Bala Gurrala

Manager, Testing Center of Excellence @Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona

Phoenix, AZ, US

Provide oversight and management of day-to-day activities of 23 FTEs and 27 onshore/offshore and nearshore contractors geographically distributed across Arizona, Florida, Mexico and India.• Accountable for directing the E2E testing, Performance testing, UAT & Test coordination, Test Data, Auditing & Reporting, and Standards & Governance teams as part of the Testing Center of Excellence (TCoE) team.• Oversaw reporting progress, planning, resource staffing, and ensuring processes are being followed.• Responsible for hiring, onboarding, training, knowledge sharing, addressing performance concerns, and retention of employees (includes both FTEs and contract workers).• Manage testing risks and issues, develop contingency plan or exceptions, escalate to leadership as appropriate for deliverables.• Responsible for the review of progress and providing status to project leadership and stakeholders for scope of work.• Conduct annual performance appraisals for employees as well as 1:1 meetings on a regular basis.• Work closely with business, project teams and Test Leads to identify resources and testing needs as well as escalation management and issue handling.• Participate in Go No-Go Meetings with business and other stakeholders to provide sign-off.• Responsible for the creation, adherence and auditing of policies, processes, and procedures for the team and the SDLC process for the organization.• Responsible for collaborating with Finance department and vendor management, SOW reviews, and Purchase Order (PO) creation, management, and approvals.

W. P. Carey School of Business – Arizona State University

Bachelor's, Computer Information Systems

W. P. Carey School of Business – Arizona State University

Master's, Information Management

W. P. Carey School of Business – Arizona State University

Bachelor's, Supply Chain Management