Quality Assurance Automation Engineer

Quality Assurance Automation Engineer
Job Type: W2 Contract
Contract Duration: 9 Months, Possible extension
Location: Chicago, Illinois 60604
Work Setting: Onsite
Pay Rate: $70.00 - $78.00/hr.

Position Summary

The Quality Assurance Automation Engineer is responsible for designing, developing, automating, and executing comprehensive test solutions to validate system functionality, component interoperability, and end-to-end business workflows. This role focuses on UI and API test automation, regression testing, defect management, and continuous integration within a modern software development environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, develop, automate, and execute smoke, functional, integration, system, and end-to-end (E2E) tests using modern automation frameworks.
• Build and maintain automated regression test suites to ensure reliability and prevent defect reoccurrence after builds and releases.
• Create, optimize, and maintain automated test cases using a risk-based testing approach to maximize coverage of critical business scenarios.
• Perform UI automation testing for web applications and API automation testing for REST/SOAP services, including validation of:
  • Request/response payloads
  • Status codes
  • Schema compliance
  • API contract adherence
• Log, track, and triage defects; perform defect verification and re-testing, and contribute to root cause analysis efforts.
• Develop, debug, and troubleshoot Java-based automation scripts, ensuring automation assets are scalable, reusable, maintainable, and high quality.
• Collaborate with developers, QA teams, and product stakeholders to align automated test coverage and acceptance criteria with business requirements.
• Participate in design reviews and technical discussions to identify automation opportunities early in the development lifecycle.
• Develop and maintain configurable automation libraries and frameworks.
• Execute automated test plans, analyze results, and generate detailed reporting.
• Prepare and manage automated test data.
• Conduct peer reviews of automated test scripts and ensure compliance with coding and testing standards.
• Support test environment setup, automation infrastructure, and CI/CD pipeline integrations.
• Partner with manual testers to identify automation opportunities and convert manual test cases into automated scripts.
• Perform manual testing when necessary to develop functional knowledge or validate automation gaps.
• Support production deployment testing, release readiness activities, and remediation efforts through automated validation.
• Identify technical and operational issues across systems, products, and services and provide automated validation where appropriate.
• Participate in special projects, cross-functional initiatives, and continuous improvement efforts within the automation strategy.

Required Qualifications

Top 3 Required Technical Skills

1. Playwright Automation Framework with Java
2. Java Rest Assured Framework
3. Experience integrating automated tests into CI/CD pipelines

Required Technical Experience

• Hands-on experience with Playwright Automation Framework using Java.
• Experience with API automation using Java Rest Assured or similar frameworks.
• Experience with Postman for API testing.
• Experience with UFT and VB Scripting.
• Functional testing experience across web-based applications.
• Experience with test management tools such as XRAY or similar platforms for test case management, execution, and traceability.
• Experience with multiple automation tools and programming languages.
• Working knowledge of automated testing methodologies, QA standards, and best practices.
• Experience implementing and auditing automated testing frameworks and processes.

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in a STEM-related discipline (Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics) or a closely related field from an accredited institution.

• Equivalent combination of education and relevant experience may be considered.

Experience

• Minimum: 4 years of relevant experience required.
• Preferred: 6–10 years of relevant experience.

Preferred Knowledge & Skills

Quality Assurance & Development

• Understanding of QA methodologies, software testing principles, and best practices.
• Knowledge of the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) and the role of Quality Assurance within development frameworks.
• Familiarity with software development methodologies, including:
  • Waterfall
  • Iterative
  • Agile
  • Behavior-Driven Development (BDD)

Technical Knowledge

• Knowledge of computer hardware, software, operating systems, browsers, and web technologies.
• Familiarity with SQL, Oracle, Business Objects, authentication, and security technologies.
• Experience using test management and execution tools.

Professional Skills

• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to build and maintain professional relationships.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, multitasking, and time management skills.
• Ability to conduct independent research, perform analysis, and draw logical conclusions.
• Strong collaboration skills and ability to work effectively in a highly matrixed or virtual organization.
• Ability to work independently with general supervision and direction.

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