Test Lead

EirGrid Group; Dublin; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Diversity and inclusion programs

Reasonable accommodations

Job summary

EirGrid Group is seeking a Test Manager to lead enterprise-wide testing for Ireland’s national grid systems. You will define testing strategy, oversee multiple programs, and drive quality improvements across agile, waterfall, and hybrid approaches. Strong vendor and stakeholder engagement are essential to success.

The role requires expertise in test management tools and a passion for continuous improvement in a fast-paced, mission-critical environment.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of end-to-end testing leadership across large portfolios or complex programs.
• Ability to influence senior stakeholders and lead cross-functional teams.
• Experience managing vendor relationships and driving service improvement.
• Experience coordinating testing across a delivery portfolio for consistency in standards.

Responsibilities

• Define and implement a comprehensive testing strategy across the portfolio, aligned with enterprise delivery goals.
• Plan and manage testing capacity across concurrent programmes and projects.
• Champion quality assurance as a strategic value driver with senior stakeholders.
• Build and maintain a scalable testing function supporting agile and traditional delivery.

Skills

End-to-end testing

Stakeholder influence

Vendor management

Test planning

Agile/Waterfall/Hybrid

Automation testing

Environment management

Power systems knowledge

Communication skills

Tools

JIRA

HP ALM

Azure DevOps

Job description

We are the people behind Ireland’s national electricity grid. We make sure that every home, business, school, hospital, factory and farm has power - when and where they need it. And that’s just the beginning of our story. We are now transforming the power system for future generations. Be part of the change.

EirGrid Group has a unique role to play in leading this radical transformation of our power system in support of the transition to renewable energy. This will require pioneering engineering effort together with enhanced IT capability to respond successfully to the scale of disruption. This offers a unique opportunity to further your career while playing a significant role in delivering EirGrid Group’s transformation.

We’re an IT intensive business, and we operate a state-of-the‑art, specialised business‑critical systems, 24/7. Our future has never looked more exciting. And this is an incredible opportunity to be part of it. The world is ready for change. If you are too, join us.

The Opportunity

In this position you will be joining a team that is focused on ensuring quality, reliability, and compliance of the IT systems that underpin national grid operations, energy trading, customer engagement, and regulatory reporting. You’ll be working at the intersection of technology, energy policy, and operational excellence—helping shape the future of Ireland’s energy transition. This role will be responsible for defining, evolving, and delivering EirGrid’s enterprise‑wide testing capability. Operating in a complex, multi‑system, multi‑vendor environment, this role focuses on building a scalable, future‑ready testing function that supports both strategic transformation and operational delivery

You will have a keen interest in using your Test Management skills and experience to lead and oversee testing activities across a diverse portfolio of programs and projects. This role is pivotal in ensuring best practice is embedded throughout the delivery lifecycle, driving consistency, efficiency, and excellence in testing across multiple domains.

This is an exciting time for EirGrid as we embark on a new strategy to deliver the solutions required to transform the power system in support of the transition to renewable energy. This role will suit a Test Manager who has a strong passion for quality and continuous improvement, demonstrates leadership and strategic thinking in test delivery, and is experienced across Agile, Waterfall, and hybrid methodologies. The ideal candidate will have hands‑on expertise in test management tools such as JIRA, HP ALM, or Azure DevOps, and will be adept at communicating effectively across multidisciplinary teams and senior stakeholders. Success in this role requires someone who thrives in a fast‑paced, mission‑critical environment and is driven by innovation and the opportunity to make a meaningful impact.

Key Responsibilities

• Define and implement a comprehensive testing strategy across the portfolio, ensuring alignment with enterprise delivery goals.
• Plan and manage testing capacity and capability across concurrent programmes and projects.
• Champion quality assurance as a strategic value driver, influencing senior stakeholders across operations and delivery.
• Build and maintain a scalable testing function that supports both agile and traditional delivery approaches.
• Shape the future of testing at EirGrid through automation, environment governance, and structured lifecycle practices.
• Establish and maintain testing standards, frameworks, and key performance indicators across all programs.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory, security, and performance requirements throughout the testing lifecycle
• Lead service improvement planning with vendors, ensuring testing support, quality, and responsiveness are continuously enhanced.
• Lead and mentor a team of test resources (e.g. test leads, test analysts)
• Drive resource planning, capability development, and succession planning within the testing function.
• Collaborate closely with Program/Project Managers, Architects, Operational Leads and external vendors to deliver quality outcomes.
• Present test status, risks, and mitigation strategies to leadership.
• Promote the adoption of modern testing practices such as automation, shift-left testing, and DevOps integration.
• Evaluate and implement tools and technologies to enhance test efficiency and coverage.
• Proactively identify quality risks across the portfolio and ensure robust mitigation plans are in place.
• Lead root cause analysis and drive corrective actions to address systemic issues.

About You

• 7 + years' experience managing end‑to‑end testing activities across large‑scale portfolios or complex multi‑stream programs, including both legacy systems and modern digital platforms.
• Ability to lead cross‑functional teams and influence senior stakeholders.
• Skilled in managing vendor relationships and driving service improvement.
• Experience coordinating and aligning testing activities across a delivery portfolio, ensuring consistency in standards, resource utilization, and quality outcomes across multiple programs and projects.
• Deep and practical understanding of testing methodologies such as functional, non‑functional, regression, integration, and user acceptance testing, as well as proficiency with industry‑standard tools and lifecycle management practices.
• Deep expertise in testing tools, automation frameworks, and environment management.
• Strong understanding of power systems, market management systems, and control room technologies.
• Experience with release planning, environment setup, and deployment coordination.
• Experience in building and guiding high‑performing test teams, with strong stakeholder management skills to influence decision‑making and drive quality outcomes across business and technical domains.
• Hands‑on experience working within Agile, Waterfall, and hybrid delivery models, with the ability to adapt testing approaches to the project requirement
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to convey complex testing concepts to both technical and non‑technical audiences.

Closing date for applications

01/12/2025

We're dedicated to diversity and inclusion at Eirgrid. We recognise the strength that comes from having a diverse workforce and the importance of a supportive culture for all our people to achieve their potential. Our diversity and inclusion networks have been designed to create an inclusive culture that enables our people to feel a sense of belonging at work.

As an equal opportunities’ employer, we welcome applications from people of all backgrounds. Reasonable accommodations are offered at every stage of our recruitment.