Senior Test Manager - TCoE & Banking Transformation (Onsite, Sharjah, UAE)

QualityKiosk Technologies; Sharjah; On-site; AED 120,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

A technology solutions provider in Sharjah, UAE, is seeking a Senior Test Manager to lead the QA function for major banking projects. This role includes establishing a Test Center of Excellence and driving automation. The ideal candidate will have over 12 years in QA and banking, with proven leadership skills. The position is onsite and offers significant responsibility in project governance and stakeholder communication.

Qualifications

• 12+ years of experience in Quality Assurance and Test Management.
• Proven track record in setting up and maturing a TCoE function.
• Strong expertise in banking domains within UAE/GCC.

Responsibilities

• Establish and govern Testing Center of Excellence (TCoE) framework.
• Define and execute end-to-end automation implementation strategy.
• Conduct effort estimations for large-scale projects.

Skills

Quality Assurance

Test Management

Banking Domain Knowledge

Automation Implementation

Stakeholder Communication

Job description

Job Title: Senior Test Manager - TCoE & Banking Transformation (Onsite, Sharjah, UAE)

Role Summary

We are seeking a highly accomplished and results-driven Senior Test Manager to take the lead of our testing and Quality Assurance (QA) function at a major banking client in Sharjah. This role is central to our strategy, focusing on establishing a robust Test Center of Excellence (TCoE) and driving the successful, large-scale implementation of automation across critical banking applications. The ideal candidate will combine deep banking domain knowledge with exceptional leadership and financial management skills to ensure delivery quality, project profitability, and risk mitigation.

Key Responsibilities

1. TCoE Strategy & Governance
   • Establish and Mature TCoE: Define, implement, and govern the Testing Center of Excellence (TCoE) framework, processes, standards, and templates for the client.
   • TCoE Enablement: Ensure all new and existing projects are onboarded and consistently executed under the defined TCoE model, driving standardization and efficiency across the portfolio.
   • QA Approval Gatekeeper: Define and enforce stringent quality gates, including formal approval mechanisms (e.g., QA Head sign-off) for all milestone and release completions.
2. Strategic Automation & Technical Leadership
   • Automation Vision: Define and execute the strategy for successful, end-to-end automation implementation, ensuring maximum coverage for functional, regression, and system integration testing.
   • Tools & Techniques: Drive the adoption of modern testing tools, CI/CD integration, and advanced test techniques (e.g., Service Virtualization, AI-driven testing).
   • Testing Breadth: Oversee and provide technical guidance across all testing streams: functional, performance, automation, security, API/data services, and user acceptance testing (UAT).
3. Financial & Delivery Management
   • Effort Estimation & Planning: Conduct accurate and defensible efforts estimation for large-scale projects and Change Requests (CRs), balancing scope, quality, and time constraints.
   • Financial Tracking: Actively monitor and control key financial performance indicators (KPIs), including milestone approval and payments.
   • Change Control: Ensure rigorous governance over Change Request (CR) management, including timely submission of CR Scope of Work (SoW).
4. Team & Stakeholder Leadership
   • Team Management: Manage a large, distributed team of 25-30+ resources operating across an onsite-offshore delivery model, fostering collaboration and accountability.
   • Mentorship & Development: Identify people/skills gaps within the team and design training programs to enhance core banking domain knowledge and technical testing capabilities.
   • Stakeholder Communication: Serve as the primary point of contact for CXO-level stakeholders and business owners, providing clear, concise, and proactive status reporting and risk articulation.

Required Qualifications & Experience

• Experience: 12+ years of progressive experience in Quality Assurance and Test Management, with a significant tenure managing complex, large-scale banking programs.
• TCoE Expertise: Mandatory experience in successfully setting up, operating, and maturing a TCoE function within a financial institution or large consulting engagement.
• Banking Domain: Strong, demonstrable domain expertise within UAE/GCC banks, covering core areas:
  • Retail and Corporate Banking
  • Channels (Internet/Mobile Banking)
  • UAE Payments (including local schemes and compliance)
  • Compliance, Trade Finance, and Lending platforms
• Automation: Proven track record of successful implementation and scaling of automation across multiple projects, resulting in tangible effort reduction and quality improvements.
• Location: Must be willing to work onsite in Sharjah, UAE full-time.

Behavioral Competencies

• Accountability: Takes ownership of project financials and quality outcomes.
• Influence: Ability to secure buy-in from senior management for QA standards and processes.
• Risk Mitigation: Proactive identification and mitigation of delivery and operational risks inherent in large integration projects.