Ensure effective communication with all internal stakeholders throughout the project
• Build and present business cases for Executive Leadership review and approval, including estimates on benefit, effort, resource needs, and timing

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 provide development for other roles you may be interested in.

Required Qualifications:

• 7+ years of experience in process improvement, design/re-design and implementation of permanent and continuous corrective actions
• 7+ years of experience applying quality and/or process engineering principles, leading problem-solving efforts with cross-functional teams to delivering business improvements stemming from complex business problems and demonstrated ability to communicate with clarity and conciseness
• 5+ years of experience driving quality implementation, standardization, and adoption within a complex/matrixed environment with quantified financial, FTE, and/or time savings delivery
• 5+ years of experience implementing process designs and/or re-designs utilizing Lean, Continuous Improvement, Quality/Systems Engineering and Six Sigma approaches, proactively building quality into processes with appropriate controls and monitoring
• 5+ years of specific and successful experience using Value Stream Mapping, Kaizen, Process (Gemba) walks, FMEA, and systemic problem-solving techniques to identify, prioritize, and communicate continuous improvement opportunities
• 5+ years of experience influencing people through clear/concise storytelling at all levels in the organization on key decisions and strategies to drive change
• 5+ years of experience in a corporate setting
• Demonstrated ability to identify and analyze relevant data to determine the root cause of problems, make data-based decisions, and prioritize actions that will have the greatest impact on customer outcomes and experiences

Preferred Qualifications:

• 5+ years of experience driving differentiated quality and process improvements leveraging facts and data
• Demonstrated project and program management experience
• Proven leadership and organizational skills with the ability to motivate cross-functional teams
• Data driven, yet comfortable with ambiguity and able to balance a bias for action with an understanding of appropriate risk
• Proven leadership, interpersonal, and organizational/management skills with an ability to motivate and lead cross functional teams to accomplish shared goals under stringent timelines

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: UnitedHealth Group is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law.

UnitedHealth Group is a drug - free workplace. Candidates are required to pass a drug test before beginning employment.