Software Quality Manager at Wikimedia

The Wikimedia Foundation (WMF) is seeking an experienced Software Quality Manager to lead two teams responsible for delivering software testing and technical documentation services across multiple engineering departments.

The successful candidate will promote a culture where software quality and documentation are shared responsibilities throughout the organization.

The position involves managing geographically distributed teams comprising 5–10 Test Engineers and three Technical Writers.

These teams collaborate with various WMF engineering departments on high-impact projects, delivering technical documentation, automated testing solutions, and manual software testing to improve the quality and reliability of the technology powering Wikipedia and its sister projects.

This is an opportunity to contribute to a global mission of making knowledge accessible to everyone while empowering current and future generations of developers to create reliable, scalable, and well-documented software.

The team provides essential services that support the Wikimedia Foundation’s vision of a world where every person can freely access and share the sum of all human knowledge.

The Wikimedia Foundation values diversity and recognizes that different perspectives and experiences are essential to building knowledge resources that serve everyone.

The organization is committed to inclusion, increasing diversity in technology, and creating a workforce that reflects the communities it serves.

Key Responsibilities

• Work closely with multiple engineering teams and cross-functional stakeholders to identify testing and documentation requirements, balancing project objectives, technical needs, and team capabilities.
• Oversee project execution, ensuring service-level agreements (SLAs) are achieved, performance indicators are monitored, and obstacles affecting progress are resolved.
• Improve and expand automated processes while helping engineering teams adopt best practices that strengthen software quality and technical documentation.
• Champion a quality-first and documentation-first approach across engineering departments.
• Supervise the planning, development, implementation, and maintenance of automated test suites, manual testing procedures, and technical documentation.
• Ensure both teams remain productive, engaged, and informed about the broader objectives of the projects they support and the impact of their contributions.
• Mentor team members, conduct performance evaluations, provide career development guidance, and foster an inclusive and supportive professional environment.

Skills and Experience

• Proven engineering experience in a technical management or leadership position.
• Strong practical experience developing, designing, and reviewing software applications using programming languages such as Go, Python, PHP, or other object-oriented languages.
• Demonstrated experience leading teams that provide essential centralized services, including quality assurance, technical documentation, or technical program management, to multiple product teams.
• Ability to manage competing priorities and expectations across diverse teams while ensuring service delivery teams allocate resources effectively and provide value throughout the organization.
• Excellent written and verbal English communication skills, with the ability to explain complex technical concepts and solutions clearly.
• A successful track record of working with multicultural, remote, and geographically distributed teams.

Qualities Important to the Wikimedia Foundation

• Strong alignment with the organization’s mission, vision, and core values.
• Familiarity with open-source development practices and collaborative open-source communities.
• A technical background in either manual and automated software testing or technical documentation.
• Ability to develop and implement strategies that strengthen testing and documentation processes while supporting organizational growth.
• Excellent communication, coordination, and follow-up skills, ensuring team members remain engaged and informed about departmental and organizational developments.
• Experience working remotely and understanding the communication, collaboration, and engagement required to build successful distributed teams.
• Familiarity with large-scale global developer ecosystems and platforms, including the ability to manage their associated risks and opportunities.
• Resilience and adaptability when addressing new challenges in transparent and collaborative environments.
• A collaborative approach focused on achieving shared outcomes and adapting strategies when necessary.
• Passion for developing people and technology platforms while fostering a strong product-oriented culture.

Additional Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with end-to-end (E2E) testing automation and visual regression testing tools.
• Knowledge of documentation-as-code practices and tools such as Markdown.
• Experience helping manual Test Engineers transition into automated testing roles.
• Previous experience editing Wikipedia or participating in the Wikipedia, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons, or other collaborative communities.
• Familiarity with MediaWiki.

About the Wikimedia Foundation

The Wikimedia Foundation is a nonprofit organization responsible for operating Wikipedia and other free knowledge projects under the Wikimedia umbrella.

Its vision is to create a world where everyone can freely access and contribute to the collective knowledge of humanity. The Foundation believes everyone has something valuable to contribute and that knowledge should be freely accessible to all.

Its work includes hosting Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects, developing software that enables people to read, contribute to, and share knowledge, supporting the volunteer communities and partners behind these initiatives, and advocating for policies that protect and promote free knowledge.

As a charitable nonprofit organization, the Wikimedia Foundation relies primarily on donations from millions of individuals worldwide, with an average contribution of approximately $15.

It also receives funding through institutional grants and other philanthropic gifts.

The Foundation is a United States 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization headquartered in San Francisco, California.

Remote Work and Salary Information

The Wikimedia Foundation operates as a remote-first organization, with employees and contractors working from more than 40 countries worldwide.

Compensation is structured to remain competitive, fair, and consistent with the Foundation’s values. The anticipated annual salary range for applicants based in the United States is US$129,193–US$202,962.

The final offer will depend on several factors, including the applicant’s location and cost of living, qualifications, skills, and professional experience.

For applicants outside the United States, compensation will be adjusted according to the country of employment. The Foundation does not request or consider applicants’ previous salary history when determining compensation.

Eligible Hiring Locations

The Foundation currently supports employment in the following locations:

United States: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

International Locations: Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Germany, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Italy, Kenya, Mexico, Morocco, the Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

International employees are hired through local third-party Employers of Record (EORs) and must possess valid work authorization in their country of employment. Certain locations, including Kenya and Singapore, are restricted to citizens or permanent residents.

The Foundation periodically reviews and updates its list of eligible hiring locations to ensure compliance with its employment requirements.

Applicants are encouraged to contact their recruiter during the interview process for further information about the specific compensation range applicable to their location.