Senior Test Analyst
The Senior Test Analyst ensures the quality, reliability, and safe delivery of all technology changes across the Society. The role leads the planning and execution of testing activities, identifies defects early, and ensures changes meet required technical and operational standards before release. By providing expert assurance, strengthening test coverage, and supporting major programmes such as the Core Upgrade, the Senior Test Analyst plays a vital role in reducing production risk, improving delivery confidence, and protecting the stability of our systems and services.
About the role
Oversee end‑to‑end test planning, execution, and quality assurance across multiple projects and change initiatives, ensuring all deliverables meet agreed entry/exit criteria and deadlines.
Shape the testing approach for each project, including defining scope, objectives, required test cycles, and estimating resource and timeline requirements.
Identify opportunities for process improvement, contribute to business cases, and support continuous enhancement of testing, delivery, and operational processes.
Provide guidance, coaching, and task delegation to Test Analysts and project team members, ensuring consistent quality and knowledge growth across the testing function.
Execute and oversee functional, integration, regression, usability, and system testing; maintain deep system knowledge across platforms and testing phases.
Lead timely triage, investigation, and resolution of defects, engaging with internal teams and third‑party suppliers to ensure issues are resolved effectively and root causes addressed.
Collaborate closely with IT teams, business stakeholders, and external vendors to drive test outcomes, manage expectations, and ensure readiness for releases and upgrades (including SaaS quarterly releases and core banking upgrades).
Ensure accurate test data preparation, complete documentation, adherence to ITIL processes, and robust transition into BAU—including training, support, and benefits realisation.
Lead testing for core banking upgrades, third‑party patches, and SaaS platform updates (e.g., Salesforce, ServiceNow), coordinating internal and external participants.
What you will need
Required criteria
- A degree in Computer Science, IT, Engineering, Business or a related field.
- A minimum of 3 years’ significant experience in functional, integration, regression, system and UAT testing across complex environments.
- Strong understanding of the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC) and Software Testing Lifecycle (STLC). Experience working in Agile and Scrum environment.
- Ability to analyse detailed business and functional requirements, define test conditions and map tests to requirements for full traceability.
- Knowledge of SQL for database validation.
- Ability to analyse complex scenarios, identify patterns or anomalies, and break problems into logical steps.
- High attention to detail, ensuring defects are accurately logged with reproducible steps.
- Experience working with cross-functional teams (e.g. business stakeholders, or different business areas).
- --OR--
- Three A-levels at Grade C and above (or equivalent).
- A minimum of 5 years’ experience of being a user or subject matter expert of the Core Banking System provided by SBS (previously known as Sopra Banking).
Desired criteria
- ISTQB Foundation Level Certification or equivalent.
- Knowledge of financial systems and/or Sopra core banking system.
- Experience testing APIs using tools such as Postman or SOAP UI.
- Experience with test automation tools and scripting language.
- Knowledge of mortgage and savings customer journeys.
Progressive Building Society
Careers at Progressive We know that looking for a career means so much more than just finding a job. At Progressive, we want to help you find your happy place to work. We firmly believe in encouraging our employees to achieve the right balance between their work and personal lives, delivering access to and promoting family-friendly policies. This not only increases employee satisfaction but also enables Progressive to meet the needs of our Members and supports the Society in being positioned as one of the most successful financial institutions in Northern Ireland.
To work for Progressive is to be part of something special. We strive to nurture and develop our employees in the evolving and fast paced financial services industry. Outlined below are a list of the reasons why we feel Progressive is a great place to work: We aim to provide an inclusive and respectful working environment, where everyone recognises the importance and impact of teamwork. We celebrate staff diversity and work hard to ensure that our staff members feel valued as individuals and respected for their contribution to our success. We offer opportunities for our staff to work at the heart of our communities and make real differences to our Members’ lives. We do not subscribe to a long-hours culture, instead valuing family life and supporting our staff to balance work and family commitments.
Our benefits
We offer our staff competitive employment conditions and a range of benefits designed to achieve high levels of staff engagement and job satisfaction. We understand that by taking steps to positively enhance the well-being of our staff, we can help them to achieve their goals and boost their motivation to deliver the best possible outcomes for our members.