Principal Systems Test & Automation Engineer in Oxford

About Albus Health

Albus Health is an Oxford University spin-out transforming how health data is collected and used in clinical trials and drug development. We have developed Albus Home, a contactless multisensory platform that continuously captures physiological and behavioural data during sleep without wearables or user interaction. Although our technology includes a physical device, Albus is fundamentally a health-data technology company. Our devices collect sensor data, including audio and radar, and connect to our cloud infrastructure for remote management and data transfer. Signal-processing and machine-learning pipelines then transform this data into clinically useful measures such as cough counts, breathing rate and heart rate. Our technology is already deployed internationally in clinical trials, primarily with pharmaceutical companies, and its use is growing rapidly.

The Role

We are looking for a Principal Systems Test & Automation Engineer to take significant technical ownership of testing and test automation across the Albus platform. This is a senior, hands-on engineering role spanning a complex, multi-component system including cloud software and infrastructure, data-processing pipelines, signal-processing and machine-learning algorithms, connected devices and supporting applications. Our multidisciplinary platform requires more than simply executing predefined test cases. You will need to develop a deep understanding of how the overall system works, work closely with engineers and scientists to establish expected behaviour, identify the behaviours and risks that matter most, and translate product requirements and technical knowledge into clear, measurable and robust tests. You will personally design and implement automated tests, develop and improve our testing frameworks and infrastructure, and help establish an effective verification approach across component, subsystem and system levels. This is a technically challenging and important role within Albus, with significant responsibility for the quality and reliability of a complex product. This is not a traditional Test Manager role: line management is limited and we are looking for someone who takes ownership, stays close to the technology and code, and has the curiosity and independence to investigate problems and drive improvements.

Why Join Albus Health?

You will take ownership of a critical function within Albus, testing technology already deployed internationally and scaling rapidly. You will work across cloud software, data infrastructure, connected devices, signal processing and machine learning. You will have significant freedom and ownership to improve our automation, test infrastructure, development and release processes, and to explore how AI-assisted approaches can make testing more effective. The technical problems are unusually broad: validating complex data flows, testing interactions between multiple components and cloud services, verifying data-processing algorithms, investigating unexpected behaviour and helping ensure that software releases perform reliably in real-world use. This is an opportunity to make a visible impact in a growing company, with substantial technical autonomy and the freedom to shape how testing is done as the product develops.

Location & Working Arrangements

This is an Oxford-based hybrid role, combining regular time working with the team in our Oxford office with flexibility to work from home. For this role, we are offering flexible working hours, with core collaboration hours of 11am–4pm. These flexible and hybrid arrangements are specific to this position. Our Oxford office is conveniently located next to the Seacourt Park & Ride and the A34, with affordable parking nearby, and is within walking distance of Oxford railway station and the city centre.

Requirements

• Develop a deep understanding of the Albus platform and how its cloud, data-processing and other software components interact as a complete system.
• Apply systems-engineering and V-model principles to define effective verification across component, subsystem and system levels.
• Translate product requirements, intended use and technical knowledge into robust, measurable test cases.
• Personally design, implement and maintain automated tests, primarily using Python.
• Take ownership of continuously improving automated test infrastructure, datasets, reporting and coverage to enable faster, more reliable releases.
• Design and implement component, integration and system-level testing, selecting the most effective test level rather than relying unnecessarily on end-to-end testing.
• Test cloud-based services, APIs, backend components, data flows and processing pipelines, including their interactions and failure modes.
• Work closely with software engineers, data scientists and research scientists to define expected behaviour and appropriate verification approaches.
• Investigate test failures and product defects across component boundaries, helping identify root causes and supporting developers in resolving issues.
• Integrate testing effectively into development, CI/CD and release processes.
• Use AI-assisted tools where they can improve test design, automation, analysis, reporting or engineering productivity.
• Contribute to the continuing development of Albus's testing strategy, processes and quality system.

About You

You are a senior test engineer with strong automation skills, systems thinking, technical curiosity, initiative and a strong sense of ownership. You enjoy getting deeply into how complex systems work, identifying the behaviours, interactions and risks that matter most, and finding effective ways to test them. You are comfortable working independently, taking the initiative and personally writing the code needed to turn those ideas into robust tests.

You will have:

• Significant professional experience in software, systems or product testing at a senior level.
• Strong experience designing and implementing test automation, rather than simply executing existing automated tests.
• Strong Python programming ability, sufficient to independently design, write and maintain high-quality automated test code and supporting tools.
• Strong hands-on experience testing cloud-based systems, services and data flows, ideally on AWS.
• Experience testing complex products comprising multiple interacting components or subsystems.
• Strong systems thinking and practical experience applying systems-engineering principles and the V-model, including verification at component, subsystem and system levels.
• Strong analytical and investigative skills, with the ability to identify risks, weaknesses and failure modes, and use these to determine where testing effort should be concentrated.
• Experience working autonomously in a small company, start-up or similarly fast-moving environment, taking ownership of problems and delivering solutions without relying on a large dedicated test organisation.
• Practical experience using AI-assisted tools as part of day-to-day testing or software-engineering work, while applying appropriate engineering judgement to their outputs.
• Hands-on experience integrating automated tests into CI/CD pipelines and release workflows, including automated execution, reporting and investigation of failures.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to work effectively with software engineers, data scientists, scientists and other technical specialists.
• The ability to manage multiple testing workstreams and priorities while maintaining appropriate technical depth.

Desirable Experience

The following would be useful but are not essential:

• Experience with quantitative or statistical acceptance criteria and data-driven testing.
• Biomedical, healthcare or digital-health experience.
• Experience in regulated medical technology environments.
• Familiarity with IEC 62304, ISO 13485 or related medical-device standards.

We do not require previous experience specifically in hardware or embedded-software testing, web front-end testing, clinical-trial data capture or a biomedical discipline.

Benefits

Standard Employee Benefits:

• Employee share option scheme
• 22 days' annual leave plus UK bank holidays
• Company pension scheme
• Generous maternity and paternity leave in accordance with our company policy
• Monthly company lunch and regular informal team activities

Additional Flexibility for This Role

In addition to our standard employee benefits, this role is being offered with:

• Flexible working hours, with core collaboration hours of 11am–4pm
• Hybrid working, combining regular time working with the team in our Oxford office with flexibility to work from home