Role Profile: Management QA Consultant / Head of QA
Status: Permanent
Location: Primarily remote with limited client visits as required
Salary: £80k depending on experience

Sponsorship: We do not hold a sponsorship licence so any applicants will need to evidence entitlement to work in the UK
Applications : Direct applications from candidates only. We are not accepting agency submissions for this role.

The Management QA Consultant / Head of QA will manage the delivery of client Test and Quality Assurance strategies along with management of products, processes and be ultimately responsible for ensuring product and delivery quality. The role requires strategic thinking and planning and the provision of expertise throughout the entire product development life cycle with a strong sense of quality ownership making sure that quality is instilled from project initiation to closure.

Must have a proven track record of building Test & Quality Assurance teams, managing the function and direction of the QA teams. The role will provide regular direction, mentoring, and coaching to T&QA team members, ensuring the success of the team’s QA deliverables and services.

The Management QA Consultant / Head of QA will have ownership of QA environments and releases across all products working with the Environment Delivery team. Working closely with the DevOps  team to define the optimal solution for each platform.

The Management QA Consultant / Head of QA will also take responsibility for ensuring all development tasks meet quality criteria through test planning, test execution, quality assurance and issue tracking.

It is important for the Management QA Consultant / Head of QA to oversee the delivery and maintenance of automated scenarios and frameworks based on industry best practices.

Management QA Consultant / Head of QA Essential Skills

The Management QA Consultant / Head of QA should have the following skills:

• Testing and QA Management experience across multiple projects, including management of off-shore (if required) and in-house resources.
• Be a strong leader with experience in implementing and shaping company QA Strategy, Policy and Process.
• Have strong technical QA skills, both functional and non-functional, manual and automation, ideally in an agile, continuous delivery environment.
• Strong communication skills with all the key stakeholders to ensure T&QA vision is understood and implemented correctly.
• Be an advocate of Quality Assurance, Continuous Improvement and industry recognized Best Practices.
• Excellent knowledge of Risk Management, Risk Identification and Risked Based Testing.
• Experience managing testing departments, independent test service providers or testing functions, managing large and complex activities and processes.
• Management and control of financial budgets in-line with demand from Programmes and Projects
• Flexible with the ability to and work under pressure.
• Proactive, strong-minded, quick thinker and assertive.
• Able to motivate a team, recognize talent and bring out the best out of each individual.
• A mature and professional individual who is self-motivated and enthusiastic.
• Excellent communicator, influencing skills and negotiation skills to get management buy-in on ideas and concepts.
• Able to communicate with all levels of management and peers within the organization.
• Building and maintaining relationships within the organisation and with 3rd party suppliers.
• The ability to plan and prioritize work and tasks under pressure.
• Ability to handle conflict effectively/pragmatically.
• Ability to build, implement and direct quality assurance principles and maintain the quality of delivery.

Management QA Consultant / Head of QA Responsibilities

• Responsible for delivering the T&QA Corporate strategy, approach and execution in development projects.
• Responsible for Leading and directing the T&QA leadership team.
• Provide leadership and technical expertise within Test Automation and Quality Assurance.
• Be accountable for the test automation projects, mentor, and provide leadership to the QA automation developers and managers.
• Participate in interviews, induction, training and performance evaluation of all QA leads.
• Create a Test Services framework and be responsible for the performance and continuous improvement of the Test Service and associated Service Provider
• Provide leadership and expertise within the field of Quality Assurance and Testing.
• Have a strong understanding of Test Automation, Testing Methodologies, Testing Processes, Tools and Techniques across the teams.
• Identify and deliver Continuous QA Improvements
• Provide appropriate selection of Test Tooling and Automation
• Ensuring that the development and test teams adhere to the principles, guidelines and best practices of the agreed T&QA strategy as defined.
• Focus on continuous T&QA improvements including usage of appropriate testing tools, test techniques, test automation.
• Building and maintenance of quality standards as well as enforcing technical and testing standards.
• Monitoring of all the T&QA activities, test results, leaked defects, root cause analysis and identifying areas of improvement. Implement steps required to improve the processes.
• Gather and present testing metrics and testing activities for the projects to key stakeholders.
• Ensure the proper usage of available tools to gain the maximum benefit of the QA effort. This includes testing tools for functional, performance, automation, etc.
• Manage training and continuous learning of T&QA staff by means of short courses, conferences, meetups, certifications, etc.
• Be an escalation point for all matters related to testing and quality assurance and operate as a primary point of contact for the QA teams.
• Direct the development of the T&QA strategy, methodology, discipline and framework. Driving and improving the QA team in areas of automated testing and agile testing.
• Work with Portfolio Test Managers, Development managers and the Development Heads to develop and execute QA strategies to meet and exceed department and corporate quality goals.

Our values:

The values we work by are:

• Always act with openness, integrity, and honesty
• Deliver quality throughout
• Adapt and innovate always
• Enjoy the challenge
• Own it

And in return:

We recognise that our success comes from the talent, passion, and dedication of our team. Working collaboratively, we share the challenges and rewards that come from growing our company, reinforcing our culture of ownership.

You will work on exciting projects, delivering value to organisations and communities, with innovative technology and systems.  We understand the importance of personal growth and professional development and invest in the skills of our people to nurture their talent. Our working environment is fast paced, exciting and fun to work in.

We are an inclusive employer that welcomes diversity, challenges discrimination, and promotes equality. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and do not discriminate on the basis of any protected characteristic.