What Is a QA Manger? How to Become One, Salary, Skills.

QA managers oversee QA testers, analysts and engineers as they evaluate software products to ensure they work correctly and meet quality standards. Here’s what to know about a quality assurance manager’s needed skills, salary and how to become one.

What Is a QA Manager?

A QA manager’s goal is to guarantee high-level software products. They use their software and programming knowledge to develop strategies and set guidelines for quality assurance testing and software debugging.

What Do QA Managers Do?

QA managers assist with testing products and detecting software issues, while also working to optimize the overall quality assurance process.

QA Manager Responsibilities

• Oversee day-to-day quality assurance operations.
• Participate in interviewing, hiring and onboarding QA team members.
• Assist with testing and debugging software.
• Set quality standards and communicate them to team members.
• Establish and coordinate quality assurance workflows.
• Analyze data to optimize quality assurance operations.
• Gather and review customer feedback to enhance software and quality assurance processes.
• Recommend improvements for future software products.

QA Managers Within a Company

QA managers lead teams of QA testers, analysts and engineers. They also collaborate with the employees responsible for the software development process, including product managers and software engineers.

Importance of QA Managers

QA managers lead software testing and debugging processes that become increasingly crucial as companies work to maintain a consistent product while experiencing rapid growth. They also evaluate customer feedback to not only improve software products, but ensure they remain relevant to target audiences.

What Skills Are Needed to Be a QA Manager?

Qualifications to Be a QA Manager

• Programming and software development knowledge.
• Understanding of software testing and debugging best practices.
• Leadership experience.
• Knowledge of how to compile and analyze data.
• Ability to conduct research and evaluate user feedback.
• Familiarity with quality assurance and project management tools.

QA Manager Prerequisites

• A bachelor’s degree in a relevant field, such as computer science.
• Coding and programming bootcamps to sharpen skills and knowledge.
• Professional certifications for career advancement.

QA Manager Hard Skills

• Knowledge of coding languages like Python and C++.
• Testing and debugging software.
• Conducting research and analyzing data.
• Organizing databases.
• Using relevant tools.

QA Manager Soft Skills

• Communication and collaboration skills.
• Training and mentoring quality assurance teams.
• Organized and detail oriented.
• Analytical and strategic thinking.

Tools and Programs QA Managers Use

• Jira
• PractiTest
• Tuskr
• Testpad
• Xray
• TestRail

How to Become a QA Manager

QA Manager Education and Experience

A QA manager likely has a bachelor’s degree in a field like computer science or engineering, as well as about five years of experience working in the quality assurance field.

QA Manager Certificates and Courses

• Certified Tester Advanced Level Test Management
• Certified Manager of Software Quality
• Certified Software Quality Manager

QA Manager Career Path

Careers in quality assurance often begin with jobs as QA testers or QA analysts. Professionals can then move up to becoming QA engineers in preparation for the position of QA manager. Their career could then take them on to be a product manager or shift into jobs in IT or DevOps.

QA Manager Salary and Job Outlook

A 2022 Global Market Insights report shows the software testing market was valued at $40 billion in 2021 and is projected to grow by upwards of 6 percent through 2030.

The full compensation package for a QA manager depends on a variety of factors, including but not limited to the candidate’s experience and geographic location. See below for detailed information on the average QA manager salary.