Quality Assurance Analyst

Optum; La Crosse (WI); Remote; USD 73,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

UnitedHealth Group is seeking a Quality Assurance Analyst to lead end-to-end testing and elevate QA practices across the product area. You will plan, execute, and document tests while coordinating with Product, Engineering, and Operations to ensure high-quality releases.

The role emphasizes risk-based testing, defect leadership, and opportunities to apply AI or automation tools. Remote work from anywhere in the U.S. is supported, with a strong focus on health equity and regulatory compliance.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of manual software testing in a product or application environment.
• 5+ years creating, executing, and improving test plans, test cases, and test scripts.
• 5+ years translating complex requirements into testable scenarios and traceability artifacts.
• 5+ years using analytical and troubleshooting skills including defect triage and root cause analysis.
• 5+ years in Agile delivery environments with cross-functional collaboration.
• 1+ years leveraging AI or automation tools in the software delivery lifecycle.
• US citizenship is required for this position.
• Ability to obtain/maintain a Confidential/Secret or Top-Secret security clearance.

Responsibilities

• Lead manual QA test planning and execution for assigned initiatives with risk assessment and test approach selection.
• Design and maintain test strategy, plans, cases, and traceability across functional, integration, regression, and UAT.
• Collaborate with Product, Engineering, and Operations to refine requirements and criteria.
• Own defect lifecycle: write defects, triage, prioritize, and drive resolution through verification.
• Establish and support regression suites and release testing; keep assets current with changes.
• Support test environments and data needs; coordinate dependencies to reduce delays.
• Conduct root cause analysis and drive preventive quality improvements.
• Contribute to QA modernization with automation and tooling improvements.
• Mentor peers and ensure QA standards and domain understanding.
• Participate in Agile ceremonies and communicate QA status early and clearly.

Skills

Manual testing

Agile delivery

Defect triage

Test planning

Cross-functional collaboration

Analytical skills

AI/automation tools

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS or MIS

Tools

Azure DevOps

Jira

Test management tools

Job description

Improve the lives of others while Caring. Connecting. Growing together.

Job Description - Quality Assurance Analyst (2389189)

Quality Assurance Analyst - 2389189

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, and data 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.

The Quality Analyst is responsible for leading the end-to-end quality strategy and independently validating functionality and workflow stability within their feature team and product area through manual software testing. This role drives high-quality delivery through structured, risk-based testing practices; cross-team partnership; and strong defect identification, triage, and resolution leadership. The Quality Analyst helps ensure new features, system enhancements, and defect fixes meet expected business and regulatory standards by strengthening QA processes, improving test coverage for software applications and processes, establishing quality metrics, and mentoring peers to improve consistency, traceability, and release readiness.

You’ll enjoy the flexibility to work remotely * from anywhere within the U.S. as you take on some tough challenges.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Lead manual QA test planning and execution for assigned initiatives within the product area, including effort estimation, scope definition, risk assessment, and test approach selection
• Design, review, and maintain comprehensive test documentation (test strategy, test plans, test cases, traceability) ensuring coverage across functional, integration, regression, and user acceptance testing
• Partner with Product, Engineering, and Operations to refine requirements and acceptance criteria; proactively identify gaps, cross-system impacts, and downstream workflow risks
• Own defect lifecycle leadership: write high-quality defects with reproducible steps and evidence, perform advanced triage, facilitate prioritization, and drive timely resolution through to verification
• Establish, continuously improve, and support regression suites and release testing; ensure testing assets remain current with releases, configuration changes, and workflow updates
• Support test environment readiness and data needs; coordinate dependencies with Systems Management & Configuration and other partner teams to reduce testing delays
• Perform root cause analysis on recurring defects and quality issues; recommend and help implement preventive improvements to processes, requirements, and test coverage
• Contribute to QA modernization by identifying opportunities for test automation and tooling improvements; collaborate with Quality Engineers on automation candidates and standards
• Mentor and coach other QA team members on test design, documentation standards, defect quality, and domain understanding; provide peer review as needed
• Actively participate in Agile ceremonies and cross-team forums; communicate QA status, risks, and dependencies clearly and early

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:

• High School Diploma/ GED
• 5+ years of experience in manual software testing in a product or application environment using risk-based approaches, end-to-end defect lifecycle management, and QA methodologies
• 5+ years of experience in c reating, executing, and improving test plans, test cases, and test scripts for complex applications and multi-step workflows
• 5+ years of experience in t ranslating complex requirements, configuration dependencies, and business rules into clear, testable scenarios and traceability artifacts
• 5+ years of experience in u tilizing analytical and troubleshooting skills, including defect triage, root cause analysis, and partnering with Engineering to drive resolution
• 5+ years of experience working in Agile delivery environments and collaborating cross-functionally with Product, Engineering, and Operations
• 1+ years of experience in leveraging AI or automation tools within the software delivery lifecycle to improve quality, efficiency, or insight
• United States citizenship is required for this position
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a suitability or determination of eligibility for a Confidential/Secret or Top-Secret security clearance

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science or Management Information Systems (MIS) or other related field with an emphasis in MIS. In lieu of formal degree, equivalent combination of education, experience and/or applicable military experience may be considered
• 5+ years of experience in:
  • SQL and/or data validation techniques (e.g., joins, filtering, reconciling results) to validate workflow outcomes and data integrity
  • HealthCare-adjacent workflows and familiarity with benefit logic, authorization rules, edits, eligibility, or provider workflows; ability to apply domain context to test design
  • Enterprise QA tools and test management/defect tracking platforms (e.g., Azure DevOps, Jira, Test) and working knowledge of CI/CD concepts
  • Establishing or improving QA standards, templates, metrics, and release readiness practices in a regulated or compliance-focused environment
  • Experience supporting MedNet or similar systems and influencing quality outcomes across multiple teams or workstreams
  • Mentoring peers and improving team consistency through standards, templates, peer review, or training.
  • Written and verbal communication skills with demonstrated ability to present QA status, quality metrics, risks, and recommendations to diverse stakeholders

*All Telecommuters 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 $72,800 to $130,000 annually based on full-time employment. We comply with all minimum wage laws as applicable.

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

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.

UnitedHealth Group is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with physical and mental disabilities. If you need special assistance or accommodation for any part of the application process, please call 1-866-566-8715 to be connected to Recruitment Services. Recruitment Services hours of operation are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. CT, Monday through Friday.

UnitedHealth Group is a registered service mark of UnitedHealth Group, Inc. The UnitedHealth Group name with the dimensional logo, as well as the dimensional logo alone, are both service marks for the UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

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.