Lead QA Automation Engineer (Hybrid)

LOOKING FOR LOCAL ARIZONA RESIDENTS ONLY

SOAZ - Req # 8377 - AZASRS - Lead QA Automation Engineer - (Hybrid - 80% remote; onsite 1 3 / month)

Closing : 10 / 13 / 2025

• Additional Information
• Visa Sponsorship : Candidates must be currently authorized to work in the United States and able to change employers without the need for sponsorship now or in the future.
• This position is not eligible for visa sponsorship, either now or in the future. Applicants requiring sponsorship to work or to change employers will not be considered.
• Resumes should not be longer than 5 pages
• Mandatory Skills
• 10+ years in QA / automation with 5+ years leading / architecting frameworks. MUST have Leadership experience.
• Behavior-Driven Development (BDD) using Gherkin or Cucumber
• JavaScript, PowerShell, Python, Bash, or Ruby experience
• Experience with Spring Framework
• Preferred Skills
• Grafana experience
• Container Architecture : Docker or Kubernetes
• Experience with Azure, AWS, or GCP
• Maven
• AI experience
• Jira
• Confluence

What You'll Do

Own the quality platform : Set strategy, architecture, and standards for automation-Java today, with pragmatic evolution to modern UI / API automation where it improves reliability.

Embed quality early : Drive PR-level tests, contract / API checks, and CI / CD quality gates for rapid, trusted developer feedback.

Apply AI where it counts : Use AI / LLM-assisted test generation, self-healing locators, flake triage, and test-impact analysis to reduce toil and raise signal.

Simplify the SDLC : With DevOps, streamline pipelines, test data management, environment provisioning, and release guardrails for faster flow.

Solve hard problems with architects : Tackle cross-cutting issues (auth, data, performance, flakiness) and retire tech debt with durable solutions.

Build the right tests : Expand reliable web / UI, API, and integration coverage; harden environments and test data.

Coach and elevate : Mentor QA engineers, review automation code, and set standards for readability, reliability, and maintainability.

Measure what matters : Stand up live dashboards (coverage, pass / fail, flakiness, MTTR) to inform decisions and continuously raise the bar.

Own root cause : Lead deep-dive debugging across test and prod, driving prevention-not just fixes.

Your Toolbox (What We Use & Value)

Languages / Frameworks : Java, JUnit, Maven; BDD with Cucumber / Gherkin.

Automation : Selenium WebDriver (today); informed experience with Playwright (Java / TypeScript) a plus.

CI / CD & SCM : Jenkins, GitHub Actions; GitHub for collaboration.

Observability & Metrics : Grafana (quality and performance dashboards).

Backend / Platform context : Spring Boot / Spring Security; Oracle DB; FileNet / content systems.

Scripting : PowerShell or similar for utilities.

Quality practices : Testing pyramid, risk-based design, code reviews, and environment parity.

Where We're Headed (And Where You'll Lead)

GitHub-native CI / CD : Standardize on GitHub pipelines for frequent, automated deployments-define branch strategy, environment promotions, and reusable workflows that make shipping safe by default.

Reliable testing for high velocity : Build a strategy that scales with cadence-PR checks, contract / API tests, fast UI smoke suites, test-impact analysis, deterministic data & ephemeral envs, parallelization, and rigorous flake control.

AI-assisted, data-driven quality : Apply LLM-assisted test generation / self-healing and enforce quality gates backed by live dashboards (coverage, flakiness, MTTR, DORA) to boost signal and confidence.

Framework evolution (tool-agnostic) : Evaluate and pilot modern UI / API automation options against clear criteria (reliability, speed, parity, maintainability, ROI) and recommend phased adoption that protects delivery.

What You Bring

10+ years in QA / automation with 5+ years leading / architecting frameworks.

Proven success embedding automated quality gates into CI / CD for high-velocity releases.

Track record mentoring engineers and raising the bar on code quality and test design.

Comfort collaborating with architects and senior engineers on systemic quality problems.

Nice-To-Have

Experience introducing AI tooling (e.g., Copilot, test-gen, self-healing) into real teams.

Performance, security, or contract-testing exposure.

Work Setup & Logistics

Hybrid : Mostly remote; design / whiteboard sessions in Phoenix as needed.

Equipment : Personal laptop required; Windows workstation provided for remote access.

Eligibility : Must be AZ-local and able to work for any U.S. employer (no sponsorship).