Director, Clinical Documentation Integrity - Remote 2396123 | Phoenix, Arizona | Remote

Service Area Director, Clinical Documentation Integrity

Optum Insight is improving the flow of health data and information to create a more connected system. We remove friction and drive alignment between care providers and payers, and ultimately consumers. Our deep expertise in the industry and innovative technology empower us to help organizations reduce costs while improving risk management, quality and revenue growth. Ready to help us deliver results that improve lives? Join us in making healthcare work better for everyone through people-led, responsible AI while Caring. Connecting. Growing together.

This role supports six client hospitals across Arizona and Nevada and requires frequent onsite engagement with executive and clinical leadership teams.

The Service Area Director, Clinical Documentation Integrity, directs the activities of the Clinical Documentation Integrity (CDI) department. The selected candidate is responsible for providing CDI program oversight and day-to-day implementation of processes related to the concurrent review of the clinical documentation in the inpatient medical record of Optum Insight Client patients (Allina, ProHealth and Queens' Health) at multiple hospitals. This includes, but is not limited to, overall responsibility for the planning, administration, control and quality management of the CDI Department activities in addition to regular reporting of department progress and initiatives to hospital leadership.

This position collaborates with providers and other healthcare team members to make improvements that result in accurate, comprehensive documentation that reflects completely, the clinical treatment, decisions, and diagnoses for the patient. This position utilizes clinical expertise and clinical documentation improvement practices and facility specific tools for best practice and compliance with the mission/philosophy, standards, goals and core values of Optum. The Service Area Director of CDI does not have patient care duties, does not have direct patient interactions, and has no role relative to patient care.

The CDI Service Area Director is involved in the education of all phases of the Clinical Documentation Improvement process across a service area. Provides ongoing Clinical Documentation Improvement education for physicians & new staff and new initiatives or identified areas of knowledge deficit. Tracks and trends program compliance to determine areas of focus for educational opportunities.

The (CDI) Director will lead a high-volume, multi-hospital program across Arizona and Nevada. This is a high-visibility, client-facing leadership role supporting one of the largest CDI programs, requiring solid operational leadership, clinical expertise, and on-site client engagement.

What You'll Do

• Lead CDI operations across 6 hospitals (AZ + NV)
• Drive program performance through KPIs, reporting, and operational oversight
• Partner with hospital executives (CFO, CMO, clinical leadership)
• Lead client-facing meetings, escalations, and strategic discussions
• Ensure effective staffing, workflows, and quality outcomes
• Provide CDI education to providers and staff
• Support cross-functional collaboration with finance, quality, and case management

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:

• Operations, business, financial, and human resource needs of the CDI department
• Plan daily operations of the department in conjunction with the AVP of CDI and participate in development of objectives to meet KPI's
• Direct and maintains adequate staffing and workflow to meet CDI needs
• Monitor various reports and productivity to ensure that production standards and objectives are met in areas of responsibility
• Lead the CDI program as demonstrated by assuming accountability for the ongoing success of the Clinical Documentation Program. Monitors CDI program and communicates with appropriate facility leadership regarding CDI key performance indicators (KPIs), and identifies and implements process changes to maintain and improve KPIs
• Engage and consult with Physician Advisor and/or CMO to resolve provider issues regarding answering clarifications and participation in the clinical documentation improvement process
• Serves as a resource to Physicians / Case Managers and other key professional staff in matters relating to clinical documentation improvement & ICD-10
• Works with medical records, quality, finance, and physician groups to develop systems to facilitate complete documentation for data reporting purposes
• Develops and monitors strategic operating goals, objectives and budget; and reports operational performance, justification and/or corrective action
• Develops and manages direct reports; and oversees the development and management of indirect reports
• Builds and maintains productive inter/intra departmental and vendor work relationships to optimize operations
• Oversees compliance with government and agency regulations
• Performs related duties, as required
• Provide ongoing Clinical Documentation Improvement education for providers & new staff and new initiatives or identified areas of knowledge deficit. Track and trend program compliance to determine areas of focus for educational opportunities
• This position will require frequent interaction with hospital leadership, clinical teams, Quality, Care Coordination, and other departments across multiple facilities and multiple client accounts
• Manage multiple projects simultaneously, manage cross-functional teams, and drive strategic initiatives
• Design and implement education programs which provide education for CDI staff
• Develop and conduct ongoing CDI education for new staff
• Participate in ongoing education of staff
• Communicate information effectively
• Monthly reporting of CDI program progress/operations to hospital leadership
• Responding to questions, concerns and requests promptly
• Serving as a resource regarding policies/procedures/practices
• Identify areas of improvement/education through data collection, analysis, and reports. Participate on committees and conduct studies as necessary to demonstrate improvement in clinical documentation processes
• Interview, hire, provide leadership, counseling, training for employees in areas of responsibility
• Ensure new employees are oriented and trained in all job functions
• Perform counseling both verbal and written for employees requiring additional assistance as evidenced by communication in the personnel file
• Provide consultation to providers and other clinical professionals, and leads implementation of changes that result in improvements in the patient care team's ability to provide appropriate and timely treatment, communication regarding the patient's condition, patient's response to treatment, severity of illness, risk of mortality and treatment complexity
• Use enterprise-approved AI tools to streamline workflows, automate tasks, and drive continuous improvement
• Evaluate emerging trends to inform solution design and strategic innovation

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:

• CCDS or CDIP
• 5+ years of acute care hospital clinical RN experience OR Medical Graduate with CDI experience and CDI certification (CCDS, CDIP)
• 2+ years leadership experience (team + program oversight)
• Advanced analytics and reporting experience (Excel, dashboards)
• Ability to travel 30-40% to client sites

Preferred Qualifications:

• Director-level CDI leadership experience
• Experience with large hospital systems
• Experience managing managers + large team structures
• Proven solid operational and performance management background

*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 $112,700 - $193,200 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 help make the health system work better for everyone. Together, we are shaping the future of healthcare by harnessing technology and innovation to make care simpler to navigate, more affordable and more connected for the people we serve. We are committed to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone feels welcomed, valued, heard and respected, empowering people to bring their authentic selves to work and strengthening our collective impact through diverse talents, backgrounds