Quality Engineering Lead / Automation Architect

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, which manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Quality Engineering Lead / Automation Architect based in Canada . The Quality Engineering Lead / Automation Architect will drive the transformation of software quality assurance from predominantly manual testing to a scalable, automation-first approach. This hands-on leadership role combines test automation architecture, software engineering, team development, and release quality management. The successful candidate will strengthen automated testing frameworks, particularly using Playwright and TypeScript, while integrating reliable regression testing into continuous integration and delivery pipelines. They will lead and mentor a QA team, establish consistent engineering standards, and use data-driven metrics to improve test coverage, defect prevention, and release confidence. Working closely with development and DevOps teams, the role will promote early risk detection, continuous improvement, and the responsible use of AI-assisted testing tools. The position offers an opportunity to shape quality engineering practices for complex enterprise software in a regulated industry environment.

Automation strategy and architecture: Own the test automation strategy and roadmap, establish architectural standards and coding guidelines, and lead the evolution of scalable, maintainable automated testing frameworks. Framework development: Design, build, and enhance automated test suites using Playwright and TypeScript, applying fixtures, parallel execution, workers, test isolation, retries, traces, and reporting to improve reliability and efficiency. Test planning and prioritization: Assess existing manual test cases and determine which should be automated, redesigned, consolidated, retained as manual tests, or retired. Organize testing into smoke, core regression, and release regression suites spanning functional, API, integration, and end-to-end testing. CI/CD integration: Collaborate with development and DevOps teams to integrate automated regression testing into delivery pipelines using platforms such as Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, Jenkins, or equivalent tools. Optimize test environments, test data, parallel execution, and workflows across TFVC and Git repositories. AI-assisted testing: Evaluate and apply AI-enabled tools to support test generation, maintenance, coverage analysis, and defect identification, while assessing emerging technologies that can improve testing effectiveness. Team leadership and development: Build, coach, and develop a high-performing QA team with strong automation capabilities. Establish clear responsibilities, standards, delegation practices, and ownership models that enable the team to scale automation independently. Performance management: Define team goals, performance expectations, and career development plans. Support recruitment, onboarding, succession planning, and continuous professional development. Quality engineering and risk management: Champion shift-left and risk-based testing by participating in requirements, design, and architecture reviews to identify risks early and prevent defects before release. Release readiness and governance: Define measurable release-readiness criteria and quality gates, oversee QA activities for software releases, and support validation and compliance requirements in regulated environments. Metrics and continuous improvement: Establish quality scorecards, dashboards, and KPIs covering automation coverage, escaped defects, release readiness, and team performance. Lead root cause analysis of production or escaped defects and implement preventive improvements. Business impact: Establish a baseline quality scorecard and demonstrate measurable KPI improvements within 12 months, increase automated coverage of critical product areas, and deliver reliable regression testing on every build. Requirements Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, information systems, or a related discipline, or equivalent practical experience. At least 5 years of experience in software quality assurance and testing. Expert-level experience building enterprise-scale test automation frameworks using Playwright, Selenium, Cypress, or comparable technologies. Strong programming skills in TypeScript or JavaScript, with experience in Git, API testing, SQL, debugging, and code review. Demonstrated experience integrating automated regression testing into CI/CD pipelines using Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, Jenkins, or similar platforms. Proven ability to scale automation practices through technical standards, mentoring, coaching, and effective delegation. Experience using quality metrics, dashboards, and KPIs to guide engineering decisions and demonstrate measurable improvements. Experience testing complex web-based enterprise applications in Agile development environments. Strong analytical, troubleshooting, and problem-solving skills, together with excellent written and verbal communication. Hands-on experience developing substantial Playwright test suites in TypeScript, including fixtures, workers, parallelization, test isolation, retries, and trace-based debugging, is preferred. Previous experience leading QA teams or large-scale testing initiatives is an advantage. Experience in regulated industries such as life sciences, pharmaceutical manufacturing, healthcare, or medical devices is preferred, particularly familiarity with GxP and 21 CFR Part 11 requirements. Experience working across mixed TFVC and Git environments, including repository migration to Git, is beneficial. A track record of transforming manual QA processes into automation-focused quality engineering practices is highly valued. Familiarity with AI or machine learning applications in testing, as well as performance and security testing methodologies, is an advantage. Benefits Annual base salary: CAD $117,000–$143,000 for eligible positions in Ontario and British Columbia. The final offer depends on location, experience, expertise, and other job-related factors. Remote work arrangement within Canada. Full-time employment with an opportunity to shape automation architecture and quality engineering strategy. Technical and leadership development through ownership of enterprise-scale automation initiatives and QA team growth. Exposure to modern engineering practices , including Playwright, TypeScript, CI/CD automation, and AI-assisted testing. Meaningful professional impact through improving software reliability, delivery efficiency, and release confidence. Inclusive workplace environment that values diversity, equal opportunity, and collaboration.