Test Automation Architect

Project description

The Test Automation Architect is a senior technical leader responsible for defining and delivering the organisation’s end‑to‑end automation strategy. This role designs scalable automation frameworks, selects the right tools and technologies, and drives best‑practice adoption across delivery teams. Operating from a central capability function, the Architect works closely with developers, platform engineers, product managers, and delivery leads to ensure automation effectively validates the full system under test. The role also provides hands‑on leadership and coaching to automation testers across multiple ARTs and programmes.

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement the automation strategy - Build a comprehensive automation strategy aligned with organisational testing goals, defining scope, tooling, frameworks, and required resources.
• Identify and prioritise automation opportunities - Work with stakeholders to assess risk, cost, and business value to determine where automation delivers the greatest impact.
• Select and implement automation frameworks and tools - Choose and deploy frameworks and technologies that fit the organisation’s needs, considering test types, team capability, and budget.
• Lead and mentor automation testers - Provide technical leadership, coaching, and direction to automation testers across teams, ensuring high‑quality test development and execution.
• Collaborate with stakeholders - Engage with developers, platform teams, product managers, and business stakeholders to ensure automated tests meet expectations and coverage needs.
• Monitor and report automation effectiveness - Track key metrics such as coverage, execution time, stability, and defect detection, and communicate progress to leadership.
• Stay current with modern automation and AI practices - Continuously evaluate emerging tools, AI‑driven testing capabilities, and industry best practices; uplift team knowledge through communities of practice.
• Support pre‑sales and solutioning activities - Contribute to pre‑sales discussions by shaping automation solutions, estimating effort, preparing technical proposals, and demonstrating automation capabilities to clients and internal stakeholders.

SKILLS

Must have

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or a related field
• 15+ years of experience in testing in test automation and more than 5 years of experience as Test Automation Architect.
• Automation Framework Design — Ability to architect scalable, modular, and reusable automation frameworks for UI, API, and mobile testing
• Strong Programming Skills — Expertise in Java, Python, C#, or JavaScript for building custom automation solutions
• Tooling Expertise — Deep hands‑on experience with Selenium, Playwright, Appium, RestAssured, Cypress, Cucumber, TestNG, JUnit
• CI/CD Integration — Skilled in embedding automated tests into Jenkins, GitHub Actions, Azure DevOps, or GitLab pipelines
• AI‑Driven Testing — Leveraging AI/ML for test generation, self‑healing scripts, defect prediction, and intelligent test selection
• API & Microservices Testing — Strong understanding of REST, SOAP, GraphQL, and contract testing
• Cloud & Containerisation — Experience with Docker, Kubernetes, and cloud‑based test environments (AWS/Azure/GCP)
• Automation Strategy Development — Ability to define enterprise‑wide automation vision, roadmap, and maturity model
• Tool Evaluation & Selection — Skilled at assessing tools based on scalability, maintainability, and alignment with tech stack
• Test Design & Coverage Optimisation — Strong grasp of test pyramid, risk‑based testing, and shift‑left practices
• Quality Governance — Ability to define coding standards, quality gates, and automation best practices
• Test Data & Environment Strategy — Knowledge of synthetic data creation, stubs, mocks, and environment‑independent automation
• Cross‑Functional Collaboration — Works effectively with Dev, QA, DevOps, Product, and Architecture teams
• Technical Mentorship — Ability to coach SDETs and QA engineers on automation patterns and best practices
• Stakeholder Communication — Skilled at translating technical automation concepts into business value

Nice to have

• Experience with Agile development methodologies • Performance and Security Testing