Senior Director, Data Security - Remote or Hybrid in MN and DC

Explore opportunities with the Enterprise Information Security (EIS) team at UnitedHealth Group. Join one of the world's largest health care companies and become part of the first line of defense against security threats. We are focused on strengthening our cyber defenses, ransomware resiliency, vulnerability mitigation, and securing all aspects of our systems and data globally. We are passionate about protecting the sensitive data of our members and providers. We are committed to leveraging every tool, partnership and process needed to enhance our security posture. It is our duty to protect the information of those we serve while Caring. Connecting. Growing together.  

The Enterprise Information Security (EIS) team is responsible for cybersecurity across our organization. We support our business and members by reducing risk, rapidly responding to threats, focusing on business resiliency and securing new acquisitions. 

The Senior Director of Data Security is the senior leader responsible for the overall enterprise data security strategy, operating model, and execution across cloud, on-premises, SaaS, database, and data platform environments. This role leads a team focused on designing, implementing, and maintaining the foundations that enable secure, governed, and compliant use of enterprise data.

This role is responsible for maturing Data Security Posture Management (DSPM), data discovery, classification, tagging, protection controls, data access governance, database activity monitoring, secure data sharing, data loss prevention alignment, and lifecycle security across structured and unstructured data environments.

The Senior Director partners closely with Infrastructure, Cloud Security, Security Architecture, Cyber Defense, Privacy, Legal, Compliance, Data Governance, Platform Engineering, Business Technology, and application teams to ensure scalable data security capabilities are embedded throughout the organization's technology and data landscape.

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:  

Role Objectives & Impact

• Establish and mature a unified operating model for data security, enabling seamless engagement across security, infrastructure, platform, data governance, privacy, legal, compliance, and business technology teams
• Develop and enforce enterprise data security standards, including discovery, classification, tagging, access governance, encryption, tokenization, masking, secure sharing, monitoring, and lifecycle controls
• Drive proactive data risk visibility and posture improvement by expanding DSPM capabilities, strengthening data inventory and ownership, and shifting detection, prioritization, and remediation earlier in the data lifecycle
• Partner with cloud, infrastructure, and platform teams to embed data security by default into cloud platforms, data platforms, databases, pipelines, application patterns, and service adoption processes
• Improve conversion of data security signals into measurable outcomes through consistent intake, prioritization, risk disposition, remediation tracking, KPI reporting, and executive-level posture visibility
• Establish durable lifecycle controls for data minimization, retention, archival, and defensible disposition in partnership with data governance, privacy, legal, and business stakeholders
• Support integration of acquired or federated environments by establishing repeatable onboarding patterns, ownership models, control expectations, and reporting mechanisms for enterprise data security capabilities
   

Core Responsibilities

• Lead and develop the Data Security team, providing direction, coaching, prioritization, and performance management
• Design, document, and mature the enterprise data security operating model, including governance cadence, decision forums, intake, prioritization, escalation paths, and accountability models
• Define and maintain data security standards and technical baselines across structured data, unstructured data, cloud data services, databases, SaaS platforms, data pipelines, and on-premises environments
• Standardize policy execution, operational metrics, KPI reporting, and posture dashboards across data security platforms and business envir