"The demand for strong test and quality engineering leadership will only grow as technology advances. Those who step up now—adapting to AI, influencing strategy, and driving business value—will be the leaders shaping the future of software quality."

The journey from tester to decision-maker in quality engineering is as rare as it is transformative—but it’s also incredibly rewarding. If you’re like me, you’ve probably spent years in the trenches, testing software, finding bugs, and championing quality. You’ve seen firsthand the challenges and triumphs of ensuring that a product works seamlessly for its users.

But have you ever wondered what it would be like to take your influence further? To shape decisions that affect not just how testing is done, but how quality is prioritized across an entire organization? That’s exactly what I set out to do.

As someone who has climbed this unique ladder, serving as a quality engineering director in multiple industries, I can tell you this: the road is not always clear, and it's certainly not crowded. Few people take this path, not because it isn’t worth it, but because the opportunities and guidance to do so are often limited. That’s why I’m sharing my experiences—because if you’re considering this leap, I want you to know it’s possible, it’s meaningful, and it’s a journey worth taking.

Let’s dive into the lessons I’ve learned, the challenges I’ve faced, and the strategies that can help you carve out your own path to leadership in quality engineering. Whether you’re just starting to think about advancing your career or already eyeing a seat at the decision-making table, I hope this inspires and equips you to take the next step.

The scarcity of test leadership roles

Software testing leadership roles often vanish as organizations adopt modern agile practices. The test leadership layer is removed, and testers are reassigned to report directly to engineering managers within squads. This shift feels odd—almost peculiar when you think about it. You don’t often see other squad members, like product owners or designers, reporting directly to an engineering manager. Personally, I’ve never encountered that.

Why is there a double standard? It’s clear to most organizations that product owners and designers belong to distinct teams within the squad, requiring specialized skill sets and leadership from someone with expertise in those areas. Yet, this understanding doesn’t seem to extend to testers.

As a result, roles like test manager or quality engineering manager are becoming increasingly rare, and the title of VP of Quality is something you’ll find only in large corporations like banks, financial institutions, or insurance companies. For testers aspiring to move up the ladder, this shift creates a unique challenge. There are fewer opportunities at the top, and the career path becomes less defined and more uncertain with every step forward.

Breaking into decision-making spaces

One main reason I aspired to become a director was the desire to influence critical decisions about testing. Too often, decisions about environments, tools, and resources are made without input from testers, often leading to inefficiencies and missed opportunities for quality improvement.

Earlier in my career, I made grassroots changes, rallying peers and convincing management to adopt practices that benefited the team. This worked really well when we got support from leadership, but sometimes we didn’t, and a lot of work went to waste putting together proof of concepts, business cases, and so on. 

Now, as a director, I can steer these decisions directly, ensuring that the needs of the testing team are considered from the outset. I still have budgets to adhere to and leadership to convince, but the conversations are much more balanced at this level. And I bring to bear the experience I gained with grassroots change. 

I also take the team with me on this journey. I spend a lot of time speaking with the testers in my team and with engineers on the ground to understand the main challenges they face with delivering quality software:

• Do they need better environments? 
• Do they need better tools? 
• Or is it processes and communication between teams that are holding them back? 

Having a deep understanding of the needs of the engineering team as a whole helps me to push for those changes that will make the most impact on their jobs every day.

The power of representation in leadership

More than just a seat at the table

Being at the decision-making table is not just about participation—it’s also about advocacy. As leaders in software quality, our role extends beyond merely influencing decisions. We must champion the value of quality and ensure it remains a company-wide priority.

One of the most effective ways to do this is by actively involving our teams in shaping quality processes. Empowering them to contribute ideas and insights leads to significant improvements in software delivery. However, in reality, individual contributors (ICs) can only do so much while juggling their primary responsibilities. Driving systemic change across an organization requires dedicated leadership bandwidth—leaders who unblock teams and create the structural support needed for lasting improvements.

The limits of individual contributors in driving change

It’s not that ICs can’t drive meaningful change—they can and do. However, expecting them to implement and manage large-scale improvements one after another is neither sustainable nor fair. Their focus should remain on delivering quality software using the tools and processes available to them.

Change management requires time, advocacy, and cross-team coordination. It demands an understanding of broader business priorities, the ability to put together compelling proposals, and the effort to gain buy-in across different teams. That’s where quality leaders come in—not just as decision-makers but as allies and enablers.

A real-world leadership challenge

The need for a stable test environment

At a previous organization, my team worked in squads that delivered weekly production releases. They had solid automation in place and talented exploratory testers providing fast feedback. However, a major roadblock prevented them from doing their best work: unreliable test environments.

This is a common challenge in modern software development. While concepts like "testing in production" and "shifting left" are widely discussed, implementing them effectively requires usable test environments. In this case, the team had only local branches and a single pre-production environment used for integration testing. This setup led to significant friction:

• The pre-prod environment was constantly overwhelmed with multiple merges per hour.
• Automated test suites frequently failed, not due to test flakiness but because of the unstable environment.
• Valuable time was wasted investigating false automation failures rather than focusing on high-value exploratory testing.

This situation highlights a recurring issue in engineering teams: test environments are often an afterthought rather than a key part of the software development process.

The leadership solution: change management in action

The solution was straightforward but required deliberate effort—introducing an integration environment to which code changes would be deployed before pre-prod. Implementing this change across engineering was not something an individual contributor could take on alone.

Several challenges made it difficult for ICs to drive this initiative:

• Time constraints – ICs were already stretched thin with their primary responsibilities.
• Lack of organizational context – Understanding how this change would affect other squads required a broader perspective.
• Building a business case – Leadership needed a compelling proposal outlining the benefits, trade-offs, and implementation plan.
• Cross-team coordination – Gaining buy-in from multiple squads required careful planning and communication.

As director of quality engineering, I took on this responsibility. My role was to:

1. Engage stakeholders – I met with PMs, engineers, and designers to understand their challenges with the current environment.
2. Develop a process – I outlined how the new workflow would function, from code reviews to approvals.
3. Drive alignment – I presented the proposal to teams, gathered feedback, and iterated on the plan.
4. Lead implementation – Once the integration environment was in place, I became the point of contact for resolving issues and ensuring a smooth transition.

This level of organizational change required full-time focus—something no one on my team had the bandwidth to handle while also delivering software. Change management is a leadership responsibility, and we cannot expect ICs to bear that burden alone.

Action steps for aspiring test leaders

Leadership begins with action, not with a title. By taking ownership, influencing teams, and thinking strategically, testers can naturally transition into leadership roles.

1. Broaden your technical and cross-functional expertise: build knowledge beyond testing by exploring automation, performance engineering, CI / CD, and monitoring. Understanding how testing aligns with product development and business strategy strengthens leadership potential. 
2. Drive technical excellence: identify gaps in testing processes, propose improvements, and champion best practices. Lead discussions on quality strategy and mentor teammates to elevate the overall engineering culture.
3. Develop a strategic mindset: think beyond execution and focus on long-term impact. Align testing efforts with business goals, optimize workflows, and advocate for quality as a competitive advantage.
4. Communicate with confidence: speak up in meetings, share insights, and offer solutions. Clear, assertive communication helps establish credibility and ensures that quality remains a priority in decision-making.
5. Strengthen cross-team collaboration: build strong relationships with developers, product managers, and stakeholders. Work together to define quality goals, streamline feedback loops, and embed testing throughout the development lifecycle.
6. Cultivate leadership skills: guide teammates, provide constructive feedback, and facilitate discussions that drive improvement. Effective leadership comes from coaching, problem-solving, and fostering a culture of ownership.
7. Share knowledge and build visibility: write about testing good practices, present at company meetings, or contribute to the broader testing community. Sharing expertise establishes authority and opens doors to leadership opportunities.
8. Develop AI literacy: understand how AI-generated code works, its limitations, and potential risks. Stay informed about trends in AI-assisted development and testing.

The future of test leadership

Quality leadership is evolving alongside rapid advancements in AI-driven development. As engineers rely more on AI to generate code, the role of testing leaders becomes even more critical. Striving for high-quality software isn’t just about catching bugs—it’s about guiding teams to build resilient, reliable, and ethically sound systems. 

Some emerging trends in test leadership:

1. AI-powered development and its impact on testing
   Engineers now spend less time writing code manually and more time reviewing AI-generated outputs. This shift increases the risk of hidden defects, biased algorithms, and unverified logic. Testing leaders must develop strategies to validate AI-assisted code, implement robust testing frameworks, and ensure AI-generated software meets high standards of security and reliability.
2. Shifting focus from execution to strategy
   Traditional manual and automated testing still matter, but leadership in testing now requires a stronger focus on risk management, governance, and strategic oversight. Testers stepping into leadership must understand how software failures affect business outcomes and proactively influence product decisions.
3. Quality as a business differentiator
   In industries where software failures can cost millions—such as finance, healthcare, and e-commerce—test leaders play a direct role in protecting revenue, customer trust, and brand reputation. Quality can no longer be treated as a final checkpoint; it must be embedded into engineering and product strategy from the start.
4. The expanding role of quality leadership
   The traditional tester role is expanding beyond test execution. Future test leaders will need expertise in areas like:
   • AI ethics and bias detection: ensuring that AI-generated code is fair and unbiased
   • Observability and monitoring: leveraging real-time insights to detect production issues early
   • Risk-based testing strategies: prioritizing testing efforts where failures have the highest impact
   • Cross-disciplinary collaboration: working closely with product managers, security teams, and developers to align quality with business goals

The demand for strong test and quality engineering leadership will only grow as technology advances. Those who step up now—adapting to AI, influencing strategy, and driving business value—will be the leaders shaping the future of software quality.

For more information

• The quality leadership playbook: Insights from the community, MoT Collection
• Leading your development team as an individual contributor, Barry Ehigiator
• How to Be an Outstanding Leader, Selena Delesie
• Ted Lasso Made Me a Better Tech Leader and More Importantly, a Better Person, Leigh Rathbone