Quality Assurance Project

Alan Freedman

*** ********* ***

Thornhill, ON

L3T 3X5

Home: 905-***-****

Email: ****.********@*********.**

Qualifications

• A proven track record of successfully delivering quality projects on time and on budget.

• Proactive and decisive, capable of operating in an entrepreneurial, high-growth environment

where changing priorities juggled with timely responses to change

• Strong communication, presentation, problem solving and relationship management skills

• Possess an understanding of testing and quality services, strategies, methodologies and best

practices

• Excellent understanding of various software development life cycle methodologies and knowledge

of developments in the Technology industry

• Proven ability to deliver across internal technology organization as well as across a larger

organization including external service providers

• Experience managing relationships with internal, external customers and vendors and outsourced

service providers

• Excellent understanding of the insurance and / or finance industry

• Building Testing Centers of Expertise

• Excellent project management skills

• Excellent conflict management skills

• Ability to work creatively and analytically in a problem-solving environment; change management

skills

• Ability to support the creation of an environment that motivates individuals to work collaboratively

as a team

• Strong communication and leadership skills

Employment History

Jan/10 - Present Manulife Financial

Senior Director – Shared Application Services - Testing

Planning & Strategy

• Built a testing shared service team to support all testing initiatives across all business units

• Provided testing consulting, automation, performance, SOA, mobility testing and vendor

resources to support testing needs

• Interacting with BA CoE, SDLC CoE and Architecture CoE to ensure consistency and integration

• Responsible for establishing processes, artefacts and policies, ensuring high standards of quality

across all business units

• QA expert and visionary in the interconnection of QA practices with the SDLC, PMF,

Governance and CMMI

• Establish and participate in QA Communications Program including roadshows, project

quality kickoff meetings and departmental presentations

• Ensure consistent project artefacts are used by all QA team members

• Monitor Change Request standards and the impact on QA

• Establish QA practices in accordance with defined Audit Controls (SOX, Basel, etc.)

• Monitor specific project results to determine if they comply with relevant quality standards

and identifying ways to eliminate causes of unsatisfactory performance

• Establish methods to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of projects and programs

to provide additional benefits to the project stakeholders

• Create formulas and templates for estimating and planning test activities

• Establish common automation framework and shared common library

• Assume a management role across IT and the business units by creating and executing a

strategy for maintaining and promoting test methodologies and tools

• Capture the test progress status/reports across all QA teams for reporting to senior

Management

Documentation & Governance

• Responsible for the creation and maintenance of a library for all QA metrics and artefacts

• Responsible for project compliance auditing

• Monitor use of testing and performance automation

• Capture results around deliverables and management results such as cost and QA

performance through a quality report card

• Establish and maintain executive dashboard of QA performance across Investment

applications

wide

Lead, Coach, Develop Team Members

• Provides direction, training and coaching around the QA COE

• Provides consulting and guidance for training course development

• Lead employee performance to standards of excellence

• Enhance and develop team members' capability

Relationships & Communication

• Effectively communicates and builds rapport with team members, stakeholders and

business partners using a variety of techniques and collaboration from initiation to close

• Facilitates complex group meetings and conducts information gathering sessions

• Prepares and delivers presentations to business and technology partners, senior

management and executives, selecting the appropriate approach based on the audience

• Resolves conflicts/issues and escalates others as appropriate

• Manages the relationship with 3rd party vendors

Managerial Excellence

• Sets direction and vision for the Center of Excellence

• Assists QA teams define deliverables, content and quality metrics

• Ensures teams have adequate training, consulting and tools to deliver objectives

• Provides expertise, direction, coaching and development to build the teams’ capability

• Promotes a mindset for sustained success, growth and diversity

• Spearheads and guides people through changes

• Continually enhances own skills and builds knowledge in all aspects of the organization,

the business and information systems

April /04 – Dec/09 Royal Bank of Canada

Sr. QA Manager

Planning & Strategy

• Manages a team of 35 Quality Assurance specialists in 4 locations globally, responsible for

supporting all test activities i.e. planning, execution, test environment support and possibly

release management for all applications within an application area based on project needs I

augmented my FTE staff with both off-shore and on-shore staff from India (iGate)

• Be a single point of accountability for the success of the QA Program

• Official sign-off approval on releases ready to be promoted to production

• Manages the execution of the QA Strategy including business acceptance, user acceptance, and

system integration

• Drive the implementation of a QA Program and assist with the overall QA process improvement

within RBC Applications GTO

• Provide leadership in the creation and adherence to Quality Assurance processes and

methodologies

• Contribute to development and implementation of common QA Governance processes and

associated reporting metrics

• Contribute to development and implementation of common continuous improvement criteria and

measurements

• Benchmark application group’s QA services related to system/integration and user and business

acceptance testing to best in industry organizations

• Establish and drive strategic and tactical QA initiatives and plans

• Partner with Process and Methodology COE (Centre of Excellence), Infrastructure Services and

Process Project Office, other QA groups within RBC Applications GTO

• Assumes a management role across IT and the business units by creating and executing a

strategy for maintaining and promoting testing methodologies and tools

• Researches emerging trends/best practices and determines implications of proposed

methodologies on meeting business unit strategy

• Leads/directs the software automation effort by identifying applications that will benefit from

automation and develop/implement test cases

• Walkthrough of all coding changes with develoepers in .Net and Java

• Part of the application design team based on both development and testing experience

• Develop test execution and defect dashboard in Java, used for Upper Management project status

Relationships & Communication

• Effectively communicates and builds rapport with team members, stakeholders and business

partners using a variety of techniques and collaboration from initiation to close

• Facilitates complex group meetings and conducts information gathering sessions

• Prepares and delivers presentations to business and technology partners, senior management

and executives, selecting the appropriate approach based on the audience

• Resolves conflicts/issues and escalates others as appropriate

• Manages the operations with 3rd party vendors

Managerial Excellence

• Sets direction and vision for the team

• Defines team’s deliverables, content and quality metrics

• Ensures team has adequate training, consulting and tools to deliver objectives

• Provides expertise, direction, coaching and development to build the team capability

• Manages performance, reward and recognition

• Establishes succession plan for key positions, including own

• Selects & builds a high performing diverse team that leverages individual capabilities & strengths

• Promotes a mindset for sustained success, growth and diversity

• Spearheads and guides people through changes

• Continually enhances own skills and builds knowledge in all aspects of the organization, the

business and information systems

Business overview

RBC Capital Markets offers a broad range of corporate and investment banking solutions to leading

corporations, governments, and institutions worldwide on a vast variety of platforms

Aug./97 – April/04 BCE Emergis

Position/Duties QA Director – Electronic Bill Presentment

Management

• Manage team of 25 Quality Analysts\Tester across 3 testing groups

• Administer QA/Test Budget of $1,750,000 budget

• Perform both salary and performance reviews

• Direct the day to day activities of the Quality Assurance department including handling

o all task assignments and personnel matters

• Develop teams of highly effective quality assurance staff and keep the team "on track"

• Provide both technical and managerial leadership to the entire project team

• Provide yearly budget figures to upper Management.

• Motivate team

• Hire both full time and contractors to meet project commitments

• Assist in the development of individual project charters and plans

Operational

• Oversee all deliverables to operations and to the implementation teams

• Overall quality initiatives within the organization to bring the CMM rating to next level

• (presently level 2 out of 5)

• Hands-on involvement in the quality assurance processes

• Build strong relationships across all levels and functions of the organization

• Oversee production of high caliber functional, integration and regression testing (including

• the preparation of metrics)

• Ensure that quality standards are adhered to both internally and externally with 3 rd party

• vendors

• Review of Engineering Change Requests for validity and project startup

• Follow-up of any production issues through Call Centre

• Present project statuses to upper Management

• Management of the User Acceptance Test and assessment/interpretation of test results

• Oversee the test automation

• Provide consultation and reviews including written analysis of conceptual and logical

• models, risks and mitigation strategies, and impact analysis of quality defects and

process/product deficiencies

Business overview/Technology

Product: Electronic Bill/Invoice Presentment is a service that securely

and reliably delivers richly formatted bills, statements, invoices, notices, and associated

advertising to any online consumer or business, and returns payment and remittance instructions

and related information to the Biller and/or designated payee.

This software is developed using Microsoft SQL, Java using Data

Mapping tools under Win NT and Unix Sun

Apr./94 – Aug./97 ATI Technologies Inc.

Position/Duties Group Leader - Software Quality Assurance

Management

• Manage department of 18 Tester/Analysts

• Perform both performance, salary and bonus reviews

• Yearly budget reviews with VP of Development

• Review resource needs for QA/Test department

• Promote and implement Six Sigma

Operational

• Ensure that the quality of ATI’s products are produced through quality processes

• Implement and monitor structured quality/testing methodologies for the design,

development, implementation and maintenance of applications

• Used Microsoft Project to schedule teams activities for product testing/release of

• software/hardware to support the following OS : DOS, Windows 3.x, OS/2, Windows 95, Windows

NT and a number of international versions

• Oversee regression script automation using Mercury Tool Suite

• Provide upper management with project status and release recommendation

• Provide product release status to other ATI departments

• Review daily defect integrity information in database

• Ensure department QA/Testing activities are performed and meet project schedule

• Review of teams test plans and test results for overall coverage

• Ensure all documents, unit and integration tests are complete (part of ISO standards)

• Hold code and documentation walkthroughs

• Prepare monthly QA/Testing department cost reports for VP (project resources costs,

• hardware and software purchases)

Business overview /Technology

Produced Video Graphic driver to support Win3.1, Win95, NT 3.51,

NT 4.0, OS/2, UNIX using C++ and Assembler. Also managed the

testing of MPEG, TV software product

Jan. /91 - Apr./94 Sietec International - Toronto

Position/Duties Senior Quality Assurance Analyst

Management

Provide leadership to the testing team

Operational

• Lead tester of the Application builder tools under development

• Develop test plans

• Develop a number of major Smalltalk applications using the application builder under

• development

• Tested application interface software against printer, cash registers, automated lab devices

• Record and verify software defects

• Create automated scripts using Rational Visual Test

• Review all project requirements, user specifications & user documentation for content and sign-

offs

• Review and assign all customer related issues to appropriate developer

Business overview /Technology

Produced Application Builders for Win95, NT 3.51,

NT 4.0, OS/2 using Smalltalk under a Client/Server Environment

Jan. /82 - Dec. /90 Bernard C, Kurtz - Chicago Illinois

Position/Duties Project Manager

Management

• Supervision of 12 Developer/Testers

• Perform quarterly performance reviews

Operational

• Perform Software sales demos

• Conducted client process and workflow analysis and made improvement recommendations

• Create/Maintain Client Installation

• Create Client Software Specifications (Business Specifications)

• Conduct client software training on full range of Financial software

• Verify all software and documentation changes

• Install all client software

Business overview /Technology

Software supported on Win3.1 and WIN3.11 with an underlining UNIX O/S MAI hardware

Aug. /80-Jan. /82 Carling O’Keefe Limited - Toronto

Position/Duties Regional Accountant

Operational

• Process and analyze all accounting data

• Prepare monthly Financial statements

• Prepare all month-end entries

• Collect of all outstanding receivables

• Prepare all sales tax and year-end working papers

Educational Background

• PMI program certification courses in progress

• ISO 9000: Implementation, Internal Audit and Lead Auditor Courses - 1993

• Hertzing Institute, Programming and Design - 1983

• University of Western Ontario, 1976 – Degree Finance

Technical Skills

• Operating Systems: Windows 95/98/NT/XP, Unix, Linux

• Languages: C, C++, Perl, Pascal

• Testing Tools: Load Runner, QTP, Grinder, Quality Center

• Other Tools: Rational Clear Quest, Bugzilla, Rational Test Manager, Rational Clear Case

• G.U.I: Visual Basic 6.0,Toad

• RDBMS: MS-Access, Oracle 8i, MS-SQL Server.

• Web Technologies: HTML, ASP, VB Script, JavaScript, Weblogic, Documentum, Webtop, Citrix.

Affiliations

• American Society of Quality Control

• TASSQ

• Quality Assurance Institute (QAI)

• Scouts Canada

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