Quality Assurance Analyst/ Lead

Position: Quality Assurance Analyst/ Lead

Duration: 6 Months

Location: St. Paul, MN (Hybrid - At least one day per week)

Client: Metropolitan Council

Interviews will be conducted in-person

Project Schedule

• Anticipated Project Start Date: April 13, 2026
• Anticipated End Date: October 13, 2026

Description of Project

The Metropolitan Council (Met Council) is seeking up to two full-time Quality Assurance Lead resources who will play a critical role in the Cubic Program, a large-scale transformation initiative to modernize fare collection and payment across the Metropolitan Council. The resources will direct the work of multiple QA Analysts and partner closely with business, technical, and vendor teams to ensure the delivery of high-quality, fully tested solutions. This is a working leadership role that combines oversight, coordination, and direct testing activity, particularly in an environment where automated testing maturity is still developing. Experience in the implementation of mass transit systems or other complex operational infrastructures is highly desired.

At a high level, the resources will provide both strategic QA leadership and hands-on test execution across multiple projects involving enterprise cloud-based SaaS platform solutions.  

The work is expected to be done with a hybrid of on-site and remote work. Resource will be required to work at a Met Council office at least one day per week, and more frequently as business needs dictate. Council offices are located at 390 Robert street North, Saint Paul, MN

Mode of Interview

The Met Council will conduct interviews. The Met Council reserves the right to remove a resource from consideration if the resource is unavailable for interview as requested by the Met Council.  Interviews will be conducted in-person at Metropolitan Council Offices located at 390 Robert Street North, St. Paul, MN 55101.

Sample Tasks

• Serve as the Program QA Lead for multiple large-scale, enterprise-wide initiatives within the BPSI Program.
• Develop and implement comprehensive QA strategies, standards, and test frameworks across projects.
• Provide hands-on leadership for testing efforts, including test plan creation, test case development, and defect management.
• Direct and mentor multiple QA Analysts while managing individual workstreams and contributing to active testing.
• Oversee and validate vendor-led testing activities, ensuring alignment with program standards and integration requirements.
• Develop and manage QA schedules, testing dependencies, and risk mitigation strategies across concurrent projects.
• Execute manual test scenarios and perform regression, functional, and integration testing across diverse solutions.
• Support configuration management and release control, maintaining traceability and documentation throughout the QA lifecycle.
• Define and track QA performance metrics such as defect density, coverage, and exit criteria for release readiness.
• Collaborate with program management, business analysts, developers, and vendors to prioritize defect resolution and testing scope.
• Provide QA governance and oversight throughout all project phases, ensuring adherence to enterprise standards and methodologies.
• Mentor business analysts and project team members in QA best practices to promote consistent quality across program initiatives.

Minimum Qualifications

• Ten (10) years’ experience in software quality assurance or software testing roles.
• Five (5) years’ of QA leadership experience managing or directing QA efforts on programs.
• One  (1) year of experience with cloud-based SaaS implementations
• Two  (2) years’  experience leading QA activities in multi-vendor or multi-system integration environments.
• Two (2) years’  experience performing manual and automation testing.
• Two (2) years’ experience (cumulative) developing QA strategies, test plans, test cases, and metrics to measure quality and readiness.
• One (1) year of experience using either Azure DevOps, JIRA, or HP ALM
• Two (2) years of experience applying QA processes within Agile, Iterative, and Waterfall development methodologies.
• Able to work onsite at least one day per week and more frequently as business needs dictate

Desired Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or related discipline
• Experience working within government or regulated industries implementing mission-critical systems.
• Experience with mass transit technology solutions, including fare collection, asset management, or operational analytics systems.
• Prior experience in public sector, utilities, or transportation
• Familiarity with test data management, performance testing, and vendor validation processes.
• Working knowledge of automation frameworks or tools (even if not fully deployed).
• Advanced degree or professional certification in Quality Assurance, Project Management (PMP), or Agile (CSM, SAFe).

Competencies and Skills

• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional QA teams and foster a culture of accountability and collaboration.
• Exceptional communication skills, capable of translating technical QA concepts for business and executive audiences.
• Strong analytical skills with attention to detail and a commitment to continuous improvement.
• Effective conflict resolution and stakeholder management skills in multi-stakeholder environments.
• Ability to balance leadership responsibilities with hands-on testing execution when required.