Agile Test Lead

TN United Kingdom; Warwick; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking an Agile Test Lead to oversee testing activities for a significant SCADA program. This role involves leading multiple SCRUM teams, promoting best practices, and ensuring quality standards are met throughout the testing lifecycle. You'll collaborate with various stakeholders, manage defect lifecycles, and implement effective reporting tools to enhance visibility. This is an exciting opportunity to contribute to a transformative project that integrates cutting-edge technology to improve efficiency and safety in electricity transmission. If you have a passion for quality assurance and agile methodologies, this position is perfect for you.

Qualifications

• 5+ years leading system testing in Agile and Waterfall environments.
• Strong skills in test planning, design, and defect management.

Responsibilities

• Lead Agile testing across SCRUM teams, ensuring quality and adherence to processes.
• Define standard test reports and dashboards for visibility.

Skills

Test Planning

Defect Management

Communication Skills

Agile Methodologies

Problem-Solving

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related field

Tools

JIRA

Excel

Power BI

XRAY Test Management

Job description

Job Description: Agile Test Lead for ET SCADA Program

The client is migrating the Electricity Transmission business processes from a shared SCADA system to a new Monarch SCADA System provided by OSI Aspentech/DGM. The new system will monitor/control approximately 350 substations, each comprising around 150 assets and 2,000 sensors feeding asset health data.

The SCADA system will integrate with other business systems to reduce manual data handling, meet regulatory objectives, enhance digitalization, and improve efficiency while maintaining safety.

The program employs a mixed delivery approach: SCRUM for development until SIT, with other testing stages such as non-functional testing and UAT following Waterfall. There are 4 SCRUM teams across 5 functional areas, comprising DGM, NGET business SMEs, testers, and external resources.

SIT scope includes integration, data alignment, validation, configuration, and process-based testing.

Key Responsibilities:

• Operate as the Agile Test Lead across all SCRUM teams, ensuring consistent planning, estimation, preparation, and execution of testing activities.
• Promote testing best practices and serve as the 'voice of testing' within SCRUM teams.
• Act as interim defect manager, monitoring test preparation and execution, ensuring adherence to processes, quality standards, and proper documentation in JIRA.
• Collaborate closely with SCRUM PMs, POs, embedded testers, and SMEs to ensure testing scope, resource allocation, and capacity are effectively managed.
• Define and implement standard test reports and dashboards using JIRA, Excel, and Power BI for visibility.
• Coordinate with release and configuration management for change scope and regression testing planning.
• Ensure test evidence, results, and defects meet quality standards; facilitate corrective actions.
• Work with BA and Architects to verify scope and coverage of SIT, including requirements traceability.
• Coordinate with external dependencies and ensure SCRUM is implemented correctly and consistently across teams.
• Support dependency management, test readiness reporting, and defect lifecycle management, including defect triage meetings.

Key Skills, Knowledge, and Experience:

• At least 5 years of experience leading system testing, SIT, FAT, and SAT in Agile and Waterfall environments.
• Strong skills in test planning, estimation, design, documentation, and defect management.
• Experience with JIRA, XRAY Test Management, JQL scripting, and reporting tools like Excel and Power BI.
• Excellent problem-solving, communication, and team collaboration skills.
• Knowledge of SCADA, Real-Time Control, and NMS, preferably OSI Aspentech/DGM products or comparable industry products.
• Experience with Oracle MFT, Mulesoft APIs, and familiarity with power systems standards such as IEC series and IEEE standards.