Senior Quality Assurance Manager - Python/Playwright
First seen by Alion on Oct 30, 2026.
Role Overview :
We are looking for an experienced Senior Manager QA / Quality Engineering to lead quality engineering transformation, automation strategy, and delivery across enterprise applications. The ideal candidate should have strong hands-on expertise in Python-based test automation using Playwright, API automation, CI/CD, and modern AI-driven quality engineering practices.
The role will involve building scalable automation frameworks, driving shift-left quality practices, establishing QA standards and KPIs, and leading distributed QA teams while partnering closely with Engineering, Product, and Business stakeholders.
Key Responsibilities :
QA Leadership & Transformation :
- Lead QA and Quality Engineering strategy across multiple projects and products.
- Define and implement scalable QA processes, standards, methodologies, and quality KPIs.
- Drive Shift-Left testing and quality engineering practices across the SDLC.
- Establish automation-first approaches to improve test coverage, release velocity, and product quality.
- Build and evolve QA CoE capabilities, frameworks, reusable accelerators, and best practices.
- Identify opportunities for process optimization, test automation, and intelligent quality engineering.
- Drive root-cause analysis, defect prevention, risk assessment, and continuous improvement.
Test Automation - Python & Playwright :
- Design, develop, and maintain UI automation frameworks using Python and Playwright.
- Establish scalable automation architecture using Page Object Model, reusable components, fixtures, and data-driven approaches.
- Develop automated functional, regression, smoke, and end-to-end test suites.
- Integrate Playwright automation with CI/CD pipelines using GitHub Actions, Jenkins, or Azure DevOps.
- Implement parallel execution, cross-browser testing, reporting, test retry, and flaky-test management.
- Evaluate and modernize existing Selenium-based automation frameworks by introducing Playwright and Python where appropriate.
- Drive automation coverage across critical business workflows and continuously improve automation ROI.
- Establish coding standards, framework guidelines, code reviews, and best practices for automation engineers.
API & Performance Testing :
- Lead API automation using tools such as Python, Postman, RestAssured, or Karate.
- Define API testing strategy covering functional, integration, negative, and contract testing.
- Drive performance testing using JMeter and other appropriate tools.
- Analyze performance bottlenecks and work with engineering teams on remediation.
- Integrate API and performance testing into CI/CD pipelines where appropriate.
AI-Driven Quality Engineering :
- Explore and implement AI/GenAI-assisted testing to improve productivity and test effectiveness.
- Evaluate AI-assisted test generation, test optimization, defect triage, RCA assistance, and regression optimization.
- Define quality validation approaches for AI-powered applications, including :
1. Response accuracy
2. Contextual relevance
3. Response consistency
4. Hallucination detection
5. Prompt effectiveness
6. Edge-case handling
- Participate in designing and validating Agentic AI workflows and autonomous testing solutions.
- Identify opportunities to use tools such as Claude, Cursor, ChatGPT, MCP, and other AI technologies within QA workflows.
CI/CD & Engineering Practices :
- Integrate automated testing into CI/CD pipelines.
- Establish quality gates and automated regression checks within deployment pipelines.
- Work closely with DevOps and Engineering teams to improve continuous testing and release confidence.
- Promote Git-based development, code reviews, test reporting, and engineering best practices.
Team Leadership :
- Lead, mentor, and develop QA/QE engineers across multiple projects.
- Build automation and quality engineering capabilities within the team.
- Conduct technical mentoring, framework reviews, and knowledge-sharing sessions.
- Define team goals, performance expectations, and development plans.
- Manage distributed teams and coordinate with global stakeholders.
Stakeholder Management :
- Partner with Product, Engineering, Business, and Program teams to define quality objectives.
- Own QA strategy, estimates, test plans, release readiness, and quality reporting.
- Communicate quality risks, dependencies, defects, and release recommendations to senior stakeholders.
- Support client discussions, solutioning, proposals, and QA transformation initiatives.
Required Skills & Experience :
- 15+ years of experience in Software Testing / Quality Engineering, with significant experience in QA leadership.
- Strong hands-on experience in Python-based automation.
- Strong expertise in Playwright for web/UI automation.
- Experience designing and implementing automation frameworks from the ground up.
- Strong understanding of Selenium and modern automation framework architecture.
- Experience with API automation and testing.
- Strong experience with CI/CD tools such as Jenkins, GitHub Actions, or Azure DevOps.
- Experience with Git and modern software engineering practices.
- Strong understanding of Agile/Scrum, STLC, test strategy, and release management.
- Experience with performance testing, preferably JMeter.
- Experience leading and mentoring QA/QE teams.
- Strong stakeholder management and communication skills.
- Experience working with enterprise/SaaS applications.
Preferred / Good-to-Have Skills :
- Experience in AI/GenAI testing and AI-assisted QA automation.
- Experience with Claude, Cursor, ChatGPT, LLMs, or MCP-based workflows.
- Knowledge of Agentic AI and autonomous workflow validation.
- Experience with AI-assisted test generation and intelligent test optimization.
- Experience with accessibility testing using tools such as NVDA and Axe.
- Experience with web performance tools such as Lighthouse/PageSpeed.
- Banking, Financial Services, Insurance, Payments, or other enterprise-domain experience.
- Experience establishing or scaling a QA CoE / Quality Engineering practice.
Education :
- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or a related discipline.
Key Success Measures :
- Increased automation coverage and reduction in manual regression effort.
- Improved release quality and reduction in production defects.
- Adoption of Python + Playwright automation across strategic applications.
- Improved CI/CD and continuous testing maturity.
- Successful implementation of AI-assisted quality engineering initiatives.
- Strong team capability development and engineering productivity.
- Consistent quality governance, metrics, and stakeholder visibility.
Skills
Software Quality Assurance, Testing, Python, Playwright Testing, Test Strategy, API Testing, POSTMAN, Performance Testing, Functional Testing, Integration Testing