QA Automation Lead – EU

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in Romania.

📋 Description

• Establish and lead the QA automation strategy, enhancing framework quality, test coverage, and overall automation maturity.

• Mentor and support a team of QA engineers, offering both technical direction and hands-on involvement.

• Design, develop, and maintain scalable UI and end-to-end automation frameworks.

• Optimize automated test execution within CI/CD pipelines to ensure rapid and reliable feedback.

• Implement a risk-based testing methodology, making informed choices regarding test prioritization, coverage, and trade-offs.

• Develop a balanced testing strategy across various layers including UI, mobile, API/service-level, and manual testing.

• Oversee end-to-end testing initiatives for mobile applications (iOS/Android) and backend services.

• Assess when UI automation is advantageous compared to API or service-level testing for better efficiency and stability.

• Manage bug tracking, triage, and failure analysis, delivering clear reports on quality metrics and risks.

• Collaborate closely with engineering, product, and platform teams to enhance testability and quality standards.

• Contribute to the ongoing improvement of QA processes, tools, and methodologies.

• Assist in expanding into non-functional testing domains such as performance, load, and (in the long run) security.

⛳️ Requirements

• Over 6 years of experience in QA / Test Automation, delivering automation solutions in production settings.

• Background in a QA leadership or mentoring position, responsible for guiding engineers and shaping the QA vision.

• Demonstrated capability to define and refine automation strategy, beyond merely implementing individual automated tests.

• Solid foundation in manual QA, encompassing exploratory and regression testing, with sound judgment on what should be automated.

• Experience in designing, building, or enhancing UI and end-to-end automation frameworks.

• Proficiency with modern UI automation tools (e.g., Playwright, Cypress, Selenium, WebdriverIO, or similar).

• Experience with mobile testing and/or automation (iOS/Android), preferably in business-critical environments.

• Strong understanding of risk-based testing and methods to optimize coverage, speed, and confidence.

• Ability to lead a team of approximately 4 engineers while remaining hands-on and technically competent.

• Experience with API/service-level testing and a robust understanding of test pyramid principles.

• Familiarity with integrating automated testing into CI/CD pipelines.

• Experience in defect management, bug triage, and QA reporting.

• Excellent collaboration skills with engineering, product, and platform teams.

• Knowledge of automation languages such as TypeScript, JavaScript, Python, Java, or Kotlin (with TypeScript preferred).

• Experience in modern product engineering environments with evolving systems and priorities.

• Strong problem-solving abilities and aptitude for operating in complex environments.

🏝️ Benefits

• At Smart Working, you’ll never be just another remote hire.

• Be a Smart Worker - valued, empowered, and part of a culture that celebrates integrity, excellence, and ambition.

• Join one of the highest-rated workplaces on Glassdoor.