Job summary
Do you have experience of leading and creating test frameworks in a data team, using best practice and industry standards?
We're looking for technical Test Lead to join the DDaT team to specifically work with our data teams. Can you develop, implement and embed a data test framework across the data lifecycle in NHSBSA?
Making use of data platforms, data warehouses, data analytic tools as well as data products and services to ensure a structured test process is implemented. Utilising our existing standards for statistical publications, open data and data products is imperative. Automation and streamlining testing and quality assurance is key to ensure teams work in agile and efficient ways, focussing on high quality services.
Are you able to use data testing tools and processes and be able to implement and embed best practice across various teams? Can you support and guide our senior stakeholders, colleagues and users to have confidence in our data processing techniques, analysis and outputs?
What do we offer?
- 27 days leave (increasing with length of service) plus 8 bank holidays.
- Flexible working (we are happy to discuss options such as compressed hours)
- Flexi time
- Hybrid working model (we are currently working largely remotely)
- Career Development
- Active Wellbeing and Inclusion Networks
- Excellent Pension
- NHS Car Lease Scheme
- Access to a wide range of benefits and high street discounts!
Main duties of the job
As a Lead Test Engineer your role is a vital part of the quality assurance team, you will be analysing, coaching, leading and supporting services by assuring processes and documentation are fit for purpose aligning with the testing strategy
Demonstrating a creative and innovative approach, advising on a number of standards, methods, tools and applications, so that the optimum approaches, standards and solutions are delivered to meet organisational objectives.
Responsible for collaborating and sharing good practices, through leading workshops, demonstrations within the Test Community
About us
At the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) we deliver a range of essential national services to NHS organisations and contractors, patients and the public.
You may already be using some of our services. Do you have a prescription pre-payment certificate? Perhaps you found this vacancy through NHS Jobs? We're behind these, and much more.
Being one of the UK's Best Big Companies to work for, our values are to be Collaborative, Adventurous, Reliable and Energetic. We CARE about what we do and support each other in achieving our objectives.
Our people are the heart of our organisation. We strive to ensure they feel trusted, valued and empowered. We're passionate about nurturing and developing people. When you join us, we want you to grow, and we offer many opportunities for you to do that.
We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds. With wellbeing and inclusion central to our ethos, our BAME, Disability and Neurodiversity, LGBTQ+, Armed Forces and Women's networks help our colleagues to be their authentic selves at work.
At the NHSBSA we value and respect the diversity of our colleagues and are committed to being a flexible employer. We are proud to offer flexible working opportunities. Whether you're interested in hybrid working, working from home, flexible hours or job sharing, apply today and we can discuss available options with you at the interview stage.
We are the NHS delivering for the NHS.
Job description
Job responsibilities
In this role, you are accountable for
- Mentoring, coaching and supporting the test community and develop quality assurance processes and developing and maintaining standards from a technical perspective.
- Promoting testing in many forms within the DDaT directorate, especially in specialisms such as Accessibility, Automation, Compatibility and Performance.
- Responsibility for supporting the implementation of the long-term testing strategy. Using own initiative to interpret NHSBSA digital requirements and advising the wider NHSBSA on its implementation.
- Evaluating, analysing, and interpreting highly complex information and requirements to inform the design and development of scalable test automation frameworks.
- Innovating and horizon scanning within the test profession to ensure the NHSBSA digital and test community is kept abreast of the latest technological developments and advances in software testing. Planning and implementing where possible to support innovative and creative delivery of Testing.
- Responsible for collaborating and sharing good practices, through leading workshops, demonstrations, and the test community of practice to promote and establish understanding and adoption of standards, best practices and techniques.
- Ensure governance of test practices are followed through the use and implementation of assurance processes such as code, peer, lead and release reviews.
- Communicating complex information effectively across a wide range of people and levels of understanding, including both technical and non-technical audiences, to influence, negotiate and secure value-based outcomes and sign off ahead of delivery of services.
- Supporting the digital test community with any technical or implementation issues of the NHSBSA core test frameworks or infrastructure.
- To promote and raise exposure of the NHSBSA and the test profession at external conferences and events.
- Analyse changes to the development of products and services and plan design, for functional and non-functional requirements. Run and manage appropriate tests to ensure that requirements have been fully met and test coverage is appropriate.
- Working knowledge and skills in a range of contemporary technologies including cloud platforms, open source and SaaS services to better enable and enhance the delivery of QAT services.
- Supporting the development and performance of others to meet and develop their professional objectives.
- Conduct 1-1s where required and work with the team manager to identify and meet development needs, implementing, monitoring, evaluating and reporting on the impact and success of implemented training plans
- Collaborate with team manager and colleagues to undertake recruitment and selection in line with organisational processes.
- Share feedback to support and encourage teams and individuals to develop thinking and independently work through issues, to reach solutions-based outcomes. Leading by example by seeking, providing and implementing individual feedback to improve ways of working and own performance.
- Train, mentor and coach other team members, including apprentices to enable the on-going technical development and growth of skills within the team.
- Keeping abreast of technological advances and maintaining an excellent understanding of the use of technology in delivering business objectives.
- Identify and support opportunities for the team to further develop their skills to meet the changing needs of the business. Taking ownership for decision making within own area, seeking support and feedback to develop well thought out solutions, processes and work as required, and in conjunction with agreed procedures.
- To provide support to test community with clear development and career pathways to allow for professional development within the digital test function.
- Maintain own knowledge and expertise at the forefront of sector knowledge and investigate research to support future business needs.
- Identify opportunities, engaging and fostering relationships and partnership working within the organisation, third parties and cross government organisations to identify, influence and deliver value to the organisation.
- Working collaboratively with respective team managers, professional leads and delivery managers to identify, implement and support team and individual development.
- Effectively engage and collaborate across multiple disciplines to ensure consistent approaches, methods, standards, and patterns are holistically applied to meet test technical goals and objectives.
- Implement, monitor and report on a number of areas including agreed quality standards, service levels, KPI's and standards within team.
- Completing own assigned tasks, to a high quality and within agreed timelines. Delivering continuous improvements to enhance own and business areas; co-ordinating and delivery of work across multiple strands such as continuous improvement, project related work, and operational tasks, and escalating issues at appropriate times.
- Preparing plans to enable the delivery and management of projects and programmes undertaken by the team. Providing operational direction in the preparation of plans to deliver systems and service across the organisation.
- Responsible for service testing and its practical implementation, within the directorate.
- Manage and implement approaches, strategies, standards, practices and policies across the team, ensuring and monitoring the timely delivery of business objectives within budget through the management of projects and programmes.
- Providing feedback on functional and non-functional requirements to create standardisation across the test community and services.
- Participating in procurement processes for hardware and software.
Job description
Job responsibilities
In this role, you are accountable for
- Mentoring, coaching and supporting the test community and develop quality assurance processes and developing and maintaining standards from a technical perspective.
- Promoting testing in many forms within the DDaT directorate, especially in specialisms such as Accessibility, Automation, Compatibility and Performance.
- Responsibility for supporting the implementation of the long-term testing strategy. Using own initiative to interpret NHSBSA digital requirements and advising the wider NHSBSA on its implementation.
- Evaluating, analysing, and interpreting highly complex information and requirements to inform the design and development of scalable test automation frameworks.
- Innovating and horizon scanning within the test profession to ensure the NHSBSA digital and test community is kept abreast of the latest technological developments and advances in software testing. Planning and implementing where possible to support innovative and creative delivery of Testing.
- Responsible for collaborating and sharing good practices, through leading workshops, demonstrations, and the test community of practice to promote and establish understanding and adoption of standards, best practices and techniques.
- Ensure governance of test practices are followed through the use and implementation of assurance processes such as code, peer, lead and release reviews.
- Communicating complex information effectively across a wide range of people and levels of understanding, including both technical and non-technical audiences, to influence, negotiate and secure value-based outcomes and sign off ahead of delivery of services.
- Supporting the digital test community with any technical or implementation issues of the NHSBSA core test frameworks or infrastructure.
- To promote and raise exposure of the NHSBSA and the test profession at external conferences and events.
- Analyse changes to the development of products and services and plan design, for functional and non-functional requirements. Run and manage appropriate tests to ensure that requirements have been fully met and test coverage is appropriate.
- Working knowledge and skills in a range of contemporary technologies including cloud platforms, open source and SaaS services to better enable and enhance the delivery of QAT services.
- Supporting the development and performance of others to meet and develop their professional objectives.
- Conduct 1-1s where required and work with the team manager to identify and meet development needs, implementing, monitoring, evaluating and reporting on the impact and success of implemented training plans
- Collaborate with team manager and colleagues to undertake recruitment and selection in line with organisational processes.
- Share feedback to support and encourage teams and individuals to develop thinking and independently work through issues, to reach solutions-based outcomes. Leading by example by seeking, providing and implementing individual feedback to improve ways of working and own performance.
- Train, mentor and coach other team members, including apprentices to enable the on-going technical development and growth of skills within the team.
- Keeping abreast of technological advances and maintaining an excellent understanding of the use of technology in delivering business objectives.
- Identify and support opportunities for the team to further develop their skills to meet the changing needs of the business. Taking ownership for decision making within own area, seeking support and feedback to develop well thought out solutions, processes and work as required, and in conjunction with agreed procedures.
- To provide support to test community with clear development and career pathways to allow for professional development within the digital test function.
- Maintain own knowledge and expertise at the forefront of sector knowledge and investigate research to support future business needs.
- Identify opportunities, engaging and fostering relationships and partnership working within the organisation, third parties and cross government organisations to identify, influence and deliver value to the organisation.
- Working collaboratively with respective team managers, professional leads and delivery managers to identify, implement and support team and individual development.
- Effectively engage and collaborate across multiple disciplines to ensure consistent approaches, methods, standards, and patterns are holistically applied to meet test technical goals and objectives.
- Implement, monitor and report on a number of areas including agreed quality standards, service levels, KPI's and standards within team.
- Completing own assigned tasks, to a high quality and within agreed timelines. Delivering continuous improvements to enhance own and business areas; co-ordinating and delivery of work across multiple strands such as continuous improvement, project related work, and operational tasks, and escalating issues at appropriate times.
- Preparing plans to enable the delivery and management of projects and programmes undertaken by the team. Providing operational direction in the preparation of plans to deliver systems and service across the organisation.
- Responsible for service testing and its practical implementation, within the directorate.
- Manage and implement approaches, strategies, standards, practices and policies across the team, ensuring and monitoring the timely delivery of business objectives within budget through the management of projects and programmes.
- Providing feedback on functional and non-functional requirements to create standardisation across the test community and services.
- Participating in procurement processes for hardware and software.
Person Specification
Personal Qualities, Knowledge & Skills
Essential
- Supporting the long-term testing strategy.
- Business change, rationalisation and transformation
- Operate at various levels of the technology stack for the five main test frameworks. Automation, Accessibility, Compatibility, Performance and Security testing.
- Offering advice and consultation as the Subject Matter Expert in testing for key stakeholders
- To develop and implement operational standards, procedures for coding and testing standards.
- Compatibility testing using browser technologies, platforms and services
- Automated testing methodologies and tools such as Selenium Web-driver & Cucumber
- Performance testing methodologies and tools such as Jmeter.
- Accessibility testing methodologies and tools such as Wave, Axe, Lighthouse & Screen Readers.
- BDD practices
- Experience with DevOps and Agile Delivery Frameworks.
- Experience of a wide range of tools and technologies in every framework area
- Evaluate testing proposals from external suppliers, and make recommendations to senior stakeholders
Desirable
- GDS
- Accessibility testing public sector legislation
- Acceptance testing / Functional testing
- Leading a community of practice
- Creating and developing new test frameworks from scratch.
Qualifications
Essential
- IT related degree or relevant experience
Desirable
- Post Graduate qualification
Experience
Essential
- Ongoing Continuous Professional Development
- Engaging and building relationships with a range of stakeholders to support delivery of user and business needs
- Identifying non- functional needs and ensure they are captured and implemented as part of a projects.
- Communicating ideas and producing engaging presentations to different audiences
- Supporting services projects as a lead of a QA team.
- Multi-tasking, analysing opportunities, defining successful approaches, and proactively solve problems.
- Influence and manage in a complex matrix organisation
- Analysing digital / web services in a fast-paced environment
- Working across multiple projects
- Leading multiple teams across multiple locations.
- Coaching, mentoring and developing people within quality assurance and testing
Desirable
- Working within a scrum team, and experience creating user stories and associated tasks.
- Interpreting strategy and translate emerging trends and technologies which might impact or benefit the organisation
- Open source and cloud technologies and their sourcing
Person Specification
Personal Qualities, Knowledge & Skills
Essential
- Supporting the long-term testing strategy.
- Business change, rationalisation and transformation
- Operate at various levels of the technology stack for the five main test frameworks. Automation, Accessibility, Compatibility, Performance and Security testing.
- Offering advice and consultation as the Subject Matter Expert in testing for key stakeholders
- To develop and implement operational standards, procedures for coding and testing standards.
- Compatibility testing using browser technologies, platforms and services
- Automated testing methodologies and tools such as Selenium Web-driver & Cucumber
- Performance testing methodologies and tools such as Jmeter.
- Accessibility testing methodologies and tools such as Wave, Axe, Lighthouse & Screen Readers.
- BDD practices
- Experience with DevOps and Agile Delivery Frameworks.
- Experience of a wide range of tools and technologies in every framework area
- Evaluate testing proposals from external suppliers, and make recommendations to senior stakeholders
Desirable
- GDS
- Accessibility testing public sector legislation
- Acceptance testing / Functional testing
- Leading a community of practice
- Creating and developing new test frameworks from scratch.
Qualifications
Essential
- IT related degree or relevant experience
Desirable
- Post Graduate qualification
Experience
Essential
- Ongoing Continuous Professional Development
- Engaging and building relationships with a range of stakeholders to support delivery of user and business needs
- Identifying non- functional needs and ensure they are captured and implemented as part of a projects.
- Communicating ideas and producing engaging presentations to different audiences
- Supporting services projects as a lead of a QA team.
- Multi-tasking, analysing opportunities, defining successful approaches, and proactively solve problems.
- Influence and manage in a complex matrix organisation
- Analysing digital / web services in a fast-paced environment
- Working across multiple projects
- Leading multiple teams across multiple locations.
- Coaching, mentoring and developing people within quality assurance and testing
Desirable
- Working within a scrum team, and experience creating user stories and associated tasks.
- Interpreting strategy and translate emerging trends and technologies which might impact or benefit the organisation
- Open source and cloud technologies and their sourcing
Additional information
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
