Test Lead – 12-Month Contract (Inside IR35)
Location: Sheffield (Hybrid – 3 days on site per week)
Sector: Financial Services
Rate: Competitive (Inside IR35)
Duration: 12-month initial contract
Our leading financial services client is seeking an experienced Test Lead to join a large, complex programme based in Sheffield. This role requires someone who can lead testing across multiple phases, environments, and applications, with strong stakeholder management and hands-on capability.
Key Responsibilities
* Lead all test phases across a multi-environment, multi-application landscape.
* Create and own project-level test strategies, plans, scenarios, and approaches (functional & non-functional).
* Define and manage regression packs and ensure ongoing maintenance.
* Provide test estimates and work closely with the Project Manager to deliver to agreed timelines.
* Ensure test processes are fully auditable, robust, and compliant with internal governance.
* Manage defect lifecycle, including leading defect triage sessions.
* Coach, mentor, and support test team members to ensure high-quality delivery.
* Produce test completion reports and certification for release readiness.
* Work closely with BAs, Scrum Masters, PMs and technical teams to align testing with business goals.
* Champion continuous improvement and keep test processes relevant and up to date.
* Support performance and non-functional testing activities.
* Participate in project meetings and provide regular reporting to senior stakeholders.
Essential Skills & Experience
* Minimum 5 years’ experience as a Test Lead within complex environments.
* Experience within globally distributed organisations.
* Strong experience producing multi-phase test strategies and plans.
* Expert at reviewing and creating test scenarios from business requirements.
* Strong theoretical and practical knowledge of API and database testing.
* Hands-on experience with Postman, SoapUI or Insomnia.
* Advanced use of Jira and Zephyr test tooling.
* Proven background in test planning, coordination, reporting, and execution.
* Strong stakeholder management and communication skills.
* Experience with automation tools such as Selenium, Tosca, and test data creation tools.
* Hands-on experience of automation and end-to-end testing across multiple integrated applications.
* Demonstrable leadership skills with the ability to motivate and guide test teams.
* Experience working within Agile/Scrum environments.
* Ability to define test entry/exit criteria and act on non-compliance.
* Strong understanding of release processes, quality gates, and risk-based testing.
* ISTQB Intermediate level (or equivalent).
Desirable Skills
* Experience within Identity & Access Management, Privileged Access, Secrets Management or related security domains.
* Exposure to AD/ADLDS, API Gateway testing, Batch/ETL testing.
* Experience with automation tools such as Jenkins, Maven, JUnit Jupiter, Selenium WebDriver.
* Working knowledge of Java.
* Experience with SailPoint IdentityIQ, Identity Warehousing, SCIM, REST API, LDAP, OIDC, CSV ingestion.
* Exposure to Graph Database Management Systems (GDBMS).
* ServiceNow, AD, AWS, Azure integrations.
* Experience with “policy as code” and decision-point testing.
* Experience with GitOps repositories.
* SaaS testing experience.
* GCP cloud testing methodologies.
* ISTQB Manager certification.
How to Apply
If you’re an experienced Test Lead seeking your next contract within a major financial services programme, please apply with your CV for immediate consideration.