Electronic Arts Inc. is a leading global interactive entertainment software company. EA delivers games, content and online services for Internet-connected consoles, personal computers, mobile phones and tablets.
Development Director - Maxis Quality Verification
Are you interested in leading an established & experienced team working on a world-renowned game franchise? Maxis Quality Verification is looking for someone to join the Sims 4 game team!
At Maxis, we like to think big. We inspire and challenge each other every day to do our best work as we create platforms that allow our players around the world to live the Sims life. Our games have a diverse player base, and we aim to make our game an extension of our players' lives. Boasting one of the most robust, detailed and surprising life-simulation engines ever created, Maxis prides itself in blurring the boundaries between life and play for millions of players!
High-level role description
Do you care about quality, first and foremost? As the Quality Verification Development Director, you along with your team will establish and deliver the quality strategy for the game. You have a solid project management background and a people-focused attitude. You will be embedded into and work with the development team to plan capacity, develop test strategies, and improve both development and testing process. You and your team will build that strategy, always with the player experience first and foremost in mind.
Are you people-focused? Do you enjoy contributing to the development of your team members' careers? You will spend time managing a direct staff of experienced project leaders, including both managers and individual contributors. You will provide mentorship as you motivate your team to implement to the best of their abilities. You will work with partners across EA to find ways to improve the Quality Verification team's operational effectiveness by analyzing business practices and proposing solutions or improvements to existing problems or processes by applying the great talent we have throughout the organization.
Requirements & Responsibilities
- You will be the primary product owner of one or more games from the quality perspective
- You can speak to the project and your team's work in detail
- You are proficient in generating written reports & presentations and can use them to inspire change, report status, and enhance understanding of your team's work
- You can manage process and improve workflows in order to maintain high quality standards through multiple development and live project cycles
- You have experience working with team members of other cultures, and are able to work effectively as a leader within a global team
- You are comfortable with resource management & planning, including financial & project capacity planning
- You are able to use automation tools and other white-box and grey-box testing methodologies to improve testing efficiency
- You can define, monitor and leverage product quality indicators throughout project duration to give a constant heartbeat on product quality and your team's work
- You manage the project through continuous review of scope & capacity as well as scheduling and can provide ROI and cost vs benefit analyses
- You can evaluate effectiveness at the individual and team level, and are able to assess gaps in skills and provide coaching for team members
- You can work with our internal & external partners to ensure their support in maintaining quality and project goals and timelines
- You are creative in leading change and in improving team focus and engagement
- You will ensure best practices are followed to protect and uphold product quality with partners and team members across a range of technology disciplines and geographic locations
- You know how to move the focus on quality upstream in the development cycle and can advocate for the best practices to achieve this
- You can produce and present reports to partners using data that represent key product quality indicators
- You aren't afraid to dig in and be an active participant in the test responsibilities and processes of your team
- You can advocate for and improve upon a culture of quality
Experience Requirements:
Please note that you do not need to qualify for all requirements to be considered. We encourage you to apply if you can meet most of the requirements and are comfortable opening a dialog to be considered.
- You should have deep experience in the Quality Assurance domain, including:
- 7+ years of experience in a software development environment
- 5+ years project management in a project or equivalent role
- 5+ years experience in a leadership / management role
- You have 5+ years of experience managing people, including managing managers
- Having a proven track record of your experience developing & shipping AAA game titles is a plus
- Experience in a Scrum / Agile software development environment
- High level of fluency using test case test / Project Management software (JIRA, DevTrack, Testrail, Hansoft, etc.)
- Bachelor's degree in any number of related fields including computer science, game design, project management, or business
- Excellent understanding of the software production life cycle, from concept to live operations
About EA At Electronic Arts, we exist to Inspire the World to Play. We create extraordinary new game experiences for our millions of players everywhere by bringing together talented people that combine creativity, innovation, and passion. We know that our strength lies in the diversity of our people. We immerse our employees into an inclusive culture, and provide opportunities for learning and leading that allow them to do the most impactful and rewarding work of their careers. We put our people first. We provide comprehensive benefit packages with a focus on health and wellbeing to support your needs and help you balance your career and personal life. We provide access to dynamic and collaborative work environments, opportunities to connect and contribute through our Employee Resource Groups, and support for a balanced life with paid time off and maternity and paternity leave, plus free video games and so much more! Electronic Arts is an equal opportunity employer. All employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, genetic information, religion, disability, medical condition, pregnancy, marital status, family status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Electronic Arts also makes workplace accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities as required by applicable law.