Test Manager

Test Lead / Test Capability Consultant — 6 Month Contract

Location: London (1 day per month on-site, remote otherwise)

Day Rate: £550/day (Outside IR35)

Duration: 6 Months

About the Role

We're supporting a partner on a complex digital transformation programme and are looking for an experienced consultant to build digital testing capability from the ground up. This is a hands-on role - you'll be directly involved in test execution using industry-standard tools wherever capability gaps or deadlines require it, while designing a testing framework that spans internal, external, and business testers. Governance and reporting will start lean and scale as maturity grows, and you'll operate as a client-side partner, embedding best practice across suppliers and delivery partners.

Working within a small team, you'll bring your broader consulting expertise to bear across product, delivery, and design workstreams as needed.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and implement an organisation-wide testing framework spanning technical, functional, non-functional, and UAT testing across delivery partners and internal teams
• Build lightweight test governance and reporting that evolves as capability matures
• Align testing activity to delivery milestones and risk within the wider Digital programme
• Coach and upskill business and technical testers to raise testing capability across the organisation
• Establish and lead a Test Special Interest Group as an early community of practice
• Act as client-side partner to suppliers, embedding best practice and holding delivery partners accountable for quality
• Support delivery partners in adopting automated testing tools and practices
• Carry out hands-on testing personally where capability gaps exist or deadlines demand it
• Draw on broad consulting experience to support other digital programme activity, maintaining momentum and reducing delivery risk

Skills & Experience

• Demonstrable experience building testing functions in low-maturity or greenfield environments
• Strong hands-on testing ability (manual and automated), with practical experience of test execution tools
• Experience with test automation tooling and coaching delivery partners through adoption
• Testing experience across Dynamics 365, Azure, Microsoft Fabric, and web applications/websites
• Proven track record building test governance and reporting frameworks that scale with maturity
• Strong coaching, facilitation, and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to energise a community of practice
• Comfortable operating in ambiguity, building capability from little to no existing base
• Broad consulting skill set from complex digital programmes; public sector or local government experience desirable