CAREERS
@ COX
Welcome to our brand-new feature – Careers @ Cox!
Every month we will be taking a look at one of our International team members, their role at Cox Automotive and their most proud accomplishments.
In this edition, we welcome Charles Olagunju, Manager, QA Automation at Cox Automotive Canada.
Hi Charles. Thanks for taking part in Careers @ Cox! Before joining the team, what aspect of working at Cox Automotive Canada (CAC) most appealed to you?
Before joining Cox Automotive, the aspect of the business that most appealed to me was the digital software solution which seamlessly connects lenders and dealers together to enhance the customer experience.
Has the reality of your role at CAC met the expectations you had before joining the team?
The reality of my role at CAC has exceeded the expectations I had before joining the company due to the CAC culture that allows for innovation.
At a very high level, can you describe the role you play at CAC?
As a Manager, QA Automation at Cox Automotive, I continuously identify growth opportunities and foster the mindset within my team to improve quality assurance (QA) efficiencies through automation and process standardization across Scrum teams.
What skills do you find that you are bringing to your current role that you hadn’t thought you would use (until now)?
As a people leader, I found out that empathy was a crucial skillset I had but didn’t fully utilize until I started managing direct reports on my team.
What makes you feel that the work you do at CAC contributes to the company’s overall success?
I am privileged to always share the KPI efficiencies of what my team does across CAC brands. So far, we have recorded an average overall testing time-savings of 20 per cent through automation across CAC teams.
How does CAC inspire you to go above and beyond the call of duty?
I am so inspired to go above and beyond for CAC because our senior leadership team greatly rewards diligence, agility and excellence, which is evident through the value I add to our company by ensuring our code quality is continually enhanced.
Do you feel that CAC provides you with opportunities to collaborate with colleagues and support your community outside of specific work tasks?
I strongly feel that CAC provides me with the necessary opportunity to strike a good work-life balance while embracing our Corporate Social Responsibility by working with my colleagues to give back to the community through opportunities like Habitat for Humanity and food drive initiatives organized by CAC.
What accomplishments are you most proud of to date?
I am most proud to see the mindset change from QA testers at CAC. Within a record time, a group of manual testers could boast of developing test scripts using the automation solution that we deployed in 2019 – great transformation in that business unit.
What advice would you give a new team member?
I will advise new team members to work collaboratively and be value-driven. Set SMART expectations, keep a good work-life balance, help wherever you find an opportunity to do so and always remember to have fun.
In 1-3 words, how would you describe working at CAC?
Experiential and remarkable!
What do you like most about your job?
I love the organizational culture and the talented people I work with. I also enjoy seeing how our automation framework has greatly improved testing experiences across Scrum teams with evident results.
How does your work benefit CAC clients/customers?
My work at CAC benefits the company by delivering innovative QA frameworks to future proof our business while adding value to customers through the short cycle time – i.e. high-quality releases. I continually identify talents and recommend training plans to help improve team member engagement and deliver on organizational objectives.
Since joining CAC, have you had opportunities to expand your skillset and grow your career through any training, experiences or new roles?
I have had the opportunity to grow my career at CAC through a series of company-sponsored AWS training and by taking up new challenges that align with CAC goals. When I began my career at Cox in 2019, I developed the automation framework solution and led the QA process standardization initiatives across our brands. Based on the success of that project, I was promoted to a Managerial role in 2020 with added responsibilities to keep evolving the Automation roadmap across Cox Automotive brands while coaching team members to drive innovative solutions.
