Engineering Manager QA (Manual)

Job Overview

Roles and Responsibilities

1. Own the overall Software QA function across Android, iOS, Backend, APIs, Databases, Web Applications, internal tools, growth tools, and firmware/device integrations.
2. Own QA resource and capacity planning across all active projects based on project priorities, testing effort, timelines, skill requirements, and available bandwidth.
3. Own QA hiring planning, new hiring, replacements/backfills, interview processes, onboarding, and overall team capacity planning.
4. Build and maintain yearly, quarterly, monthly, and bi-weekly QA plans in discussion with Product, Engineering, Program Management, Firmware, and other relevant teams.
5. Track daily testing progress across projects, including execution status, blockers, dependencies, defects, environment issues, and release risks.
6. Ensure adequate test planning and coverage for functional, integration, regression, API, database, compatibility, device, and end-to-end testing.
7. Drive release readiness by ensuring testing completion, defect status, regression results, unresolved risks, and dependencies are clearly understood before release.
8. Define clear KRAs for QA Leads, Senior QA Engineers, and QA Engineers and conduct regular monthly performance reviews against agreed expectations.
9. Build individual learning and development plans for team members and ensure their execution through mentoring, training, technical assignments, and regular feedback.
10. Develop QA Leads and Senior QA Engineers to independently own projects, testing areas, and team responsibilities.
11. Track QA team performance through meaningful metrics such as testing completion, defect leakage, defect trends, release quality, blocker ageing, and planned versus completed work.
12. Ensure appropriate test documentation including test plans, test cases, execution evidence, traceability, defect records, validation summaries, and release reports.
13. Drive root-cause analysis for important production defects and recurring quality issues and ensure appropriate corrective actions are implemented.
14. Identify gaps in QA processes, tools, technical capability, documentation, and team structure and drive continuous improvements.
15. Work closely with Engineering, Product, Program Management, Quality, and Regulatory teams to identify testing risks early and improve overall software quality.
16. Drive adoption of appropriate AI-assisted testing, automation, and productivity tools where they can improve QA efficiency and effectiveness.

Years of Experience

• 12+ years of overall experience in Software Testing / Quality Engineering.
• Minimum 4+ years of experience leading QA teams, preferably with QA Leads, Senior QA Engineers and QA Engineers reporting directly or indirectly.
• Experience managing QA across multiple products, projects, releases, and engineering teams simultaneously.
• Experience owning resource planning, hiring, performance management and team development.

Educational Background

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Electronics, Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• Candidate should be from a recognized Tier-1, Tier-2, or Tier-3 engineering college/university.

Technical Qualifications

• Strong understanding of software testing principles, test strategy, test planning, test design, and defect management.
• Strong experience testing Mobile, Web, Backend, APIs, and Databases.
• Good understanding of functional, integration, regression, system, compatibility, and end-to-end testing.
• Strong understanding of API and database testing and ability to investigate issues across different layers of the application.
• Ability to understand product architecture, integrations, data flows, dependencies, and technical risks sufficiently to define an effective testing strategy.
• Strong defect investigation, debugging, root-cause analysis, and problem-solving skills.
• Hands-on experience with tools such as Jira, Confluence, test-management tools, API-testing tools, and reporting dashboards.
• Ability to define and track meaningful QA metrics and use data to identify quality, productivity, and process gaps.
• Familiarity with software validation, traceability, risk-based testing, change control, RCA, CAPA, and structured SDLC documentation is preferred.
• Experience with HealthTech, MedTech, regulated software, connected devices, or firmware testing is an advantage.

Non-Technical Qualifications

• Strong people-management skills with experience managing QA Leads, Senior QA Engineers, and QA Engineers.
• Strong capability in resource planning, hiring, performance management, mentoring, and employee development.
• Strong stakeholder-management skills with the ability to work effectively with Product, Engineering, Program Management, Firmware, Quality, Regulatory, and leadership teams.
• Ability to provide clear technical and managerial direction to the QA team while enabling leads and senior team members to operate independently.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to present testing status, quality risks, resource constraints, and release readiness clearly to leadership.
• Comfortable challenging timelines or release decisions when testing evidence indicates significant quality or product risk.
• Strong coaching and feedback skills with the ability to identify performance gaps and take timely corrective actions.
• Strong planning, prioritization, and decision-making ability in an environment with multiple parallel projects and changing priorities.
• Process-oriented and detail-focused while maintaining a practical and execution-driven approach.
• Ability to build a culture of ownership, continuous improvement, learning, automation, and quality engineering within the QA team.

Good to Haves

• Experience managing a QA organization of 10+ engineers.
• Experience with consumer mobile applications having significant Android and iOS usage.
• Experience with Bluetooth/BLE, connected devices, firmware, or hardware-software integration testing.
• Experience testing systems involving algorithms, image processing, data pipelines, or complex backend workflows.
• Experience in HealthTech, MedTech, diagnostics, IoT, or other regulated product companies.
• Experience using AI-assisted testing or development tools to improve test generation, automation, debugging, documentation, or team productivity.
• Experience working in a fast-moving product organization with several projects and releases running simultaneously.