Manager of the User Acceptance Testing (UAT)

EXL; United States; On-site; USD 100,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading business solutions firm in the United States is looking for a UAT Manager to lead their User Acceptance Testing team. The ideal candidate will have over 7 years of UAT or QA experience, with significant exposure to regulated industries like insurance or financial services. Responsibilities include mentoring team members, managing testing standards, and collaborating with cross-functional teams to ensure high-quality testing processes. Relevant certifications in QA or UAT are preferred, alongside strong leadership and communication skills.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in UAT or QA roles.
• 3+ years in people management or team leadership.
• 5+ years in complex, regulated industries.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a team of UAT analysts.
• Manage team workload and performance evaluation.
• Establish governance for test processes.
• Review and approve testing strategies and scope.
• Oversee defect lifecycle management.
• Communicate testing progress to stakeholders.
• Ensure compliance with quality standards.

Skills

UAT methodologies

Test planning

Defect management tools (e.g., JIRA)

Leadership

Team-building

Communication

Stakeholder management

Problem-solving

Risk assessment

Decision-making

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business, Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology or related field

ISTQB, PMP, CSPO, CSTE or equivalent

Job description

Overview

The Manager of the User Acceptance Testing (UAT) Team is responsible for leading, developing, and overseeing a team of UAT analysts who execute business-led testing for system implementations, enhancements, and operational changes. This role ensures high-quality delivery of testing activities across projects, promoting rigorous validation of business requirements, effective defect management, and readiness for production deployment.

The UAT Manager provides strategic direction, manages resources and capacity, enforces testing standards, and partners closely with cross-functional leaders to ensure that solutions meet business objectives and regulatory standards.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and develop a team of UAT analysts responsible for planning and executing UAT activities.
• Manage team workload, resource allocation, prioritization, and performance evaluation.
• Develop career paths, training plans, and skill-building strategies for the UAT team.
• Foster a culture of quality, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Own and maintain the organization’s UAT methodologies, frameworks, processes, and best practices.
• Define standards for test planning, acceptance criteria, documentation, defect workflows, and quality controls.
• Establish governance processes for test sign-offs, production readiness, and traceability.

Oversight of Test Planning & Execution

• Direct the team in developing test plans, test scripts, test cases, and test data needs based on business requirements.
• Review and approve testing strategies, scope, timelines, and success criteria.
• Ensure execution quality, completeness of test coverage, adherence to timelines, and proper documentation of evidence.
• Provide senior-level guidance on risk areas, testing gaps, and mitigation strategies.
• Oversee end-to-end defect lifecycle management, ensuring clear documentation, prioritization, communication, and resolution.
• Partner with technical teams, project managers, and operations stakeholders to drive resolution of defects.
• Facilitate go/no-go discussions related to outstanding issues before production deployments.

Cross-Functional Partnership & Stakeholder Communication

• Serve as the primary liaison between business stakeholders, project teams, IT, QA, and operations regarding UAT activities.
• Ensure the team has appropriate test environments, data, and tools in place.
• Communicate testing progress, risks, dependencies, and major defect trends to senior management and project leaders.
• Participate in Steering Committees, project planning, and release readiness meetings.

Reporting, Compliance & Quality

• Oversee creation of UAT dashboards, status reports, test metrics, and executive summaries.
• Ensure all testing complies with regulatory, audit, and internal quality standards.
• Maintain comprehensive traceability between requirements, test scripts, and results.
• Identify process inefficiencies and lead initiatives to optimize testing effectiveness and team productivity.
• Evaluate and recommend UAT tools, automation opportunities, and data-management improvements.
• Promote a feedback-driven environment to enhance testing maturity across the organization.

Qualifications & Education

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology, or related field. Preferred certifications: ISTQB, PMP, CSPO, CSTE, or equivalent QA/UAT certification.
• 7+ years of experience in UAT or QA roles, with at least 3+ years in people management or team leadership.
• 5+ years of experience in complex, regulated industries (insurance or financial services preferred).
• Strong background in business requirements analysis, testing governance, and release readiness. Experience with life insurance and annuities operations is a plus.
• Skills: Expertise in UAT methodologies, test planning, and defect management tools (e.g., JIRA). Strong leadership, team-building, and performance management skills. Excellent problem-solving, risk assessment, and decision-making abilities. Strong communication and stakeholder management skills, with comfort presenting to senior executives. Understanding of test automation concepts, test data management, and cross-system integration.