Manager, Release Management and QA Network Operations - IT Systems and Service Management Ottawa, Ontario

Telesat; Ottawa; Hybrid; CAD 110,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Telesat is seeking a senior Test Engineering Lead to oversee testing, QA, release management, and production operations for Lightspeed applications. You will guide the testing lifecycle, coordinate with Platform Engineering and IT PMO, and drive quality through metrics and automation.

The role requires resilience, collaboration, and the ability to communicate complex results to diverse stakeholders. Applicants must reside in the Ottawa area or be willing to relocate; relocation assistance is

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science or related field.
• Experience with telecom Lead-to-Cash processes: quote-to-order, order-to-activate, order-to-bill.
• Experience testing/validating integrations between CPQ, CRM, Order Management, Billing, and Service Provisioning.
• Proven leadership and team management experience.
• Experience with Agile and DevOps methodologies.
• Experience with cloud-based infrastructure and testing environments.

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership, mentorship, performance management, and career development for the Test Engineering team.
• Manage team capacity, workload balancing, and skill development to optimize testing efficiency.
• Partner with IT PMO to develop and maintain integrated testing and production release schedules.
• Collaborate with project managers, developers, and stakeholders to ensure testing requirements are defined and executed.
• Own and maintain the Lightspeed production release calendar.
• Define, implement, and continuously improve the Release Management strategy and governance framework.
• Ensure all releases comply with Change Management policies and controls.
• Plan and coordinate production deployments, release execution, and stakeholder communications.
• Identify, assess, and mitigate risks impacting release scope, schedule, or quality.
• Lead Go-Live and post-release activities to ensure successful deployments.
• Partner with Platform Engineering to enhance release automation and testing capabilities.
• Develop and govern release, testing, and operational documentation.
• Define and maintain the overall test strategy for Lightspeed applications and platforms.
• Design, implement, and oversee functional, integration, performance, load, and operational testing.
• Develop automated testing frameworks, scripts, and tools.
• Collaborate to ensure testing environments meet operational and quality requirements.
• Establish and monitor quality metrics and testing progress.
• Develop dashboards and trend analyses for visibility into testing effectiveness and release performance.
• Lead prioritization and coordination of testing across projects and release streams.
• Champion quality engineering and continuous improvement.
• Present testing, quality, and release status to teams and leadership.
• The successful candidate may perform after-hours testing, deployments, and operational support when needed.

Skills

Team leadership

Testing methodologies

DevOps practices

Cloud testing

Linux servers

Education

Bachelor’s degree in computer science or related field

Tools

Salesforce

Netcracker

CPQ

Job description

Reporting to the Director, Service Management, the successful candidate will provide technical and team leadership for the testing, quality assurance, release management, and production operations of Lightspeed business and technical applications and platforms.

The candidate will be responsible for monitoring and ensuring high software quality standards throughout the systems development lifecycle and for supporting the operation of Telesat's Lightspeed production and test environments. Working closely with the Platform Engineering, Development, and IT PMO teams, the candidate will help plan, coordinate, and execute testing and production release activities while ensuring alignment with project schedules and operational requirements.

The successful candidate will develop and maintain performance metrics, analyze results and trends, and present findings to both technical and non-technical stakeholders to support informed decision-making and continuous improvement.

Candidates must reside in the Ottawa area or be willing to relocate. Relocation assistance will be provided to qualified candidates.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

• Provide leadership, mentorship, performance management, and career development for the Test Engineering team, fostering a culture of quality, accountability, continuous improvement, and technical excellence.
• Manage team capacity, workload balancing, and skill development to optimize testing efficiency and delivery outcomes.
• Partner with the IT PMO to develop and maintain integrated testing and production release schedules.
• Collaborate with project managers, developers, and business stakeholders to ensure testing requirements are defined, planned, and executed.
• Own and maintain the Lightspeed production release calendar.
• Define, implement, and continuously improve the Release Management strategy, processes, and governance framework.
• Ensure all releases comply with Telesat's Change Management policies, procedures, and controls.
• Plan and coordinate production deployments, release execution, change activities, and stakeholder communications.
• Identify, assess, and mitigate risks that could impact release scope, schedule, quality, or system stability.
• Lead Go-Live and post-release activities to ensure successful deployments and operational readiness.
• Partner with development and Platform Engineering teams to enhance release automation, deployment pipelines, and testing capabilities.
• Develop, maintain, and govern release, testing, and operational documentation, including procedures, dependencies, and communication plans.
• Define and maintain the overall test strategy, methodologies, standards, and processes for Lightspeed applications and platforms.
• Design, implement, and oversee functional, integration, performance, load, resilience, and operational testing activities.
• Develop and maintain automated testing frameworks, scripts, and tools to improve quality, efficiency, and coverage.
• Collaborate with Platform Engineering teams to ensure testing environments, infrastructure, and tools meet operational and quality requirements.
• Establish and monitor key quality metrics, including test coverage, defect density, defect trends, release quality, and testing progress.
• Develop dashboards, reporting, and trend analysis to provide visibility into testing effectiveness and release performance.
• Lead the prioritization and coordination of testing activities across multiple projects and release streams.
• Champion quality engineering, testing best practices, and continuous improvement throughout the organization.
• Present testing, quality, and release status, metrics, risks, and recommendations to project teams, leadership, and other stakeholders.
• The successful candidate is expected to demonstrate flexibility and commitment to meeting business objectives, including participation in after-hours testing, deployments, and operational support activities when necessary.

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science or related field
• Experience with telecommunications Lead-to-Cash processes, including quote-to-order, order-to-activate, and order-to-bill workflows.
• Experience testing and validating integrations between CPQ, CRM, Order Management, Billing, and Service Provisioning platforms.
• Experience supporting enterprise BSS transformations involving Salesforce, Netcracker, or similar telecommunications platforms.
• Proven experience in managing and leading teams
• Experience developing/using load testing tools and services
• Strong knowledge of testing methodologies, tools, and processes
• Experience in Agile and DevOps methodologies
• Proven experience and in-depth knowledge of Cloud-based infrastructure and testing environments
• In-depth experience in Linux-based server environments
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills
• Ability to manage multiple demands with time related constraints in a fast-paced environment
• Prioritize and schedule work as necessary to maintain department standards and service level agreements
• Ability to speak effectively before groups of internal employees, communicate technical information, create, and deliver presentations and information sessions to both technical and nontechnical personnel
• Ability to create and maintain documentation and training materials, for technical staff and end-user audiences.
• Capable of organizing projects effectively to achieve the desired results.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills.
• Ability to attain required clearances.

DECISION MAKING & SUPERVISION

• Make decisions and recommendations requiring analysis and interpretation within established procedures.

WORKING CONDITIONS

• Generally comfortable working conditions with lifting and onsite installations.
• Moderate visual concentration in use of video display terminal.
• After-hours testing, deployments, and operational support activities when necessary

The successful candidate must be able to work in Canada and obtain clearance under the Canadian Controlled Goods Program (CGP).

Commitment: Full Time Hire - (FTE with Benefits)