Job Level: 9
We are looking for a Senior QA Engineer to join our Engineering capability who will be responsible for designing, developing, and maintaining high-quality automated testing solutions. You will work on complex automation projects, contributing to the architecture, implementation, and improvement of automated test frameworks across UI, API, and database systems. This role involves mentoring other QA engineers, collaborating with cross-functional teams, and driving the adoption of best practices in automated software testing to ensure reliable and efficient product delivery.
Responsibilities
- Leads the development of test approaches for major projects, providing risk-based guidance and advising on modern functional testing techniques.
- Develops and maintains complex automated scripts for UI, API, and database systems, ensuring high performance, reliability, and adherence to standards.
- Works with the squad to identify and assess non-functional quality characteristics (e.g., performance, security), advocating for appropriate testing approaches.
- Investigates existing testing processes to identify inefficiencies and drives data-backed recommendations for improvement.
- Owns the end-to-end testing lifecycle for specific squads, critically evaluating findings and communicating quality insights to the wider team.
- Maintains automated tests within CI/CD pipelines, troubleshooting failures to ensure rapid and actionable feedback for developers.
- Peer-reviews the work of other QA engineers and provides daily technical coaching to improve team automation capabilities.
- Partners with developers during refinement and planning to advocate for early engagement, identifying testability gaps and ensuring requirements are clearly defined before development begins.
- Researches emerging tools and frameworks to stay current with industry trends and trains others to improve testing efficiency.
Dimensions
- Budget: N/A
- Headcount: N/A
- Resource complexity: Owns the end-to-end delivery of complex testing scenarios and technical tickets. May have oversight of junior colleagues and contributes to team planning, task prioritisation, and delivery coordination.
- Problem-solving responsibility: Independently solves complex problems and contributes to the development of solutions that consider technical, user, and business needs. Provides input into decision-making and may advise others on best practices.
- Change management requirements: Supports the planning, communication, and delivery of change. May lead smaller-scale change initiatives or contribute significantly to larger programmes, ensuring that solutions are adopted effectively.
- Internal/External interactions: Works confidently with clients, stakeholders, and internal teams. Regularly facilitates workshops, delivers presentations, and builds strong working relationships with technical and non-technical audiences.
- Strategic timeframe: Operates across mid-to-long-term timeframes (6–12 months), contributing to strategic roadmaps and ensuring alignment of short-term activities with broader goals.
Essential
- Expert proficiency in implementing and extending robust automated testing solutions using modern frameworks—such as Playwright, Selenium, or Cypress—and established patterns (e.g., POM or Data-Driven) to ensure comprehensive feature coverage and clean, maintainable code
- Deep practical knowledge of industry-standard tools for web, API, and mobile testing, with the ability to troubleshoot complex environment-specific issues.
- Hands-on experience integrating and managing automated tests within CI/CD pipelines to ensure rapid and reliable feedback for development squads.
- Ability to translate complex user needs and business requirements into detailed test plans and automation scripts, ensuring maximum ROI through targeted test selection.
- Strong SQL skills for database validation and familiarity with scripting (UNIX/Shell/PowerShell) to automate repetitive setup tasks.
- Experience taking ownership of the QA lifecycle within a delivery team, including the mentorship of junior engineers and the promotion of best practices.
Desirable
- Previous experience in a consultancy or central government environment is highly advantageous.
- Proven ability to work across multiple programming languages and to quickly adapt to new technical stacks.
- Experience with Ruby and using Ruby-based automation frameworks, including Capybara, to design and maintain robust end-to-end test suites.
- Prior experience in Non-Functional Testing (NFT) is a plus.
- Previous experience owning the quality strategy for a high-priority delivery squad.
Technical skills
- Ability to implement test framework components that meet the specific business and technical requirements of a given feature or product area.
- Proven ability to research and devise new testing techniques and tools, providing recommendations to the team to improve overall testing efficiency
- Expertise in writing clean, well-documented, and reusable code.
- Expertise in reviewing peer code to ensure accuracy, adherence to standards, and effective bug detection.
- Proficiency in setting up, managing, and troubleshooting automation execution within CI/CD pipelines.
- A structured and proficient approach to API testing using both automated code frameworks and exploratory tools like Postman.
Behaviours
Analytical Thinking & Problem-Solving
- Applies critical thinking to prioritize high-value test cases within a sprint, ensuring automation efforts are targeted where they provide the most immediate benefit to the delivery team.
- Resolves complex technical issues, such as flaky tests, environment dependencies, or intricate script logic, to maintain a reliable and performant automation suite.
Strategic Communication
- Effectively communicates technical risks, defect trends, and comprehensive test strategies to stakeholders, ensuring quality concerns are addressed early in the delivery lifecycle.
- Acts as a collaborative bridge within the squad, facilitating discussions with the team to improve the "testability" of new features and clarify requirements.
Mentoring & Leadership
- Provides consistent coaching and hands-on support to junior engineers, helping them master automation best practices, clean code principles, and framework usage.
- Drives high standards of quality within the team by conducting rigorous code reviews and encouraging the professional growth of peers through knowledge sharing.
Adaptability & Risk Management
- Navigates changing sprint requirements with agility, quickly adjusting automation plans to align with shifting priorities without compromising on quality standards.
- Identifies potential feature-level risks early in the development lifecycle and proactively suggests mitigation strategies to the delivery tea
Strengths, drivers and traits
- Continuous Improvement Advocate: Driven by a desire to find inefficiencies in testing processes and providing data-backed recommendations for improvement.
- Quality-First Mindset: Committed to professional integrity and ensuring "Definition of Done" is met across all project deliverables.
PACT values
- Purpose - The beating heart of our organisation—the impact we make on people, places, and the planet. Purpose is our driving force and at the core of our organisation.
- Accountability - As we apply flexibility, pace and growth through our self-organisation, we are accountable* to all of our stakeholders.
- Craft - Craft highlights our dedication to bringing precision, problem-solving, and creativity to our work, both with our clients and internally.
- Togetherness - Togetherness is ‘how’ we work - it captures the energy, fun, and user-centred approach that we embrace. It signifies the collaborative spirit we bring to our work, including people at every level and creating a sense of belonging to our teams.
People-Powered Transformation
We're a purpose driven organisation, supporting organisations to build a better future for people, places and the planet. Combining vast experience in the public, private and third sectors and expertise in human-centred design, data, experience and technology, we’re creating sustainable solutions ready for an ever-evolving world.
At the heart of TPXimpact, we’re collaborative and empathetic. We’re a team of passionate people who care deeply about the work we do and the impact we have in the world. We know that change happens through people, with people and for people. That’s why we believe in people-powered transformation.
Working in close collaboration with our clients, we seek to understand their unique challenges, questioning assumptions and building in their teams the capabilities and confidence to continue learning, iterating and adapting.
Benefits Include:
- 30 days holiday + bank holidays
- 2 volunteer days for causes that you are passionate about
- Maternity/paternity - 6 months Maternity Leave, 3 months Paternity Leave
- Life assurance
- Employer pension contribution of 5%
- Health cash plan
- Personal learning and development budget
- Employee Assistance Programme
- Green incentive programmes including Electric Vehicle Leasing and the Cycle to Work Scheme
- Financial advice
- Health assessments
About TPXimpact - Digital Transformation
We drive fundamental change in approaches to product and service development, delivery and technology. Our agile, multidisciplinary teams use technology, design and data to deliver better results, improving outcomes for individuals, organisations and communities.
By working in the open, in partnership with our clients, we not only transform their systems and services but also build the capability of their teams, so work can continue without us in the longer term. Our focus is sustainable change, always delivered with positive impact.
We are committed to having a positive impact on the clients and the communities we serve. We actively encourage applications from all genders, ethnicities, disabled people, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and those from lower socio-economic backgrounds.
Don’t meet 100% of the criteria? We still want to hear from you. Please let us know if you require any adjustments during the recruitment process.
