QA Lead

SUMMARY:
Lead the end-to-end test implementation approach across the product lifecycle.

POSITION INFO:
Role Purpose Lead the implementation of testing in line with agreed Quality Assurance principles, standards and governance. Manage product risk, cross-system dependencies and quality throughout the product lifecycle, while ensuring effective alignment across Business Analysis, Development, Quality Assurance and Test Environments. The role will drive efficient, scalable and reusable automated testing across the product delivery stack, while fostering a high-performing team culture and healthy team dynamics. Key Responsibilities Lead the end-to-end test implementation approach across the product lifecycle. Define, implement and uphold Quality Assurance principles, standards, processes and controls. Identify, manage and report on product risks, test risks, defects, dependencies and quality issues. Ensure alignment between Business Analysts, Developers, QA teams and Environment teams to improve delivery flow and testing efficiency. Lead and support a team of testers, promoting accountability, collaboration, continuous improvement and healthy team dynamics. Review requirements, technical designs and solution architecture to ensure testability and quality are embedded early in the delivery lifecycle. Design, develop and maintain reusable automated test assets using approved automation frameworks and tools. Drive automation across front-end, API and non-functional testing areas. Implement and maintain automated regression suites to support continuous integration and continuous delivery. Analyse test results, identify root causes and work closely with delivery teams to resolve quality issues. Ensure appropriate test coverage across functional, integration, regression, performance and non-functional testing requirements. Contribute to test strategy, test planning, effort estimation, reporting and quality metrics. Champion test automation best practice, framework improvement and continuous optimisation of the QA capability. Technical Requirements Strong experience in test automation leadership within Agile product delivery environments. Hands-on experience with front-end automation using: Selenium Appium Healenium Strong API automation experience using: RestAssured Experience in performance and non-functional testing using: JMeter Experience designing, developing and maintaining reusable automated test frameworks and test assets. Strong understanding of CI\/CD pipelines, version control and automated regression testing. Experience testing complex integrated systems, APIs and digital platforms. Good understanding of test environments, test data, service dependencies and release readiness. Experience and Skills Relevant experience leading QA or test automation teams. Strong understanding of software development lifecycles, Agile delivery and DevOps ways of working. Ability to translate business, functional and technical requirements into robust automated test coverage. Strong stakeholder management and communication skills across business and technical teams. Proven ability to manage competing priorities, delivery dependencies and quality risks in complex environments. Analytical problem-solving skills with a practical, delivery-focused mindset. Ability to coach and develop team members while maintaining high standards of delivery. Qualifications Relevant IT, Software Testing or Quality Assurance qualification. ISTQB certification or equivalent would be advantageous. Automation testing and Agile\/DevOps certifications would be beneficial. Work Arrangement Location: South Africa only - non-negotiable. Hybrid model: Three days per week in the office and two days remote.