Senior quality assurance test analyst

Band 6 · Quality assurance test analyst · 404 job evaluation points

UK GDaD PCF level: Senior quality assurance test analyst

Most often performed at Civil Service grade HEO or SEO.

A senior quality assurance test analyst influences and guides others in test analysis, coordinating quality assurance activities in a defined area. They assess the business impact of testing outcomes and use insights to improve quality assurance processes.
At this role level, you will:
use the most appropriate tools and techniques to analyse artefacts such as products, services, processes and change, to identify risks early
work with others to support teams in developing approaches, plans and strategy, considering environments, data, tools and resources
communicate chosen approaches, tools, techniques and outcomes to stakeholders
guide others in quality assurance tools and techniques
contribute to, and enable others to follow, quality assurance and testing standards

Contains public sector information from the UK Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework (https://understand-digital-data-roles-skills.service.gov.uk/), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright.

Responsibilities

Coordinate quality assurance for a product or area, agreeing test approaches, environments, data, and tools.
Identify clinical and operational risks early by reviewing requirements, designs, and changes with clinicians and product teams.
Plan and lead user acceptance testing with clinicians and care staff.
Report test outcomes and residual risks to product owners and clinical safety officers, so they can make release decisions.
Guide other test analysts and help them follow testing and clinical safety standards.

Skills

Skill	Expected level	What this level means
Communicating between the technical and non-technicalUK GDaD PCF	Practitioner (3)	You can: listen to and interpret the needs of technical and non-technical stakeholders, and manage their expectations manage active and reactive communication support or host difficult discussions within the team or with diverse senior stakeholders
Designing and executing testsUK GDaD PCF	Practitioner (3)	You can: set up suitable environments influence and guide the use of appropriate test types and techniques to mitigate risk early lead others in designing, building, maintaining and executing tests that align to user needs and requirements contribute to developing and implementing standards for designing and executing tests improve test types and techniques through a structured process.
Managing, reporting and resolving defectsUK GDaD PCF	Practitioner (3)	You can: contribute to developing standards for defect management processes manage and escalate dependencies, defects and risks across teams contribute to mitigation and contingency plans across teams use defect patterns and trends to make recommendations on testing and quality approaches, with support manage stakeholder expectations and communications during defect resolution
Test analysisUK GDaD PCF	Practitioner (3)	You can: lead work with stakeholders across teams to determine which functional and non-functional quality characteristics add value determine if an approach needs to change based on effort and risk ensure test needs are implemented early use multiple techniques to analyse complex information to identify risks coach others in test analysis
Test and quality planningUK GDaD PCF	Practitioner (3)	You can: work with teams to develop and implement appropriate quality testing approaches, plans and strategies contribute to organisational quality testing strategies implement ways to capture data to drive continuous improvement of quality testing approaches, plans and strategies advocate for full team ownership of quality testing activities, encouraging early engagement
Test engineeringUK GDaD PCF	Awareness (1)	You can: explain why testing processes, environments and tools are important follow test engineering practices and standards, with support support the maintenance of automated tests and tools required for testing
Understanding health and care servicesThis reference	Working (2)	You can: explain the clinical and care workflows your work supports use common health care terms correctly with clinical and care colleagues recognize when a change could affect patient care and raise it
Clinical risk managementThis reference	Working (2)	You can: take part in hazard workshops and contribute to a hazard log follow the clinical risk management process for your work provide evidence for a clinical safety case, such as test results
Information governance and data protectionThis reference	Working (2)	You can: apply data protection principles to your work contribute to data protection impact assessments handle information requests and records correctly
Health data interoperabilityThis reference	Working (2)	You can: read and use FHIR resources, profiles, and APIs build or test simple integrations under guidance check messages against a specification
Business and user acceptance testingUK GDaD PCF	Practitioner (3)	You can: advise others how to ensure appropriate test coverage, data and scenarios, in line with acceptance criteria analyse business risk and impacts of defects so that appropriate action can be taken to enable business acceptance provide assurance on the suitability, business readiness and viability of delivered solutions

Typical qualifications and experience

Substantial experience of test analysis, including in complex or regulated settings, or equivalent.

Band 6 outline

Knowledge: Specialist knowledge across a range of procedures, built through further training or experience.
Autonomy: Works independently; interprets policy for own area; seeks advice on complex issues.
Scope: A product, service, or workstream.
Leadership: May lead a small team or mentor colleagues.
Accountability: Outcomes of own workstream and quality of advice given.

Job evaluation (illustrative)

Factor	Level	Level summary	Points
Communication and relationship skills	4	Gives complex, sensitive, or contentious information needing persuasion, negotiation, or training skills, or highly complex information.	32
Knowledge, training, and experience	6	Specialist knowledge across the range of the specialism (postgraduate diploma level or equivalent).	156
Analytical and judgmental skills	4	Judgments on complex facts or situations needing analysis, interpretation, and comparison of options.	42
Planning and organizational skills	3	Plans several complex activities, adjusting plans as needed.	27
Physical skills	3	Developed skills needing speed or accuracy, such as advanced keyboard use.	27
Responsibility for patient and client care	1	Helps patients, clients, or relatives during incidental contact.	4
Responsibility for policy and service development	2	Implements policies for own area and proposes changes to its practices.	12
Responsibility for financial and physical resources	1	Takes personal care of equipment and resources used in own work.	5
Responsibility for people	2	Supervises or coordinates staff day to day, trains others regularly, or gives basic HR advice.	12
Responsibility for information resources	3	Takes formal minutes, regularly writes reports or queries, or maintains information systems as a significant duty.	16
Responsibility for research and development	2	Regularly does research, development, trials, or equipment and system testing as part of the job.	12
Freedom to act	4	Results are defined, but the job holder decides how to achieve them, within broad policy.	32
Physical effort	1	Sitting, standing, and walking, with little physical effort.	3
Mental effort	3	Frequent concentration on unpredictable work, or occasional prolonged concentration.	12
Emotional effort	1	Rare exposure, or occasional indirect exposure, to distressing circumstances.	5
Working conditions	2	Occasional unpleasant conditions, frequent travel or outdoor work, or near-continuous screen use on most days.	7
Total (Band 6: 396 to 465)			404