IT Manager #5482 (Quality Assurance)

Target Hiring Range: $138,000 - $159,000 Department: Chief Information Officer Posting Date Range: 1/23/2026-1/30/2026 Pay Grade Range: $130469-$181570 Work Hours: 8:30am-5:30pm FLSA Status: Exempt Remote Work Status: Hybrid Hybrid Schedule: 2 days onsite per pay period. All remote or hybrid work arrangements must be performed from within the continental United States, subject to Sergeant at Arms approval. The Senate Sergeant at Arms does not pay for relocation expenses. This vacancy announcement closes at 7pm EST. Late applications will not be accepted. JOB OVERVIEW Job Description The Target Hiring Range for this position is: $138,000 - $159,000 About the Organization The U.S. Senate, Sergeant at Arms is committed to delivering innovative, reliable, and high-quality technology solutions facilitating the business of member, committee, leadership, and partner offices. We value collaboration, continuous improvement, and a culture of excellence. As part of our ongoing transformation, we are investing in enterprise-wide quality automation to enhance software delivery speed, improve reliability, and maximize business value. Position Summary The QA Testing & Automation Manager will lead the development, implementation, and governance of the enterprise QA strategy, encompassing automated and manual testing practices. This individual will ensure that quality assurance is embedded across all agile development projects balancing the strategic adoption of automation with the effective use of exploratory, functional, regression, and vendor application testing. The role requires both strategic vision and hands-on leadership to drive adoption, ensure consistency, and deliver measurable improvements in software quality and delivery efficiency. At least eight years of experience in systems support, systems development or applications development, with at least two years of work in a lead or project manager capacity. Why Join Us Opportunity to shape and lead enterprise-wide quality and automation transformation. Work with modern tools, frameworks, and methodologies to drive meaningful impact. Collaborative culture that values innovation, continuous learning, and professional growth. Join a team committed to serving the Senate and the American public, where your work directly supports the democratic process and improves systems that impact millions. Key Accountabilities/Essential Job Duties Supervises section staff by providing direction, setting priorities, assisting with problem resolution, reviewing and evaluating work, counseling staff, and conducting performance reviews. Develops section work plans and assigns projects, tasks, resources, deadlines and priorities to staff; monitors work progress, adjusts project schedules and updates status of work on a regular basis. Functions as Contracting Officer’s Representative; participates in vendor negotiations; monitors contractors’ performance; reviews contractor invoices and certifies acceptance. Confers with other sections, divisions, departments, and vendors to gather and disseminate information; represents the SAA organization in discussions of projects; participates in organizational decision making. Develops and implements policies, standards and procedures. Coordinates new product transition, deployment and support; leads task forces. Develops strategic plans and technology/operational forecasts; provides project direction, coordination, and resource allocation; develops project schedules and tracks expenditures; reviews final products; coordinates project acceptances with customers. Develops and monitors section budget. JOB SPECIFICATIONS Required Education High School Diploma/ GED. Required Work Experience At least eight years of experience in systems support, systems development or applications development, with at least two years of work in a lead or project manager capacity. Required Special Skills/ Knowledge As part of our hiring process, we may conduct a skills assessment to better understand an applicant’s proficiency in key areas relevant to the role. Knowledge of current and emerging technologies and principles of information technology management. Knowledge of capabilities and requirements of various computer platforms in centralized, distributed, client server and stand-alone operating environments. Ability to set goals, plan, and monitor project or contract budgets. Ability to plan, supervise, assign and review the work of a large professional and technical staff. Knowledge of project life cycle methodologies. Ability to communicate effectively. Work requires extended periods of confined sitting and hand-eye coordination working with computers. Expected to work unusual and perhaps unexpected hours during a COOP event. Desired Qualifications Strategic Leadership Define and execute the enterprise QA strategy and roadmap covering both automated and manual testing across custom-built and vendor applications. Promote and embed core QA principles: shift-left testing, test pyramid methodology, high-value test coverage, and a tool-agnostic approach. Champion a culture of quality where QA is seen as a shared responsibility across teams. Implementation & Delivery Lead phased rollout of the QA and automation strategy from pilots through enterprise adoption. Oversee tool evaluation, selection, and integration (e.g., Selenium, Playwright Test). Ensure comprehensive test coverage through a mix of automated regression suites and manual testing practices (e.g., exploratory, usability, validation). Direct QA practices for vendor/COTS systems (e.g., ServiceNow, PeopleSoft), including automation frameworks where available and manual functional testing where needed. Test for adherence to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and standards established by the Senate’s Enterprise Applications Architect. Establish reusable test libraries, frameworks, and consistent QA processes across both custom and COTS platforms. Governance & Standards Manage governance through a QA Center of Excellence (CoE). Define and enforce standards for testing practices across all application types. Ensure proper test planning, documentation, and version control. Establish and track success metrics for quality assurance, including automation coverage, defect detection efficiency, test cycle time, execution speed, and ROI. Team Enablement & Coaching Provide training and onboarding for QA professionals in both manual and automated testing practices. Mentor QA engineers, developers, and business stakeholders on frameworks, tools, and quality practices. Promote collaboration between development, QA, operations, and agile development teams, supporting continuous improvement. Develop guidance for vendor system testing teams to ensure alignment with enterprise QA standards. Continuous Improvement Monitor, analyze, and optimize the effectiveness of both automated and manual testing. Expand automation coverage while identifying areas where manual testing provides higher business value (e.g., exploratory and vendor system testing). Research and recommend emerging QA trends (e.g., AI-driven testing, shift-right monitoring, exploratory testing techniques). Champion continuous testing practices integrated with CI/CD pipelines. Technical Expertise Strong knowledge of automation frameworks/tools for web, mobile, API, and COTS applications (e.g., Selenium, Playwright, Appium, Tosca, Rest Assured). Experience in QA for vendor/COTS systems. Proficiency with CI/CD and DevOps integration (Gitlab CICD, Docker, Jenkins, Azure DevOps, Git). Familiarity with test design patterns, reusable frameworks, and test management platforms (TestRail, Zephyr, Jira, POM, BDD). Strong grounding in Agile and DevOps practices. Leadership & Management Proven ability to lead enterprise QA strategy adoption across automated and manual testing in fast-paced, dynamic environments where QA professionals wear multiple hats and adapt quickly to shifting priorities and diverse project demands. Skilled at managing Centers of Excellence and QA governance processes. Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement across technical and business teams. Ability to coach, mentor, and inspire QA teams at all levels. Analytical & Strategic Skills Skilled in defining and tracking QA metrics: coverage, defect detection efficiency, test cycle speed, and ROI. Ability to balance manual and automated testing approaches based on risk and business value. Strategic mindset to scale practices enterprise-wide while supporting team-level adoption. Working Conditions This position directly supports essential services of the U.S. Senate. As such, this position requires the employee be available and prepared to work during government shutdowns, in inclement weather, on holidays, weekends, and during late nights to ensure essential services to the Senate continue without interruption. In the context of government furloughs, this position is considered excepted. The U.S. Senate network cannot be taken offline for maintenance during the workday, or while the Senate is in session. As such, maintenance windows may only occur at night, on weekends, and occasionally on holidays. Employees who perform systems upgrades, maintenance, wiring, backups, and support our alternate data centers will have schedules that include working nights, weekends, and holidays. To meet the needs of the US Senate, the person in this position will be required to be on call, or report on-site on a rotation, within 24 hours. Security Clearance This position requires that the applicant obtain and maintain a Secret U.S. Government security clearance. Applicants must be U.S. citizens in order for the SAA to submit your application for a security clearance. CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT To be employed by a Senate employing office in a paid position in the continental United States an individual must: 1. Be a U.S. citizen; 2. Be lawfully admitted for permanent residence and seeking citizenship as outlined in 8 U.S.C. § 1324b(a)(3)(B); 3. Be (i) admitted as a refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157 or granted asylum under 8 U.S.C. § 1158 and (ii) have filed a declaration of intention to become a lawful permanent resident and then a citizen when eligible; or 4. Owe allegiance to the U.S. (i.e., qualify as a non-citizen U.S. national under federal law). Employment is contingent on background / security investigation results. BENEFITS AT-A-GLANCE The SAA provides a highly competitive benefits package for all SAA staff. Our benefits extend beyond health care coverage to help provide employees with student loan reimbursement, professional development, transportation subsidy, TSP/retirement savings, access to our Employee Assistance Program, and more! For more information regarding SAA’s benefits, please visit https://sen.gov/OPPW. ACCOMMODATIONS As an Equal Opportunity Employer, the SAA is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you are interested in applying for employment with SAA and need special assistance or an accommodation to complete the application process, please submit your request to employment@saa.senate.gov with “Accommodation” in the subject line. VOLUNTARY SELF-IDENTIFICATION FOR VETERANS' PREFERENCE If you are identifying as veterans' preference eligible under the VEOA, please use this link to complete your application for Veterans' Preference AFTER you apply for this position. The link will also be available on the "Thank You" page after you have submitted your job application. Candidates only need to apply one time for veterans’ preference to be considered for all future veterans’ preference positions within the Senate Sergeant at Arms. All supporting documents must ONLY be provided within the Veterans’ Preference Application and within the stated deadline of the job announcement. Late applications for veterans’ preference will not be considered. Documentation to obtain veterans’ preference will not be considered if attached to the job application. If you need to revise or resubmit your Application for Veterans' Preference/documents, please withdraw your previous Application for Veterans' Preference and resubmit. If you require assistance, please email SAARecruitment@saa.senate.gov. An applicant who declines to self-identify as a disabled veteran and/or to provide information and documentation regarding his/her disabled veteran’s status will not be subjected to an adverse employment action, but the individual may be ruled ineligible for veterans’ preference.