Lead Quality Assurance Analyst

Agility Partners; Columbus (OH); On-site; USD 95,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

Agility Partners in Columbus, OH is seeking a Lead QA Analyst – ETL & Data Validation to guide testing across enterprise data initiatives. You will lead manual testing of ETL processes in Data Warehouse and Data Lake environments and oversee a small QA team.

The role emphasizes SQL-driven validation, data integrity, and collaboration with developers, analysts, and stakeholders to ensure high-quality data delivery. SQL expertise and hands-on leadership are essential for success.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent combination of education and professional experience.
• 5+ years of QA experience supporting ETL, Data Warehouse, or enterprise data-focused projects.
• Strong manual testing background with experience validating complex data movement processes.
• Experience leading SIT and UAT testing efforts.
• Proven experience leading QA teams, QA standups, or coordinating offshore QA resources.
• Python experience required.
• Strong understanding of ETL processes, data validation, and enterprise data ecosystems.
• Excellent communication, analytical, and troubleshooting skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead QA testing efforts for Data Warehouse, Data Lake, and enterprise data movement initiatives.
• Perform hands-on manual testing of ETL processes, backend systems, and data integrations.
• Develop and execute test strategies, test plans, test cases, and testing documentation.
• Lead System Integration Testing (SIT) and User Acceptance Testing (UAT) activities.
• Validate source-to-target data mappings, data transformations, and data reconciliation processes.
• Analyze and validate large-scale datasets containing millions of records.
• Identify, troubleshoot, and document defects related to data quality, data integrity, and data movement.
• Partner closely with developers, business analysts, and project stakeholders to ensure high-quality data delivery.
• Lead QA standups and coordinate testing efforts for a team of 2-3 QA analysts, including offshore resources when applicable.
• Utilize Azure DevOps (ADO) or similar testing platforms for test management and execution.

Skills

ETL testing

Data validation

SQL

Python

QA leadership

SIT/UAT

Data Warehouse

Data Lake

Data quality

Communication

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Tools

Azure DevOps

Job description

Agility Partners is seeking a qualified Lead QA Analyst – ETL & Data Validation to fill an open position with one of our clients in the financial services industry. This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced QA professional to lead testing efforts across enterprise data initiatives within a highly visible business unit. The ideal candidate will bring deep expertise in ETL testing, data movement validation, SQL analysis, and QA leadership while maintaining a strong hands‑on approach to quality assurance.

This role is primarily focused on manual testing within Data Warehouse and Data Lake environments, supporting critical data transformation and integration initiatives. The successful candidate will lead testing activities, validate complex data flows, ensure data accuracy across large datasets, and coordinate quality efforts for a small QA team.

Responsibilities

• Lead QA testing efforts for Data Warehouse, Data Lake, and enterprise data movement initiatives.
• Perform hands‑on manual testing of ETL processes, backend systems, and data integrations.
• Develop and execute test strategies, test plans, test cases, and testing documentation.
• Lead System Integration Testing (SIT) and User Acceptance Testing (UAT) activities.
• Validate source-to-target data mappings, data transformations, and data reconciliation processes.
• Analyze and validate large-scale datasets containing millions of records.
• Identify, troubleshoot, and document defects related to data quality, data integrity, and data movement.
• Partner closely with developers, business analysts, and project stakeholders to ensure high-quality data delivery.
• Lead QA standups and coordinate testing efforts for a team of 2-3 QA analysts, including offshore resources when applicable.
• Utilize Azure DevOps (ADO) or similar testing platforms for test management and execution.
• Support automation initiatives where appropriate while maintaining a primary focus on manual data testing.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent combination of education and professional experience.
• 5+ years of QA experience supporting ETL, Data Warehouse, or enterprise data-focused projects.
• Strong manual testing background with experience validating complex data movement processes.
• Experience leading SIT and UAT testing efforts.
• Proven experience leading QA teams, QA standups, or coordinating offshore QA resources.
• Python experience required.
• Strong understanding of ETL processes, data validation, and enterprise data ecosystems.
• Excellent communication, analytical, and troubleshooting skills.

SQL Experience (Critical Requirement)

• SQL is the most important technical skill for this position.
• The ideal candidate must have advanced SQL experience and be comfortable discussing SQL concepts in-depth during the interview process. This role requires someone who uses SQL as a primary testing and validation tool, not someone with only limited exposure.

Candidates should be able to:

• Write and execute SQL queries to validate ETL processes and data movement.
• Analyze and reconcile large datasets across multiple systems.
• Troubleshoot data quality and data integrity issues.
• Perform backend testing against large databases containing millions of records.