Data Science Testing Service for Digital Service Delivery

Tender description

Why the Work is Being Done The ESFA Data Collections systems are used to collect financial, participation, attainment and building information from Academy Trusts, Local Authorities, FE and Apprenticeship Providers and Diocese to inform its funding allocations, payments, services and market oversight remit. The data is collected through bulk upload, online forms and document exchange platforms. As Data Collections systems are the source and starting point of Data Flow in Data Science, Functional and Non-Functional testing is required at the point of collection, data storage, data transformation & reporting to meet quality assurance requirements and high quality product delivery demanded by GDS assessments Problem to Be Solved During 2018 and 2019, The ESFA is upgrading its data collections software, consolidating its platforms and upgrading the software to improve the quality and timeliness of its data and to reduce the burden on its data suppliers. The ESFA is also consolidating its data storage and data management systems and automating data flows to reduce reliance on manual processes to transform, upload and manipulate data for its data scientists. We need to assure that data is processed correctly and data is reported correctly, poor output will impact users referenced above and risks finacial and reputational damage of ESFA and DfE. Who Are the Users As a provider of Primary/Secondary/Tertiary education, I need to submit financial returns to the DfE so that our financial status can be established for approved funding and the DfE can provide accurate reports on our Funding Allocations/ Achievement Rates/ Risk Assessment / Qualitative Reports. As a DfE civil servant, I need to support critical services and support the development and improvement of essential Data Collections systems so that our users above recieve the highest quality ESFA Systems. Early Market Engagement N/A Work Already Done Existing Team The supplier will be working with civil servants and multiple suppliers across various strands of work for delivery of the service. Typically within Agile delivery teams, working with Product Owners, Delivery Managers, Business Analysts, Developers, other Test Engineers and Test Analysts. Current Phase Not applicable Work Location Education and Skills Funding Agency, Cheylesmore House, 5 Quinton Road, Coventry CV1 2WT, with occasional travel to other locations nationwide. Working Arrangments Onsite full-time 5 days a week co-located with the rest of the team at the ESFA offices in Coventry. Occasional travel to other ESFA (or partner organisation) offices may be required, subject to ESFA travel and subsistence policy. This programme uses agile methodology. Successful application of agile principles and techniques requires that the teams are co-located and able to work directly with colleagues representing digital delivery, operational and policy requirements. Security Clearance The successful supplier must be able to demonstrate that all proposed team members have been subject to Baseline Personnel Security Standards checks. However higher levels of Security Clearance maybe required dependant on work agreed in the Data Science Programme of work. Additional T&Cs Expenses must be pre-agreed and comply with DfE Travel and Subsistence Policy. Any expenses shall be submitted in line with DfE standard T&C policy. Primary work location stated in SoW will not attract expenses. No parking is available on site. Skills & Experience At least 5 years demonstrable experience in Agile (preferably Scrum and/or Kanban) methodology to projects, to be applied in line with the Data Science Test Strategy Be able to confidently talk about agile processes Demonstrable experience of defining or breaking down user stories and acceptance criteria using test design techniques, thereby statically testing the solution at the time. Contribute to defining and measuring ‘Done’, in order to actually determinewhat the definition of ‘Done’ actually means in terms of quality. Demonstrable experience of helping developers in generating comprehensive unit tests and pair with them as appropriate. Use quality characteristics such as functionality, reliability, usability, efficiency, maintainability and portability helps define the context of value and level and type of testing required to meet definition of done. Demonstrable experience of using a risk based approach to testing. Demonstrable experience of Evaluating Emergent Behaviour: Using exploratory testing techniques following the customer’s needs, finding defects not found in unit/integration testing but could easily cause the acceptance testing to fail. Demonstrable experience of Test-Driven Development (TDD), Behaviour Driven Development (BDD) and Continuous Integration (CI) and some of the tools that are used. At least 3 years’ experience of Test Automation in an Agile environment, including setting up and using frameworks which include Specflow / Cucumber and Selenium Proven experience in API testing within Agile sprints Proven experience of accessibility testing within Sprints and presenting finding back to the team made up of technical and non-technical members Proven experience of Performance testing web based systems and presenting finding back to the team made up of technical and non-technical members Produce Test Approaches and Sprint Test Plans collaboratively with the team and suppliers, owning the documentation and managing its completion in line with the Data Science Test Strategy Demonstrable experience of Non-Functional requirements, definition and testing. Demonstrable experience in exploratory testing techniques and knowing the difference between ad hoc testing and exploratory. Confident in explaining decisions to stakeholders who don’t understand agile, user needs or user-centred design and delivery Nice to Haves Experience of working on UK central government services Strong understanding of the Government Digital Service Standard and Service Manual. Able to contribute to areas beyond the usual boundaries of the discipline, for example helping the team understand the service’s legal and regulatory environment. Knowledge of the Education and skills secto Experience of open source and cloud technologies and their sourcing Passed certified Agile Tester course ISEB foundation and practitioner qualified. Having worked on a Azure platform Experienced in using the following tools, Sortsite, OWASP Zed Attack Proxy (ZAP), and visual studio. No. of Suppliers to Evaluate 3 Proposal Criteria Demonstrate/provide evidence of experience and knowledge of agile testing and blended skilled Quality Assurance testers (QA). Demonstrate/provide evidence of experience and knowledge test automation within CI pipeline. Demonstrate/provide evidence of experience and knowledge of exploratory testing. Demonstrate/provide examples of how the supplier has worked with delivery teams in a QA role Demonstrate/provide evidence of how the supplier contributes to building an effective multidisciplinary team Demonstrate/provide evidence of the supplier’s approach to incorporating user needs and government needs into the product backlog and prioritises work effectively and efficiently Demonstrate/provide evidence of how the supplier actively promotes understanding and acceptance of agile, user-centred delivery Demonstrate/provide evidence of how the supplier has worked in a multi-team environment with multiple product owners collaborating to deliver a broader service Cultural Fit Criteria Work as a team – Collaborate, establish good working relationships, generate team spirit Show a commitment to ensuring a team understands the user need over simply delivering work Innovate – Act on initiative, drive improvements, balance risks Build capability – Encourage learning, share knowledge, address capability gaps, act on feedback Demonstrate responsibility (for example, act like a leader, serve your team, provide solutions to problems, engage in external/internal environments, seek the best for the organisation beyond your team) Focus on delivery – Focus on goals, set stretching targets, take responsibility for delivery Approach to developing a "One Team" approach Payment Approach Capped time and materials Assessment Method Written proposal Presentation Evaluation Weighting Technical competence 50% Cultural fit 20% Price 30% Questions from Suppliers Budget range the budget could range up to a maximum of £3.0m consisting of multiple sows, but that scope could expand or contract. dfe does not commit to any minimum spend at this point. a pricing template will be given at the proposal stage to those suppliers we shortlist.