Hybrid mode - Lead QA Engineer (scripting (Java/Python), Selenium/Playwright & API Automation) - Direct Client - Immediate Interviews

Accion Labs; Irvine (CA); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Accion Labs is seeking a Lead QA Engineer (Hands-on Automation) to lead enterprise-grade test automation efforts in a hybrid Irvine, CA environment. The role demands 12+ years in QA with 2+ years in technical leadership and deep expertise in Selenium, Playwright, CI/CD, and cloud tools.

You will mentor a team of QA engineers, drive end-to-end quality strategy, and collaborate with Development, Product, and Production teams to ensure quality gates and successful deployments in a fast-paced Agile

Qualifications

• 12+ years in QA/Testing
• 2+ years in technical leadership role
• Hands-on automation requirement gathering and solution design
• Full-stack quality assurance and test engineering
• Experience in architecting test automation solutions for enterprise applications (web, SOA, ETL, backend)
• Strong leadership and supervisory skills with the ability to manage teams and drive cross-functional alignment
• Proven experience in leading discussions with Development and Production teams, including defect triage and release decisions
• Proficiency with open-source automation tools: Selenium, Playwright, Cucumber, REST Assured, Postman, SOAP UI
• Strong experience with CI/CD pipelines and DevOps practices: Jenkins, Docker, Maven, Gradle
• Hands-on experience with cloud platforms and monitoring tools: AWS, Azure, Kubernetes, Grafana, Kibana, Elasticsearch
• Expertise in QA tools: Selenium WebDriver, Jira, TestNG, Appium, HP ALM, JBehave
• Strong ability to: Manage sprint-based testing cycles, Drive automation maturity and scalability, Quickly learn new technologies and drive innovation, Deep understanding of Agile QA methodologies and best practices

Responsibilities

• Lead the design, development, and implementation of enterprise-level test automation architecture and frameworks
• Supervise, mentor, and manage a team of QA engineers, ensuring high performance, skill growth, and accountability
• Own and drive end-to-end quality strategy, including functional, integration, E2E, performance, and automation testing
• Lead technical discussions and decision-making with Development teams to ensure testability, quality standards, and defect prevention
• Act as the primary QA point of contact for Production/Operations teams, driving: Production defect analysis and root cause identification, Feedback loop into QA and Development, Continuous improvement in production stability
• Develop test tools, test beds, data mock-ups, and other test infrastructure to enable continuous testing and integration
• Drive implementation of advanced automation practices in an Agile/Scrum environment (BDD/TDD, shift-left testing)
• Research tool capabilities and integrate with other technologies by coding interfaces, custom functions, and reusable components
• Work with multiple teams to drive continuous improvement initiatives and ensure successful adoption
• Conduct automation code reviews to ensure quality, scalability, and adherence to best practices
• Collaborate with Product and Development teams for requirement clarification, estimation, and test strategy design
• Establish and maintain a Behavior/Test-Driven Development culture
• Support refactoring of legacy code to improve testability and automation coverage
• Provide oversight on test infrastructure, environments, and test data management
• Own Release Automation & Deployment Automation across multiple environments
• Lead release readiness discussions and ensure quality gates are met before production deployments
• Collect and analyze test metrics, provide insights, and make recommendations to stakeholders
• Drive usage of monitoring tools, log aggregation, dashboards, and analytics to ensure operational excellence
• Provide technical guidance on automation, performance, scalability, security, and testing design
• Lead stakeholder communications, providing clear updates on quality status, risks, and mitigation plans
• Ensure strong collaboration across QA, Development, Product, and Production teams for seamless delivery

Skills

Java

Python

Selenium

Playwright

API Automation

CI/CD

DevOps

Leadership

Automation Architecture

Agile QA

Tools

Selenium WebDriver

Jira

TestNG

Appium

HP ALM

JBehave

Cucumber

REST Assured

Postman

SOAP UI

Jenkins

Docker

Maven

Gradle

AWS

Azure

Kubernetes

Grafana

Kibana

Elasticsearch

Job description

Lead QA Engineer (Hands-on Automation)

Hybrid mode - 3 days onsite a week - Irvine, CA.

Skills - Hands-on scripting (Java/Python), Selenium/Playwright & API Automation, Automation Framework Development & Maintenance, CI/CD, DevOps & Agile QA Practices

Rate - DOE

Duration - 12+ months, long-term, C2C/FTE

Client details will be shared post technical call

Experience

• 12+ years in QA/Testing
• 2+ years in technical leadership role

Required Skills

Strong experience in automation requirement gathering and solution design

Demonstrated expertise in full-stack quality assurance and test engineering

Experience in architecting test automation solutions for enterprise applications (web, SOA, ETL, backend)

Strong leadership and supervisory skills with the ability to manage teams and drive cross-functional alignment

Proven experience in leading discussions with Development and Production teams, including defect triage and release decisions

Proficiency with open-source automation tools: Selenium, Playwright, Cucumber, REST Assured, Postman, SOAP UI

Strong experience with CI/CD pipelines and DevOps practices: Jenkins, Docker, Maven, Gradle

Hands-on experience with cloud platforms and monitoring tools: AWS, Azure, Kubernetes, Grafana, Kibana, Elasticsearch

Expertise in QA tools: Selenium WebDriver, Jira, TestNG, Appium, HP ALM, JBehave

Strong ability to: Manage sprint-based testing cycles, Drive automation maturity and scalability, Quickly learn new technologies and drive innovation, Deep understanding of Agile QA methodologies and best practices

Key Job Functions / Requirements

Lead the design, development, and implementation of enterprise-level test automation architecture and frameworks

Supervise, mentor, and manage a team of QA engineers, ensuring high performance, skill growth, and accountability

Own and drive end-to-end quality strategy, including functional, integration, E2E, performance, and automation testing

Lead technical discussions and decision-making with Development teams to ensure testability, quality standards, and defect prevention

Act as the primary QA point of contact for Production/Operations teams, driving: Production defect analysis and root cause identification, Feedback loop into QA and Development, Continuous improvement in production stability

Develop test tools, test beds, data mock-ups, and other test infrastructure to enable continuous testing and integration

Drive implementation of advanced automation practices in an Agile/Scrum environment (BDD/TDD, shift-left testing)

Research tool capabilities and integrate with other technologies by coding interfaces, custom functions, and reusable components

Work with multiple teams to drive continuous improvement initiatives and ensure successful adoption

Conduct automation code reviews to ensure quality, scalability, and adherence to best practices

Collaborate with Product and Development teams for requirement clarification, estimation, and test strategy design

Establish and maintain a Behavior/Test-Driven Development culture

Support refactoring of legacy code to improve testability and automation coverage

Provide oversight on test infrastructure, environments, and test data management

Own Release Automation & Deployment Automation across multiple environments

Lead release readiness discussions and ensure quality gates are met before production deployments

Collect and analyze test metrics, provide insights, and make recommendations to stakeholders

Drive usage of monitoring tools, log aggregation, dashboards, and analytics to ensure operational excellence

Provide technical guidance on automation, performance, scalability, security, and testing design

Lead stakeholder communications, providing clear updates on quality status, risks, and mitigation plans

Ensure strong collaboration across QA, Development, Product, and Production teams for seamless delivery