Senior Quality & Test Lead - Telecoms

Cambridge Consultants; Cambridge; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Cambridge Consultants is seeking an experienced Quality & Test Lead to provide strategic leadership across large telecoms programmes. This is a highly visible, client-facing role for a quality and test professional who can define and implement effective strategies, guide delivery decisions, lead multidisciplinary teams, and provide assurance on product quality and release readiness.

Working closely with customers, project teams, and technical specialists, you will play a key role in delivering

Qualifications

• Experience leading quality and test functions within complex technology programmes.
• Ability to define and implement effective quality and test strategies for delivery.
• Strong stakeholder management and communication with senior leaders and customers.
• Experience driving DevOps, CI/CD, and test automation initiatives.
• Exposure to customer-facing, contractual delivery environments.

Responsibilities

• Define and lead quality and test strategies for complex telecoms programmes.
• Provide assurance on product quality, programme risk, and release readiness.
• Establish governance, reporting, metrics, and quality standards across programmes.
• Collaborate with project and technical leaders to deliver successful customer outcomes.
• Act as a trusted advisor to customers and senior stakeholders on quality and testing matters.
• Lead and develop high-performing quality and test teams.
• Drive automation, DevOps, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Support business development through bids, proposals, and customer engagement.

Skills

Quality leadership

Test strategy development

Stakeholder management

DevOps and CI/CD

Test automation

Cross-functional teamwork

Education

ISTQB Advanced Test Manager

ISTQB Test Analyst

Tools

CI/CD tools

Automation tools

Job description

Overview

We are seeking an experienced Quality & Test Lead to provide strategic leadership across large, complex telecoms programmes. This is a highly visible, client-facing role for a quality and test professional who can define and implement effective strategies, guide delivery decisions, lead multidisciplinary teams, and provide assurance on product quality and release readiness. Working closely with customers, project teams, and technical specialists, you will play a key role in delivering successful outcomes across challenging and innovative communications programmes.

Examples of projects we have worked on in the recent past are:

• Connecting the unconnected with affordable Digital Radio Mondiale technology
• Wireless breakthrough for the Ocado Smart Platform
• Propelling Flylogix's drone technology beyond the far horizon

What you'll be doing:

Supporting high-impact, high‑value programmes (typically £10M+), you will lead multi‑disciplinary quality and test teams, provide strategic test leadership, drive quality standards, manage delivery risks, and ensure solutions meet customer requirements.

Key responsibilities include:

• Define and lead quality and test strategies for complex telecoms programmes.
• Provide assurance on product quality, programme risk, and release readiness.
• Establish governance, reporting, metrics, and quality standards across programmes.
• Collaborate with project and technical leaders to deliver successful customer outcomes.
• Act as a trusted advisor to customers and senior stakeholders on quality and testing matters.
• Lead and develop high‑performing quality and test teams.
• Drive automation, DevOps, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Support business development through bids, proposals, and customer engagement.

What you need to succeed:

• Significant experience leading quality and test functions within complex technology, communications, or engineering programmes.
• Ability to define and implement effective quality and test strategies that support successful programme delivery.
• Experience leading and developing teams while fostering a culture of quality, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Ability to provide assurance on quality, risk, and release readiness, enabling informed delivery decisions.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills, with experience engaging senior leaders, customers, and technical teams.
• Experience working across multidisciplinary engineering environments.
• Experience working in customer‑facing, contractual, or commercial delivery environments.

Desirable:

• Experience establishing governance, quality metrics, reporting, and assurance frameworks.
• Experience driving test automation and modern quality engineering practices.
• Knowledge of telecoms technologies and standards, including 3GPP, DVB, satellite communications, mobile networks, RF systems, and internet protocols.
• Experience applying DevOps, CI/CD, and automation approaches.
• Knowledge of AI technologies and AI‑enabled quality and testing tools.
• ISTQB Advanced Test Manager, ISTQB Test Analyst, or equivalent certification.

We recognise that expertise can be gained through different career paths and experiences. If you're excited about this opportunity but don't meet every requirement, we'd still love to hear from you.

Why Cambridge Consultants?

Cambridge Consultants creates exciting and novel breakthroughs in technology and products. We help our clients achieve the kind of game-changing leap forward that will transform their whole business.

At the heart of what we do, we have talented and motivated multi‑disciplinary teams empowered to create cutting edge technologies and systems to solve difficult problems for our clients.

We recognise and celebrate individual talent, and we understand the importance of letting individuals be just that. Our people are here to do their best work, and our job is to provide the platform for them to do it.

Diversity & Inclusion

Cambridge Consultants is a workplace where everyone is welcome. When the brightest minds come together and feel included, that's when we develop the most important technology breakthroughs. We believe that diversity can only flourish when everyone feels involved and has a sense of belonging. We welcome and value all people regardless of their characteristics and encourage applications from all backgrounds and dimensions of society.

By submitting an application to Cambridge Consultants, you confirm that the information provided in this application, together with any supporting documentation, is true, complete, and accurate to the best of your knowledge and belief. You understand that any false statement, misleading information, or material omission may render you liable to disqualification from the recruitment process, withdrawal of any offer of employment, or dismissal without notice if discovered following appointment. You acknowledge that the organisation reserves the right to verify the information supplied.