Head of Testing

DCV Technologies; Reading; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

DCV Technologies is seeking an experienced Head of Testing in Reading, UK, for a 6-month contract. Hybrid working 2–3 days in the office.

Lead and transform the Testing and QA function across enterprise-scale digital programs, defining strategy and governance. The role requires 12+ years in software testing, 5+ years in leadership, and extensive experience in test management, governance, and risk-based testing.

Qualifications

• Explicit experience in Utility Industry is required.
• 12+ years in Software Testing and QA.
• 5+ years in Test Management or Leadership roles.
• Proven experience managing enterprise-wide testing programs.
• Strong leadership, communication, and presentation abilities.
• Experience managing geographically distributed teams.
• Excellent stakeholder and vendor management skills.
• Strong understanding of Test Strategy & Governance.
• Quality Engineering
• Test Automation
• Agile Delivery
• DevOps Practices
• Risk-Based Testing

Responsibilities

• Define testing strategy and governance for enterprise-scale programs.
• Lead and transform QA function across digital transformation initiatives.
• Manage testing teams and ensure timely delivery of business-critical applications.
• Oversee test automation and integration with CI/CD pipelines.
• Collaborate with stakeholders across business units and vendors.
• Present testing progress and governance to senior leadership.

Skills

Utility industry experience

Software Testing

Test Management

Stakeholder management

Vendor management

Leadership

Communication

Presentation

Distributed teams

Quality assurance governance

Risk-based testing

Test strategy

Agile

DevOps

Test automation

Tools

JIRA

Azure DevOps

HP ALM

qTest

Zephyr

Selenium

Cypress

Playwright

Tosca

LoadRunner

JMeter

Azure

AWS

GCP

Job description

Role/Job title: Head Of Testing

Work Location: Reading, UK

Role type: Min 6 month Contract

Mode of working: Hybrid / 2 to 3 days per week office based

Our client, working on behalf of a major British energy company are seeking an experienced Head of Test with explicit experience in Utility Industry (essential) to lead and transform the Testing and Quality Assurance function across enterprise-scale digital transformation programs. The ideal candidate will define the testing strategy, establish governance, drive quality best practices, manage testing teams, and ensure successful delivery of business-critical applications within a complex stakeholder environment.

Required Skills & Experience

• Explicit experience in Utility Industry (a must have)
• 12+ years of experience in Software Testing and Quality Assurance.
• 5+ years in Test Management or Testing Leadership roles.
• Proven experience managing enterprise-wide testing programs.
• Strong understanding of:
  • Test Strategy & Governance
  • Quality Engineering
  • Test Automation
  • Agile Delivery
  • DevOps Practices
  • Risk-Based Testing
• Experience managing geographically distributed teams.
• Excellent stakeholder and vendor management skills.
• Strong leadership, communication, and presentation abilities.

Technical Skills

• Test Management Tools (JIRA, Azure DevOps, HP ALM, qTest, Zephyr).
• Automation Frameworks (Selenium, Cypress, Playwright, Tosca).
• CI/CD Tools (Azure DevOps, Jenkins, GitHub Actions).
• Performance Testing Tools (LoadRunner, JMeter).
• Cloud Platforms (Azure, AWS, GCP).

Preferred

• Experience within Financial Services, Utilities, Retail, Telecom, or Public Sector.
• Knowledge of AI-assisted testing approaches.
• Experience leading large-scale digital transformation programmes