QA Automation - Manager

Role purpose

You'll design, build and maintain automated end-to-end tests for a multi-year programme modernizing a large portfolio of middle-office applications and moving them to AWS. This is a hands-on engineering role: most of your time is spent writing test code with modern automation frameworks and running it in CI/CD pipelines. You'll help prove that modernized and migrated applications behave the same as, or better than, the legacy systems they replace. You'll use AI coding tools to speed up writing and maintaining tests.

Key responsibilities

End-to-end UI test automation

• Design and build a scalable UI automation framework using Playwright, Cypress, Selenium WebDriver or WebdriverIO, with the Page Object Model or Screenplay pattern, fixtures and reusable helpers.
• Write automated end-to-end tests for ReactJS applications that cover critical user journeys in trade processing, reconciliation, settlement and operations.
• Test real-time features delivered over WebSockets and Server-Sent Events, such as live updates, reconnection and message ordering.
• Make tests reliable and fast: stable locators, smart waits, parallel execution (e.g. Selenium Grid or cloud grids like BrowserStack/Sauce Labs) and fixing flaky tests.
• Cover cross-browser, accessibility (axe-core) and visual regression testing (Applitools, Percy or Playwright snapshots) where it adds value.

Behaviour-driven and component testing

• Write BDD scenarios with Cucumber (Java or JS) or SpecFlow-style tools, so business analysts and subject-matter experts can read and confirm test coverage.
• Support component-level testing with React Testing Library, Vitest/Jest or Cypress Component Testing, working with developers.

API, contract and integration testing

• Automate REST API tests using REST Assured, Karate, Postman/Newman or Playwright API testing.
• Write consumer-driven contract tests with Pact, and validate against OpenAPI specifications.
• Test event-driven integrations (Kafka/MQ) by publishing test messages and checking downstream results, using tools such as Testcontainers.
• Use mock servers and service virtualisation (WireMock, MockServer) to test components independently.

Migration and data validation

• Build automated comparison tests that check outputs from legacy and modernized systems match during parallel runs (reports, files, database results).
• Validate batch and end-of-day processing results, and support reconciliation with data engineers.
• Manage test data, including masking and creating realistic financial test data sets.

Performance testing

• Build and run load and performance tests with k6, JMeter or Gatling to confirm modernized services meet or beat current response times and batch windows.

CI/CD and reporting

• Run test suites in Harness, GitHub Actions or Jenkins pipelines as quality gates on every build and deployment.
• Run tests in containers and on cloud test infrastructure for speed and scale.
• Publish clear test reports, traces and dashboards (Allure, ExtentReports or framework-native reports) for engineers and release managers.

AI-assisted testing

• Use GitHub Copilot, Claude Code and/or Devin to generate test cases, page objects and test data, and to analyse failures.
• Use AI to draft test scenarios from requirements and from legacy application behaviour, then review them with business analysts.
• Review all AI-generated tests carefully for real coverage and meaningful checks, not just passing tests.

Collaboration

• Work with developers, business analysts and subject-matter experts to agree acceptance criteria and test coverage.
• Take part in code reviews and promote testable design and shift-left practices.
• Support cutover rehearsals, release testing and early-life support.

Required experience and skills

• 5+ years in test automation or software engineering in test.
• UI automation: strong hands-on experience with at least one of Playwright, Cypress, Selenium WebDriver or WebdriverIO, and working knowledge of at least one other.
• Programming: strong coding skills in TypeScript/JavaScript and/or Java; tests are treated as production code.
• API testing: experience automating REST API tests with REST Assured, Karate, Postman/Newman or similar.
• BDD: experience writing and maintaining Cucumber (or similar) scenarios.
• Web testing: solid understanding of modern ReactJS applications, the DOM, browser dev tools and network inspection.
• CI/CD: running automated tests in pipelines (Harness, GitHub Actions or Jenkins).
• SQL: ability to write queries to set up and check test data.
• Git, Docker and agile delivery.
• Regular use of AI coding assistants in professional work.

Preferred

• Experience with several UI frameworks and migrating test suites between them (e.g. Selenium to Playwright).
• Contract testing with Pact and service virtualisation with WireMock.
• Performance testing with k6, JMeter or Gatling.
• Experience testing WebSocket, SSE, Kafka/MQ or batch processing.
• Testing migration or modernization programmes, including parallel runs and data reconciliation.
• Experience in financial services, ideally trading, settlement, collateral or accounting.
• ISTQB Advanced Test Automation Engineer or equivalent certification.

Success measures (first 12 months)

• A standard automation framework and patterns adopted across all modernization teams, with critical user journeys automated.
• UI, API and contract test suites running as quality gates in CI/CD for every application in scope.
• Low flaky-test rate and fast feedback times, measured against an agreed target.
• Automated parallel-run comparisons supporting cutover sign-off.
• Fewer defects escaping to UAT and production, compared with a baseline.

About State Street

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