Senior Automation Test Engineer

We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the wider society that we serve. We pride ourselves on being an employer of choice. We champion diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued and a sense of belonging. To find out more about how we do this visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity.

Pay

Salary band for this role is £36,049 to £41,095 (£41,747 – £47,591 for candidates based within the M25)

Please note: New recruits to the Civil Service are expected to join at the band minimum, however for exceptional candidates, managers have discretion to set starting salaries above the pay range minimum by a maximum of 10%

A generous digital allowance of up to £16,951 is also available (£15,653 for candidates based within the M25)

The final allowance awarded will be based on an assessment of your skills and experience as demonstrated at interview.

These are exciting times at Her Majesty’s Court and Tribunals Service (HMCTS). As an agency of the MoJ, we provide the supporting administration for the judiciary across England and Wales. Within that portfolio, Digital and Technology Services (DTS) has a clear ambition to create an organisational culture where diverse and inclusive multi-disciplinary teams bring together in-house digital, data and technology specialists to build capability, work smarter and more efficiently. Please visit https://www.hmctsjobs.co.uk/dts/ for further details!

We’re building better justice for everyone by harnessing technology, curiosity and our burning mission to make a momentous impact. You have the chance to influence that change and own your mark.

With the scale and size of transformation, you’ll get exposure to bigger opportunities and new ways of learning that will push your potential. It’s a massive challenge doing career defining work, but we also embrace your individuality and life outside of work. So through flexible working we’ll trust you to shape the future in a way that suits you.

Sound like a challenge you’re up for?

Build_better_justice

for.everyone

The Role

The Senior Test Engineer reports to the Software Engineering Manager and plays a leading role in ensuring that products are of quality and fit for the business needs. Without the input of the Senior Engineering Manager, software can be released with poor quality and potential bugs that can impact HMCTS’s reputation, have significant cost implications (in the range of millions) on the business and HMCTS and most importantly people using the service/product.

Like Test Engineers, Senior Test Engineers are responsible for writing, debugging and refactoring test codes, but at a more complex level and on a greater scale. At this level you will:

Work closely with software developers to reach a common understanding of the code base and test coverage at unit levelCollaborate with business analysts to make sure the required business scenarios are covered in the acceptance test scriptsWork on both functional requirements (FRs) and non-functional requirements (NFRs)Coach and mentor testers

The Squad you are placed on will be agreed closer to your start date, but examples of products can be found in our GitHub repositories:

https://github.com/ministryofjusticehttps://github.com/hmctshttps://github.com/CJSCommonPlatform

Technologies - We rely heavily on:

JIRA as our bug tracking software Python, Java and JavaScript to write automation tests JMeter for load tests Selenium/Web Driver for end to end testing Fiddler, Burp and Developer Tools to analyse packets SOAP UI for API inspection Jenkins for deployment Dynatrace for application monitoring Azure for most of our infrastructure Postgres and Redis as our databasesGov.UK Design System for our web interfaces Macs to do all of the above

What will you be doing?

Manage full traceability of defects, tests and requirements. Report issues found through the appropriate channels. Contribute to, and as required lead the design of the organisation’s process and selection of tools relating to defect management.Influence stakeholders at all levels including senior management within Digital Delivery to employ suitable practices, such as test-driven development and shift-left testing. Champion test practices, provide advice and guidance to formal and informal networks across HMCTS on the different types of tests, testing tools and testing environments available.Analyse test results, critically evaluate and communicate findings to the relevant stakeholders. Lead on troublshsooting and identifying opportunities to enhance existing functionality of the software that will improve HMCTS’s service delivery.Constantly seek to learn and further develop your skills as required for your role. Share knowledge with others. Coach and mentor more junior colleagues. Participate in recruitment and procurement activities as required.

What are we looking for?

Ability to make decisions and play a leadership role in selecting the type of tools, techniques and environments used for testing. Using negotiation and influencing skills to assist the business to differentiate between defects and features. Ability to lead, coach and train others on Non-functional requirements (NFRs) and Functional requirements (FRs) testing; as well as to identify opportunities to improve existing process. Practitioner-level expertise in evaluating test results based on, for example, creative thinking and asking the right questions. Experience in managing defects of a live system, alerting the business to them, and you can help prioritise them (for example based on defect severity). Practitioner-level working knowledge of different test tools (bug tracking/defect management, IDEs, test libraries, packet analysers, load testing and API inspection), ideally in our technology stack. ISTQB® certification at an Advanced level, or equivalent qualification / knowledge; Wealth of knowledge of testing techniques and frameworks, and broader knowledge of topics relevant to testing across the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC).

What can we offer you?

A generous pension scheme on average of up to 27%25 days leave, plus 8 bank holidays, plus 1 privilege day usually taken around the Queens’ birthdayFlexible working; whether it’s working from home or remotely, working part-time, job sharing, or working compressed hours, we have people doing it and are happy to discuss options with youGreat maternity, adoption, and shared parental leave, with up to 26 weeks leave at full pay, 13 weeks with partial pay, and 13 weeks further leave. And maternity support/paternity leave at full pay for 2 weeks, too!Bike loans and secure bike parking (subject to availability and location)Season ticket loans, childcare vouchers, and eye-care vouchers.Up to 5 days paid leave per year for voluntary work you may wish to undertakeWe also currently have employee-run networks for colleagues of minority ethnic origin, employees with disabilities, those with caring responsibilities, women employees, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees with which you will eligible to join

We are passionate about career development and in order to help support this, we offer a number of training and development platforms that employees will have access to. Working with your manager, you will be given the support and time required to complete agreed courses, as part of your personal development plan.

Pluralsight - Over 7000 video training courses created by over 1400 subject-matter experts, covering a wide range of software development related skills.Microsoft Enterprise Skills Initiative - a range of Azure focused courses that can lead to Microsoft Certification.Civil Service Learning - a wide variety of online training to help support your role as a Civil Servant.

Further details can be found in the downloadable Job Description