Senior Automation Engineer

We’re looking for an experienced QA Automation Engineer to lead API quality for a Spring Boot microservices platform hosted on Google Cloud Platform (GCP). You’ll design, build, and maintain scalable API automation frameworks using Java, RestAssured or Karate, and BDD practices, while integrating automated tests into CI/CD pipelines.

In this role, you’ll collaborate with developers, product teams, architects, and integration partners to shape testable designs, identify quality risks, and ensure services meet functional, performance, and security standards. You’ll help define QA strategy and team practices, manage test cases and execution using Jira and Xray, and use AI-enabled tools to support test design, automation, and analysis.

The ideal candidate brings strong Java and API testing expertise, experience with Spring Boot, cloud-native technologies, Docker, Kubernetes, and GCP, plus familiarity with Agile delivery, databases, Git, and CI/CD tools. Knowledge of API security, contract or performance testing, monitoring tools, and eCommerce is an advantage. A bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, or a related field is preferred.

1. Leadership and Strategy

• Develop and execute a comprehensive API automation strategy aligned with the organization's quality goals.
• Identify and introduce innovative testing approaches, tools, and technologies to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of QA processes.
• Stay current with trends in API automation, AI-assisted testing, and cloud-native testing, and apply them where they add value.
• Promote a culture of quality ownership and accountability within the team.

2. API Automation Development

• Design, develop, and maintain robust, scalable API automation frameworks using Java, RestAssured (or Karate), and BDD principles (Cucumber/Gherkin).
• Write clean, well-documented, maintainable automation scripts to validate API functionality, performance, and security.
• Implement data-driven testing strategies to ensure comprehensive test coverage.
• Integrate automation suites into CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins, GitLab CI, or CircleCI) for continuous testing.
• Build reusable frameworks and integrate SaaS frameworks to improve scalability and efficiency.
• Perform API testing and exploration with tools such as Postman, Swagger, Hoppscotch, or ReadyAPI.
• Apply API security testing principles (for example, OWASP) and validate data quality, including with large datasets.

3. AI-Enabled Testing

• Use a range of AI models in day-to-day testing, including generating test cases and identifying test scenarios.
• Set up and configure AI agents to automate testing tasks and speed up test design, execution, and analysis.
• Evaluate new AI models and tools, and recommend how the team should adopt them.

4. Test Management with Jira and Xray

• Create, organize, and maintain test cases in Xray.
• Integrate Xray with Jira to provide traceability between requirements, tests, executions, and defects.
• Build and manage test catalogs and test sets in Xray.
• Plan and track test execution and report results in Jira and Xray.
• Keep test plans, procedures, scripts, results, and configuration documented in Git, Confluence/SharePoint, and Jira.

5. Collaboration and Communication

• Work with developers, product managers, architects, and other stakeholders to understand requirements and ensure testability.
• Participate in design and architecture reviews to give feedback on testability and flag quality risks early.
• Work with extended integration partner teams to define and execute exploratory and automated API tests.
• Communicate test results and quality metrics to stakeholders clearly and concisely.
• Take part in Agile ceremonies (sprint planning, stand-ups, reviews, retrospectives) and contribute to product design and architecture discussions.

6. Quality Assurance and Best Practices

• Establish and enforce QA guidelines, best practices, and standards across the team.
• Review code actively to ensure software quality and functional accuracy.
• Ensure all code follows secure coding practices and maintains code coverage of at least 70%.
• Write and maintain unit tests with JUnit or TestNG where applicable.

7. Coding and Development

• Complete coding tasks to design specifications, with high quality and on schedule.
• Work under the guidance of a Technical Architect and contribute to the overall system design.
• Use Git and collaboration platforms such as GitHub, Bitbucket, or GitLab for version control and code reviews.

8. Cloud and Platform Testing

• Validate microservices built with Spring Boot and Spring Cloud, including RESTful APIs and dependency-injection-based components.
• Test services deployed on GCP (for example, Compute Engine, Cloud Storage, Cloud Functions), using Docker and Kubernetes environments.
• Validate data in relational databases (MySQL, PostgreSQL) and NoSQL datastores (MongoDB, Cassandra).

9. Operational Support

• Handle operational issues with minimal oversight, and troubleshoot and resolve problems quickly.
• Use monitoring and logging tools (Prometheus, Grafana, ELK) to diagnose issues where available.

10. Nice-to-Have Contributions

• Implement contract testing with Pact or similar frameworks.
• Run performance tests with JMeter or Gatling.
• Apply eCommerce domain knowledge to improve test scenarios and coverage.

Education

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.

Experience

• 8–12 years of experience in software development and quality assurance, with a strong focus on API automation.
• Experience working in Agile teams and taking part in sprint ceremonies.

API Automation

• Extensive hands-on experience with RestAssured for API testing.
• Proficiency in BDD frameworks such as Cucumber/Gherkin.
• Experience with API testing tools such as Postman, Swagger, Hoppscotch, or ReadyAPI.
• Knowledge of API security testing principles and tools (for example, OWASP).
• Experience designing data-driven tests and building reusable automation frameworks.

AI Tools and Automation

• Familiarity with a range of AI models and their strengths.
• Comfortable using AI models in day-to-day testing, including creating test cases and identifying test scenarios.
• Experience setting up AI agents for test automation.

Java and Spring Boot

• Strong proficiency in Java and related open-source technologies.
• Hands-on experience with Spring Boot and Spring Cloud for building microservices.
• Working knowledge of dependency injection, RESTful APIs, and other core Spring concepts.

Cloud Technologies

• Solid understanding of cloud-native technologies and architectures.
• Experience with Docker and Kubernetes.
• Familiarity with Google Cloud Platform (GCP) services such as Compute Engine, Cloud Storage, and Cloud Functions.

Testing Frameworks and Tools

• Experience with unit testing frameworks such as JUnit and TestNG.
• Proficiency with IDEs such as Eclipse or IntelliJ IDEA.
• Experience with CI/CD tools such as Jenkins, GitLab CI, or CircleCI.

Test Management (Jira and Xray)

• Strong working knowledge of Jira and Xray.
• Experience creating test cases in Xray and integrating Xray with Jira.
• Experience creating test catalogs and test sets in Xray.
• Experience using Git, Confluence/SharePoint, and Jira for documentation, scripts, results, and configuration.

Databases and Data Quality

• Basic knowledge of relational databases (MySQL, PostgreSQL) and NoSQL datastores (MongoDB, Cassandra).
• Experience with data quality testing and working with large datasets.

Version Control and Collaboration

• Proficiency with Git.
• Experience with GitHub, Bitbucket, or GitLab.

Quality and Secure Coding

• Ability to follow secure coding practices and maintain code coverage of at least 70%.
• Experience reviewing code for quality and functional accuracy.
• Experience writing and maintaining test plans, procedures, and scripts.

Soft Skills

• Excellent communication, interpersonal, and collaboration skills.
• Strong problem-solving and analytical abilities.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Eagerness to learn the product's design and architecture and to take part in ceremonies that influence both.
• Ability to handle operational issues with minimal oversight.

Nice to Have

• Contract testing with Pact or similar frameworks.
• Performance testing with JMeter or Gatling.
• Monitoring and logging tools such as Prometheus, Grafana, or ELK.
• Good understanding of the eCommerce domain.