Junior Release Train Engineer

Salary: up to £30,000

Release Train Engineers (RTEs) facilitate and manage software release planning activities, events and processes that enable the development teams to deliver a continuous flow of value to customers and end[1]users. In doing so, they communicate with stakeholders, escalate impediments, help manage risk, promote agile best practices and drive continuous improvement of standard release processes.
RTEs typically have a solid grasp of how to scale Lean and Agile practices and understand the unique opportunities and challenges associated with facilitating and continuously aligning a large development program.
This is a role that operates with considerable autonomy. As such, you will be exposed to a wide and challenging range of business issues through regular engagement with stakeholders across all levels within the organisation.
 
Duties and Responsibilities:
 
·         Provide hands on support and guidance for the development teams both onshore and offshore through all the stages of the development lifecycle
·         Protect the development teams from distractions and unrelated or unnecessary work
·         Assist with facilitation of the ART & I&A events, Program Increments and sprint iterations in accordance with the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe)
·         Work with Product and Development Management, Product Owners, and other stakeholders to help ensure strategy and execution alignment
·         Assist in the tracking and execution of program features, user stories and defect fixes via the production and use of program and team level metrics
·         Assist with release projects, reviewing and prioritising development requests from deployment, roadmap/design, client services management, demo team and Change Requests raised through support
·         Work with the development and product management leads to schedule sprint content ensuring deadlines for each of the stakeholders’ requirements are achieved. Negotiate with appropriate stakeholders to resolve conflict of demand over capacity, especially in respect of live site and deployment projects
·         Ensure a balanced plan to match resources available for a given Release Project over time and liaising with the key stakeholders from each domain to ensure critical dependencies are understood, the plan is communicated and achievement of strategic, operational and deployment objectives impacting the release project is optimised
·         Assists with a Release Project (in conjunction with Product Management, Deployment, Service Management, Design and Development) to ensure the product deadlines are met and on target
·         Ensure deployment and delivery leads are aware of the key milestones relating to a release for any given customer, along with details of issues that need to be fixed in the release
·         Ensure that release plans are created and consistently maintained and communicated across all parts of the of the group of companies, and that all issues pertaining to a particular release are managed accordingly
·         Assist in the tracking and execution of program features, user stories and defect fixes via the production and use of program and team level metrics
·         Work with the QA Manager to ensure that QA has a schedule of anticipated sprint and release content to inform detailed test content and resource planning
·         Agree with the QA Manager the plan to achieve deadlines for “fit for purpose” release for Service Management and Deployment. Ensures the QA Manager is aware of any proposed variance to the Release Project and potential implications for testing are assessed and accommodated
·         Undertakes analysis and reporting on the release and product backlog to influence high level resource allocation decisions
·         Act as an escalation point for Deployment Project Managers by providing a gateway into the development teams to get potential development work investigated by the relevant team and scheduled into sprints
·         Maintain good communication with product and solution to carry out change priorities within specific releases
·         In addition to the above, the RTE is responsible for any other activities in support of the business which can reasonably be expected to fall within the capabilities of the employee
 
Education, Experience and Skills:
 
Whilst it is accepted that the individual education and experience profile for managers will vary, the following is provided as a guideline of expectations:
 
·         Degree or equivalent in a business or IT related discipline or significant professional experience in a software development environment
·         Good leadership skills coupled with experience of delivering software development projects
·         Ability to organise and co-ordinate areas of work for yourself and others
·         Excellent verbal and written communication skills
·         An understanding of the SAFe methodology supported by the skills to guide and coach teams in the application of the methodology
·         An understanding of principles, theories, practices and techniques for managing activities involved in planning and delivering software development projects
·         Experience of collaborating and influencing cross-functional teams in the successful delivery of software development projects
·         Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to manage, influence, negotiate and collaborate with a variety of stakeholders
·         Self-starter, highly proactive and “nimble” and assertive in a demanding and dynamic environment
 
Desirable
 
·         Good understanding of the NHS and operational procedures within one or more care settings e.g. Acute Secondary, Acute Mental Health, Primary Care etc. and departments within the NHS
·         Experience of Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) and/or Scrum at Scale
 
The post-holder must have:
 
·         The ability to collaborate with people in other teams
·         Good documentation skills
·         Excellent customer service skills
·         Strong written and verbal communication skills, excellent telephone manner
·         Strong organisational skills and ability to prioritise and multi-task
·         Able to evaluate situations and requests and respond in line with company policies
·         Good working knowledge of MS Office Applications (i.e Outlook, Word and Excel)
 
Job Title: Junior Release Train Engineer
Location: Home based
Salary: up to £30,000
Job Type: Permanent
Job Reference: LH10274

Wilde Associates is working in the capacity of an Employment Agency in respect of this role