Director: Assessment Assurance Domain Expertise at Quality Council for Trades and Occupations (QCTO)

Job Description

• This position plays a critical role at the QCTO in ensuring assessment integrity, quality assurance of assessments, compliance with regulatory frameworks and alignment with industry standards.
• It would be expected of the successful applicant to provide expertise on competency-based assessment standards, development of relevant policies, SLAs, assessment conduct, learner registrations and achievement in final assessments to ensure the quality of assessments is maintained.
• Be responsible for providing strategic leadership for the Assessment Domain and managing the Assessment Strategy of the OQSF
• Be responsible for the smooth operation of the Assessment Domain within the QCTO
• Lead and manage the beginning-to-end implementation and results of EISAs (External Integrated Summative Assessments) and FISAs (Final Integrated Supervised Assessments)
• Ensure assessment systems are compliant with QCTO policies, national standards and the QCTO Quality Assurance Framework
• Expertise in developing standards for competency-based assessments
• Policy development experience
• Ability to enforce and implement QCTO and assessment-related policies, procedures and strategic implementation plans
• Ensure the implementation of all QCTO assessment practices, including internal and external moderation as needed, and quality assurance of the entire assessment process
• Report on assessment outcomes, integrity issues, risks and quality assurance findings to QCTO Executive Management and the Assessment & Certification Committee of Council
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives in assessment quality, efficiency, and stakeholder satisfaction
• Ensure stakeholder engagement with all relevant role players, e.g., Quality Partners (SETAs), Industry Subject Matter Experts (SMEs), Skills Development Providers (SDPs), Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA), etc.
• Provide guidance to internal staff and external stakeholders on best-practice assessment models and practices
• Identify and lead risk mitigation strategies related to assessment credibility, security, and compliance to the assessment of occupational standards
• Ensure the validity, reliability, fairness, and consistency of assessments for qualifications, part-qualifications registered on the OQSF and Skills Programme
• Manage and interpret complex datasets and proficiency in working with data and digital tools
• Analysis and evaluation of learner data
• Review and refine the QCTO’s competency-based Assessment Model to ensure an integrated assessment model that validates and ensures learner competence is implemented
• Ability to manage multiple assessment projects simultaneously under tight deadlines
• Provide team leadership and development
• Contribute to the organisation’s Strategic Plan and Annual Performance Plans and effectively manage the Assessment Domain’s required quarterly and annual outputs
• Have the ability to create and implement policies
• Implement and Manage SLAs (Service Level Agreements)
• Provide thought leadership
• Participate as an active member and advocacy of the QCTO.

Job Requirements

• A relevant 3-year degree/diploma in Education or Information Management and Analyses  (together with Assessment Experience) at NQF Level 6.
•  A relevant postgraduate degree will be advantageous.
• 8-10 years' collective experience in Assessment Assurance, of which 4 years' experience must be in a senior management position.
•  Experience in the areas of assessment assurance.