Quality Assurance Analyst

From day one, our mission has been to create an independent business with a unique culture – one that is controlled by the people who work for it. Finding the most talented and entrepreneurial people has always been key to our success. People come to Howden Group Holdings for lots of different reasons, but they stay for the same one: our culture. That’s what sets us apart, and why we nurture and retain the best talent in the market. Whatever your priorities – work/life balance, career progression, sustainability, volunteering - you’ll find like-minded people driving change at Howden Group. ROLE PROFILE: Quality Assurance Analyst ROLE PURPOSE: The job holder works within Howden Insurance Brokers Limited (HIBL) Operating Entity which is part of Howden Insurance Broking (the Group). We have an exciting vacancy within our experienced QA Team, supporting all aspects of testing of our various business systems and other Third Party systems/integrations. These include but are not limited to: Global XB, Sector, Novidea, In-House Portals, Insurer’s Market Repository (IMR), CLASS/LORS, PPL and other ad-hoc IT/Infrastructure projects. This role requires management of the full QA lifecycle, which incorporates preparation of Test Strategies, Test Plans, creation of Test Scenarios/Test Cases/Test Scripts and Defect management as well as Test Summary Reports. Working closely with Stakeholders to understand the business requirements for changes to applications used in the nominated Operating Entities through the preparation, maintenance and execution of Testing Scripts, coordination of UAT with designated business testers and ensuring new systems, enhancements and impacted integrations are thoroughly tested before release into production, maintaining Company standards across all platforms and maintaining Operational Resilience. KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES: Planning/Reporting:

• Under the direction of line manager and senior colleagues, determine priorities and activities to achieve personal goals and contribute towards the Operating Entity achieving its objectives
• Manages assigned projects and contribute to other projects as required
• Provides relevant management information as required
• Responds appropriately to urgent issues as they arise

Technical:

• Assist with preparation, maintenance and execution of Test Scripts
• Provide assistance with User Acceptance Testing (UAT) for software upgrades
• Coordinate testing appointments and materials
• Logging, investigation and resolution of any issues which arise, to be dealt with in a timely manner
• Occasional trips to other Group offices to meet face to face with business users as required
• Assist with collating test results, preparing test summaries and presentations
• Ensure good communication with the Systems Manager and IT colleagues
• Develop a good working knowledge of broking systems
• Ensure up to date with system enhancements and changes
• Provide assistance with software upgrades (Production deployment)

Policy, Process and Procedures:

• Keeps informed of all regulatory and legal changes which impacts on the job role
• Interprets instructions and issues arising, and then implement actions according to policies and procedures
• Supports the provision of a rigorous quality assurance practice to support technology change
• Ensures up to date records are maintained at all times on the Company systems

Environment, Customer Focus and Relationships:

• Ensures good communication with line manager and IT colleagues
• Engages with third parties and users to ensure that testing is well understood and carried out as an integral part of the development cycle
• Effectively communicates with Business Divisions/ Departments and with Business Systems on decisions, priorities, initiatives, risks, service excellent, efficiencies, effectiveness and relevant project information
• Shares information that could be beneficial to the Operating Entity/Group

Personal Development:

• Actively undertakes personal development to ensure up to date knowledge and understanding of best practice
• Remains aware of external, industry, legal and regulatory developments etc to ensure practice and outputs are of a sufficiently high standard
• Keeps informed of all legal and regulatory developments relevant to the Operating Entity/Group

Regulatory and Compliance: The Board of each Operating Entity requires the highest standards of corporate governance, operational excellence and financial reporting throughout the Group from all its employees. Specific responsibilities are listed below. Reference to team (below) is only applicable where the job holder has direct line management responsibilities:

• Ensures self-compliance with all applicable legal, fiscal and regulatory obligations in the form of policies and procedures
• Ensures correct authorisation is obtained and processes followed when required by the Operating Entity and/or Group
• Ensures performance, HR and T&C records are up to date and meet the Operating Entity and/or Group’s requirements (which will include those of direct reports if the job holder has line management responsibilities)
• Maintains accurate records and deal with correspondence appropriately
• Operates in an honest, professional and ethical manner
• Strictly adheres to the Group Employee Code of Conduct which strongly aligns to the FCA’s code of conduct that all regulated entities must adhere to
• Completes all relevant regulatory training
• Ensures remains competent to carry out role

PERSON SPECIFICATION: Knowledge/Experience

• Minimum of 3 years Testing Experience required
• Strong understanding of Agile, V-Model and waterfall methodologies
• Experience of Test Management & Defect Management tools such as Azure DevOps, QC and Jira
• Ability to perform all testing disciplines including but not limited to; functional, non-functional, regression, system integration, compatibility, performance and experience with the use of test automation tools
• Experience of handling Small, Medium and large scale testing projects
• Use of SQL to validate data
• Experience of preparation of test deliverables including but not limited to; Test Approach, Test Plans, Test Scripts, Defect reports, Test Summary Reports etc
• Salesforce testing/training experience an advantage
• Insurance domain knowledge an advantage

Skills/Behaviours

• Strong attention to detail
• Self-motivated
• Ability to work effectively on their own or within a team
• Problem Solver – able to resolve issues and share ideas
• Excellent Prioritisation and organisational skills
• Able to work towards deadlines and achieve objectives
• Ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing, with internal and external stakeholders

Qualifications

• 5 x GCSE’s (or equivalent) - Minimum A-C grades including English and Maths essential
• A-Level Grade A-C (or equivalent)
• Progression towards gaining professional qualifications is desired
• Likely to have computer related degree
• ISEB/ISTQB qualified Tester with experience of testing in a number of organisations.
• ITIL 4 Foundation or above an advantage
• Any Insurance Market experience/knowledge is an advantage
• Salesforce training/certification an advantage

What do we offer in return? A career that you define. Yes, we offer all the usual rewards and benefits - including great healthcare provision, a wide variety of wellbeing offers, competitive salary, generous pensions and more - but we know you expect all that. What you might not expect is a job where everyone has a voice, where volunteering in the community is part of the day job, and where everyone is encouraged to play a part towards our sustainability goals. We want people who want to make a difference - not just in the workplace, but in the industry and in the wider community. Our Culture: People First We are proud to be at the global table, but we are most proud of our culture. It has been built on a single and constant set of principles over more than 25 years, and it has helped us become:

• An international group with independence and people at its heart
• A home for talent with a unique culture: the biggest small company in the world

The focus on being a People First business has always been at the very heart of the Group. David’s vision was to create an independent business with a unique culture; one that would survive and thrive as a business controlled by the people working for it. Finding the most talented and entrepreneurial people to join the Group has been and will continue to be key. Diversity & Inclusion At Howden Group Holdings we consider our people our chief competitive advantage and as such we treat colleagues, candidates, clients, and business partners with equality, fairness and respect, regardless of their age, disability, race, religion or belief, gender, sexual orientation, marital status or family circumstances. Additional Job Details Worker Type: Permanent