Axial, Head of Business Testing

**Axial, Head of Business Testing**

**Macclesfield, Luton (UK) Gothenburg (Sweden) Gaithersburg, Wilmington (USA)**

We are in in a period of strong growth and our employees have a united purpose to make a difference to patients around the world who need both our medicines and the ongoing developments from our science. In this journey AZ must continue to work across borders and with partners and new colleagues in a fast and seamless way. The ambition, size and complexity of the organisation, coupled with the opportunities afforded by new technology, has led the Board to approve a large-scale transformation programme - **Axial.**

The Axial Programme will be powered by S/4HANA a new ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system which will be implemented right across the organisation and will provide our business with standardised processes, enhanced financial management, common data and real time reporting, transforming the way we work through our entire supply chain - from bench to patient.

The new system will be used by more than 20,000 employees daily, is foundational to all AZ entities and is central to most core business processes. This is a once in a generation programme for AstraZeneca and will shape our ways of working globally for many years to come.

**About the Role**

The Head of Testing is a strategic senior leadership role accountable for Axial’s overall Testing Strategy as well as overseeing all testing activities related to the systems implementation and deployment across AstraZeneca’s core process and program areas. You will manage a team of 15.

This position focuses on securing resources and expertise from relevant process teams to ensure the seamless integration, functionality, and user acceptance of critical business systems supporting Material Management and Procurement, Network Supply Chain Management, Production to Dispatch Door/Make, Order and Distribution to Tax (including Pricing and Logistics), Record to Report, Enterprise Planning & Management Reporting, ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance), and Intelligent Clinical Supply Management.

Testing activities are executed by a team in both a direct reporting line (primarily Business Testing activities) and dotted reporting line (Technology Testing activities or 3rd party testing) so a matrix leadership style is essential.

The role emphasizes coordination with cross-functional teams, including IT, business units, process owners, and external vendors, to deliver high-quality, reliable systems that support AstraZeneca’s mission of advancing healthcare innovation.

**Key Accountabilities**

**Strategy and Governance**
- Develop and implement a unified testing strategy by collaborating with process teams across AstraZeneca’s key areas, such as Material Management, Procurement, and Network Supply Chain Management, ensuring alignment with business objectives and IT roadmaps.
- Establish testing policies, standards, and best practices in collaboration with process experts to ensure consistency, quality, and compliance with regulatory requirements (e.g., GXP, GDPR, and other pharmaceutical industry standards).
- Define key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics to measure testing effectiveness, leveraging input from process teams to assess system reliability and defect resolution rates.

**Resource and Expertise Coordination**
- Facilitate the involvement of business stakeholders and process owners to provide domain-specific knowledge for test planning, execution, and validation, ensuring their expertise drives testing accuracy.
- Act as a bridge between testing teams, ensuring the right personnel are engaged at the right time to address testing needs for Axial.

**Technology Testing Alignment (SIT and Non-Functional Testing)**
- Ensure, through influence and collaboration with the Technology Test Lead (dotted line report), that their technology testing activities are defined and completed within approved timelines to the appropriate level of compliance and quality
- Collaborate with the Technology Testing team, solution architects, and process SMEs to advocate for the inclusion of business requirements and priorities in technology test plans, ensuring seamless data flow and functionality across processes like pricing and logistics.
- Provide guidance and input to technology test teams by leveraging insights from business process teams to identify potential integration risks that could impact operational workflows, facilitating resolution through stakeholder engagement.
- Define and govern formal Entry/Exit criteria for SIT and UAT, including defect thresholds, test coverage (functional and integration), performance baselines, data readiness, and environment stability.

**User Acceptance Testing (UAT)**
- Lead the coordination of UAT processes by securing participation from business stakeholders in areas like Material Management and Procurement to ensure systems meet operational needs and user expectations.
- Facilitate the creation o