QA Practice Lead

Socket.dev; Washington (District of Columbia); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 146,000; Full time

Job summary

NTT DATA is seeking a QA Practice Lead in Washington, DC to lead governance, standardize quality processes, and coordinate senior QA leads across IT initiatives. The role emphasizes strong communication, executive reporting, and a path toward institutionalizing the QA Practice.

The position requires senior QA leadership experience, SaaS governance, and a track record in regulated environments, with on-site work three days weekly and a 1-year contract with potential extension.

Qualifications

• Senior-level experience establishing or operating QA Practices, QA Centers of Excellence, or transversal testing-governance capabilities.
• Experience supporting SaaS implementations.
• Experience working within regulated financial institutions or comparable controlled environments.
• Strong knowledge of QA governance, test strategy, test planning, defect management, Quality Gates, and release readiness.
• Practical knowledge of integration and API testing.
• Knowledge of data-migration validation, data quality, and reconciliation.
• Knowledge of security, compliance, risk, IAM, and control testing.
• Knowledge of test automation and regression automation.
• Ability to coordinate effectively across business, IT, vendors, system integrators, and control functions.
• Ability to produce practical, reusable, and auditable QA deliverables.
• Professional working proficiency in English.
• Availability to work in alignment with U.S. Eastern Time.
• Availability to work onsite at least three days per week.

Responsibilities

• Lead the review, adjustment, and operationalization of the existing QA Framework and Operational Manual.
• Define and operate the transversal QA Practice operating model.
• Establish and facilitate QA governance routines, quality reviews, Quality Gates, and escalation mechanisms.
• Coordinate four Specialist Leads and their transversal work across IT Roadmap initiatives.
• Define and continuously improve QA standards, templates, metrics, dashboards, and evidence requirements.
• Maintain a portfolio-level QA Roadmap aligned with the broader IT Roadmap.
• Monitor quality risks, defect trends, testing progress, dependencies, and release or go-live readiness.
• Coordinate with project teams, Enterprise Architecture, Cybersecurity, Data, Operations, SaaS vendors, and system integrators.
• Lead executive reporting and prepare documented readiness recommendations.
• Drive knowledge transfer and support the long-term institutionalization of the QA Practice.

Skills

QA governance

Test strategy

Release readiness

API testing

Data validation

Data quality

Security testing

Test automation

Cross-functional coordination

English proficiency

Education

Bachelor’s degree in computer science or related field

QA or IT service management certifications (preferred)

Tools

QA/test management tools

API testing tools

CI/CD pipelines

Job description

QA Practice Lead

Location: Washington, DC

• Hybrid: 3 days per week on site at the client location

Contract Length: 1 year, with potential extension

Salary Range: $120,000 - $146,000 per year. Final compensation will be determined based on relevant experience and overall fit for the position.

NTT DATA is seeking a driven QA Practice Lead to lead the operationalization and institutionalization of a transversal Quality Assurance Practice supporting multiple strategic technology initiatives for IDB Invest. This senior leadership role will focus on strengthening QA governance, standardizing quality processes, coordinating specialist leads, improving visibility into quality risks, and providing documented release-readiness recommendations across the IT portfolio.

Responsibilities

• Lead the review, adjustment, and operationalization of the existing QA Framework and Operational Manual.
• Define and operate the transversal QA Practice operating model.
• Establish and facilitate QA governance routines, quality reviews, Quality Gates, and escalation mechanisms.
• Coordinate four Specialist Leads and their transversal work across IT Roadmap initiatives.
• Define and continuously improve QA standards, templates, metrics, dashboards, and evidence requirements.
• Maintain a portfolio-level QA Roadmap aligned with the broader IT Roadmap.
• Monitor quality risks, defect trends, testing progress, dependencies, and release or go-live readiness.
• Coordinate with project teams, Enterprise Architecture, Cybersecurity, Data, Operations, SaaS vendors, and system integrators.
• Lead executive reporting and prepare documented readiness recommendations.
• Drive knowledge transfer and support the long-term institutionalization of the QA Practice.

Required Experience

• Senior-level experience establishing or operating QA Practices, QA Centers of Excellence, or transversal testing-governance capabilities.
• Experience supporting SaaS implementations.
• Experience working within regulated financial institutions or comparable controlled environments.
• Strong knowledge of QA governance, test strategy, test planning, defect management, Quality Gates, and release readiness.
• Practical knowledge of integration and API testing.
• Knowledge of data-migration validation, data quality, and reconciliation.
• Knowledge of security, compliance, risk, IAM, and control testing.
• Knowledge of test automation and regression automation.
• Ability to coordinate effectively across business, IT, vendors, system integrators, and control functions.
• Ability to produce practical, reusable, and auditable QA deliverables.
• Professional working proficiency in English.
• Availability to work in alignment with U.S. Eastern Time.
• Availability to work onsite at least three days per week.

Nice-to-Have

• Spanish and/or Portuguese language skills.
• Experience working in an international financial-services environment.
• Experience creating or improving enterprise-level QA metrics, dashboards, and reporting standards.
• Experience coordinating specialists across API and integration testing, data validation, security and risk, and automation.
• Relevant certifications in Quality Assurance, software testing, QA governance, Agile, project management, IT service management, security, or risk.

Tools & Technologies

• QA and test management platforms, defect-management tools, and enterprise reporting dashboards.
• API and integration-testing tools, test-automation frameworks, and CI/CD environments.
• Data-quality, reconciliation, security, risk, IAM, and control-testing practices.

Education & Certifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience.
• Relevant certifications in Quality Assurance, software testing, QA governance, Agile, project management, IT service management, security, or risk are preferred.

About NTT DATA

NTT DATA is a Top 5 global IT services provider with more than 190,000 professionals across 50+ countries. We combine industry expertise with capabilities in consulting, technology, AI, cloud, applications, infrastructure, and connectivity to help organizations innovate, optimize, and transform. Through responsible innovation, we deliver meaningful business outcomes, accelerate client success, and create a positive impact on society.

Equal Opportunity Employer

NTT DATA is committed to hiring and retaining a diverse workforce. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action-Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. NTT DATA is an Equal Opportunity Employer Male/Female/Disabled/Veteran and a VEVRAA Federal Contractor.