Lead Software Engineer - Next Best Action

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We are seeking an accomplished Lead Software Engineer or Architect to design, develop, and own a high-performance, real-time decision engine. This stateless, deterministic platform delivers rapid, transparent, and reproducible recommendations across digital and assisted channels. The engine evaluates contextual inputs, applies versioned business rules, incorporates model scores, and generates ranked, explainable decision responses, while execution and state management are handled by downstream systems. This opportunity is ideal for candidates passionate about low-latency Java services, robust API design, and building highly auditable systems.

Key Responsibilities

System Ownership and Architecture

• Design, implement, and maintain a stateless, side-effect-free decision service in Java (Kotlin also considered), following a well-defined processing pipeline: Context Rules Deterministic Scoring Reconciliation Decision Response.
• Ensure the engine maintains immutability, with no internal state mutations or external message dispatch.
• Define and continuously improve the Decision Response schema to include:
  • Human-readable rationale for both selected and rejected recommendations
  • Policy/rule references and score breakdowns
  • Input/context hashes for audit, replay, and verification

Rules Engine Leadership

• Lead the integration and evolution of the rules execution layer, utilizing technologies such as Drools/DMN, IBM ODM, Google CEL, OPA/Rego, or JVM-based DSLs.
• Establish practices for rule versioning, reason code standards, static validation, and simulation/backtesting of rule changes.
• Ensure deterministic, secure, and compliant rule evaluation at all times.

API & Data Contract Management

• Publish and maintain OpenAPI specifications for decision endpoints, and provide read-only contracts for action metadata and state snapshots.
• Integrate model scores through stable interfaces, ensuring models inform decisions without overriding business constraints.
• Coordinate closely with downstream teams responsible for state machines, delivery, and channel execution, keeping all state management outside the decision engine.

Performance & Reliability Engineering

• Engineer for strict low-latency and high-availability targets (e.g., p50: 60-120 ms, p95: 300 ms, API uptime 99.9%).
• Implement strategies for graceful degradation and safe defaults when rule artifacts or model scoring become unavailable.
• Maintain golden datasets and a determinism test harness within CI to guarantee consistent outputs for identical inputs and versions.

Observability & Auditability

• Develop and maintain an append-only Decision Ledger to record input summaries, rule/model versions, context hashes, and full explanations for each decision.
• Instrument services with OpenTelemetry and structured, PII-safe logging; build dashboards to monitor latency, throughput, rule activity, and score distributions.
• Provide robust replay tools for audit support and verification of decision outcomes.

Technical Leadership

• Lead design reviews and establish standards for idempotency, versioning, contract-first development, and backward compatibility.
• Collaborate with Rules, ML, Platform/Infrastructure, and Product teams; mentor senior and mid-level engineers on testing, profiling, and code review best practices.
• Drive adherence to quality gates including contract tests, load tests, chaos engineering drills, and readiness checks.

AI-Assisted Engineering (Responsible Use)

• Utilize AI tools to accelerate code scaffolding, test automation, migrations, and documentation.
• Ensure all eligibility and compliance logic remains human-authored and auditable; AI is not used for policy decision-making.

Use your skills to make an impact

Required Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in backend or platform engineering, with at least 3 years in a senior or lead role.
• Deep expertise in Java/JVM, including performance tuning, concurrency, garbage collection, and profiling; strong background in developing low-latency APIs (e.g., Spring Boot, Netty).
• Proven experience with distributed systems, event-driven architectures (Kafka or similar), idempotent design patterns, and contract-first API development (OpenAPI).
• Direct experience implementing rules engines with at least one of: Drools/DMN, IBM ODM, CEL, OPA/Rego, or a custom JVM DSL (including parser/AST/bytecode/interpreter development).
• Demonstrated discipline in achieving determinism, versioning, explainability, and auditability.

Preferred Qualifications

• Track record of delivering real-time decisioning, recommendation, or policy services at scale.
• Experience designing DSLs (e.g., with ANTLR or custom parsing) or optimizing rules engines for performance and maintainability.
• Experience integrating production model services (feature stores, model registries; A/B or shadow evaluation).
• Background in regulated or mission-critical industries (healthcare, finance, telecommunications), with emphasis on separation of duties and strong data controls.
• Proficiency with related stacks: Python for offline analysis

Additional Information

SSN Alert Statement

Humana values personal identity protection. Please be aware that applicants may be asked to provide their Social Security Number, if it is not already on file. When required, an email will be sent from with instructions on how to add the information into your official application on Humana's secure website.

WAH Internet Statement

To ensure Home or Hybrid Home/Office employees' ability to work effectively, the self-provided internet service of Home or Hybrid Home/Office employees must meet the following criteria:

At minimum, a download speed of 25 Mbps and an upload speed of 10 Mbps is required; wireless, wired cable or DSL connection is suggested.
Satellite, cellular and microwave connection can be used only if approved by leadership.
Employees who live and work from Home in the state of California, Illinois, Montana, or South Dakota will be provided a bi-weekly payment for their internet expense.
Humana will provide Home or Hybrid Home/Office employees with telephone equipment appropriate to meet the business requirements for their position/job.
Work from a dedicated space lacking ongoing interruptions to protect member PHI / HIPAA information.

Travel: While this is a remote position, occasional travel to Humana's offices for training or meetings may be required.

Scheduled Weekly Hours

40

Pay Range
The compensation range below reflects a good faith estimate of starting base pay for full time (40 hours per week) employment at the time of posting. The pay range may be higher or lower based on geographic location and individual pay will vary based on demonstrated job related skills, knowledge, experience, education, certifications, etc.

$129,300 - $177,800 per year

This job is eligible for a bonus incentive plan. This incentive opportunity is based upon company and/or individual performance.

Description of Benefits
Humana, Inc. and its affiliated subsidiaries (collectively, "Humana") offers competitive benefits that support whole-person well-being. Associate benefits are designed to encourage personal wellness and smart healthcare decisions for you and your family while also knowing your life extends outside of work. Among our benefits, Humana provides medical, dental and vision benefits, 401(k) retirement savings plan, time off (including paid time off, company and personal holidays, volunteer time off, paid parental and caregiver leave), short-term and long-term disability, life insurance and many other opportunities.

Application Deadline: 03-19-2026
About us
Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) is committed to putting health first - for our teammates, our customers and our company. Through our Humana insurance services and CenterWell healthcare services, we make it easier for the millions of people we serve to achieve their best health - delivering the care and service they need, when they need it. These efforts are leading to a better quality of life for people with Medicare, Medicaid, families, individuals, military service personnel, and communities at large.

Equal Opportunity Employer

It is the policy of Humana not to discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, marital status, genetic information, disability or protected veteran status. It is also the policy of Humana to take affirmative action, in compliance with Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act and VEVRAA, to employ and to advance in employment individuals with disability or protected veteran status, and to base all employment decisions only on valid job requirements. This policy shall apply to all employment actions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, upgrading, promotion, transfer, demotion, layoff, recall, termination, rates of pay or other forms of compensation and selection for training, including apprenticeship, at all levels of employment.