Implementing and subsequently managing Capita Release, Change and Configuration Processes into the Capita TFL Programme. This is a large programme of work with over 150 staff and 10 suppliers of applications and bespoke systems that require integratation and testing prior to go live later in 2015.Release, Change and Configuration Management Processes have been set up to control the delivery of applications from the suppliers and to control the configuration baselines under test. Includes management of the promotion of releases through the test, training, pre-prod and production environments, through release gates in preparation for operational support post go-live.Release Policies and Procedures have been drafted and approved by the Customer.

Ownership of Release Management and Problem Management processes in use by the group across all Service Contracts supported by the Capita Core Service Division. The role included the following;Pre-Sales support. Supporting the bid teams in acquiring new business. Provision of models to enable the costings of Rel Mgt and Problem Management services. Attendance at Service workshops with potential customers.Transition support. Supporting the Transition Managers in providing process and toolset training for new Release Management and Problem Management staff.Operational Support. Recruitment and management of a team of Release Managers, Problem Managers and Analysts providing Rel Mgt and Problem Mgt services to both Managed Service accounts and Capita software development functions. Key responsibilities included;• Maintaining ISO20000 process accreditation on a number of accounts.• Line Management of c20 staff – both located within the central team and on client accounts.

Prior to the take over by the Capita Group in 2011, the company was subject to a Management Buy Out (to a company called Vivista) and subsequent sale to Sungard PS. This company was primarily a software house developing bespoke application software for customers, mainly in the Emergency Services field (Police, Ambulance, Fire, Coastguard).My role was a manager within the Support department, providing Release Management and Problem Management Support to users (primarily Police Forces) of a number of applications developed in house. Initiatives / Responsibilities include:• Documentation and Implementation of the Release Management Policy, Processes and Procedures for both Hardware and Software Releases in line with contractual requirements. Negotiating approval of these with the Customer.• Documentation and Implementation of the Problem Management Policy, Processes and Procedures for both Managed Service and Product Supply contracts in line with contractual requirements.• Introduction of 3rd Party Patch management release controls in line with contractual requirements.• Introduction and Management of compatibility matrices.• Quality Assurance of Release Deliverables – Training Documentation, Release Notes, User Guides.• Line Management of the Problem and Release Managers and associated teams. In total c20 staff.• Achieving and maintaining ISO20000 accreditation for Problem and Release process areas.

Responsible for managing circa 40 staff within the Central Test Team, consisting of Test Managers, Test Analysts, Test Environment Controllers. • Setting Standards for testing documentation• Staff Management• Ad hoc Testing Consultancy / Projects• Consolidating all testing projects onto one test tool.• Release ManagementWith the development of the NSPIS systems completed, I moved into the support arena., successfully achieving ITIL Management qualifications (Red Badge – distinction), and setting up and managing the Problem Management and Release Management functions.

In 1998 I joined Securicor Information Systems (SIS) to manage the testing and acceptance of the Command and Control System that was being developed for the National Strategy for Police Information Systems (NSPIS). This included.Production of the testing strategy, testing process and procedures and negotiation of acceptance of such with the Police Information Technology Organisation (PITO). Managing a Test Team of over 50 testers, I was overall test manager for the complete project lifecycle, from requirements gathering through development, system testing, factory acceptance testing, site acceptance testing and support during the first weeks of go-live.Responsible for the management of both the system testing and customer acceptance activities for the NSPIS Command and Control System. This included setting up the procedures and working practices, evaluating and purchasing the test tools and hiring and training the staff. Tests carried out include functional tests, business scenarios, non-functional tests (availability, resilience etc etc) and Load and Performance testing. Also responsible for the purchase and maintenance of the Test Rig Hardware and configuration thereof.All tests were scripted to a very low level of detail, with full mapping back to customer requirements. All test scripts were approved by the client prior to their being executed as part of the Client acceptance. Tools used include PVCS Tracker for Fault Management. Rational Robot for Regression testing and Data Load, Rational Performance Studio for Load and Performance testing. Various other tools were developed for control of testing processes using Microsoft Access and Excel.

In 1993 I joined the Harpur Group Ltd to set up a department with specific responsibilities for the testing and operational implementation of their in-house credit card processing systems into Harpur card centre operations worldwide. This involved specification of requirements, implementation planning, user acceptance testing, production of user documentation, user training and the associated project management. • Quality Manager. Responsible for ensuring the Harpur Card Centres achieved ISO9002 certification. Responsible for performing a SQA role for the Systems department and developing policies and practices which will form the backbone of the Quality Management System within the Systems department. • Projects Department Manager. Managing a department of 7 test analysts and Implementation Coordinators. Projects included; The specification, testing and implementation of the Harpur Chargecard billing system into South Africa, Australia and the Benelux countries. These systems involved substantial changes to the “vanilla” billing systems being used in the UK, all of which had to be tested, with training documentation produced. The testing and implementation management of various system upgrades into existing Harpur operations around Europe. This involved running a number of test scenarios to ensure that any enhancements met the business requirements and regression testing to ensure that no collateral damage occurred anywhere else in the system.

In 1982 I was part of a small team responsible for the business start up of the European Operation of MPSI Systems Ltd. This followed 14 months intensive training at Corporate Headquarters in the United States. Between 1983 and 1992 I was part of a management team, which built the company up to a turnover of £5million, employing over 100 employees. MPSI Systems built and supported decision support systems for Multi-national Oil companies.