Head of Quality Assurance

**Job description**

The Head of Quality Assurance (QA) and Test is the most senior role within the DDTS Digital function and leads the QA & Test profession.

You will set Defra’s technical test strategy and lead the direction of the software quality assurance for Defra. Accountable for multiple teams and services that provide software quality assurance and test visibility to all of Defra group.

You will represent DDTS to senior stakeholders and their leadership and knowledge of the organisation is critical in influencing software development. They are accountable for all QA and Test services with the leadership of circa 55 testing professionals.

This role requires both strong technical expertise, excellent leadership skills, significant managerial experience and the ability to set a clear vision of what quality means to align with Defra’s, and more specifically DDTS, technical strategy and operating model.

Your role will deal with high-profile, high-risk areas and collaborates with related disciplines, to keep multiple teams working effectively.

**Responsibilities**
- Set the DDTS level strategy for the delivery of all digital QA, functional testing, non-functional testing and test assurance activities.
- Support software testing teams throughout the delivery process through the influential provision of technical leadership, guidance and coaching.
- Identify and drive forward the development of testing capabilities including the continuous professional development for all QAT job families.
- Manage effective performance within the testing profession and shape proactive measures and mechanisms to provide assurance whilst developing capability by shaping career paths, recruiting talent and making sure teams collaborate effectively.
- Deal with high-profile high-risk areas and develop new initiatives or approaches to solve new issues, providing thought, leadership and unlocking innovations and efficiencies.
- Works with Lead Engineers/Managers/Analysts and the wider team to ensure all software is developed to agreed functional and non-functional security, quality and service standards and specifications.
- Line manage a team of Principle Testers from the Test Engineering, Test Management & Test Analyst professions and Resource Managers.
- Maintain the team’s profession, resources and sets the technical direction when deciding on an approach to deliver future technology whilst tackling and removing blockers to delivery and manage risk.
- Ensure that all teams and services follow the correct technical approaches so that the solutions will be fit for Defra’s needs and ambitions.

**Skills and experience**
- Able to analyse changes to, or the development of, products and services and plan design.
- Able to run and manage appropriate tests to ensure that requirements have been fully met.
- Understands and is able to identify the most effective techniques, data sets and tools to use.
- Able to communicate defects or trends clearly to software developers, outlining how defects are identified and the possible causes.
- Able to analyse changes to, or the development of, products and services and plan design in a non-functional environment and run and manage appropriate non-functional tests to ensure that requirements have been fully met.
- Understands and is able to identify the most effective techniques, data sets and non-functional testing tools.
- Able to communicate defects or trends clearly to software developers, outlining how defects are identified and possible causes and design or provide assurance for appropriate risk-based end-to-end system integration test models.
- Effective in utilising a range of contemporary technologies including cloud platforms, open source and ‘aaS’ services to better enable and enhance the delivery of QAT services whilst staying abreast of industry developments to make cost-effective use of new and emerging tools and technologies.
- Able to utilise a breadth of knowledge from across the wider technology and digital professions, strengthening the effective delivery of services; relevant professional awareness may include architecture, continuous integration and deployment, coding or scripting languages.

**Job Types**: Full-time, Permanent

**Salary**: £59,341.00-£72,349.00 per year

**Benefits**:

- Flexitime
- Work from home

Schedule:

- Flexitime
- Holidays
- Monday to Friday

Work Location: Hybrid remote in Newcastle upon Tyne

Reference ID: 298135