QA Specialist - Senior

Accelyst

Accelyst is an innovative AI Consultancy that leverages a unique catalog of industry-specific Agents and leading-edge AI platforms to deliver tangible, integrated, secure, and ROI-optimized solutions. We combine deep industry and technical expertise to enable rapid deployment of innovative AI-driven capabilities to augment and automate client workflows for employees, customers, prospects, and investors.

Why Accelyst?

Join Accelyst to be part of a dynamic team that leverages AI-driven technology to make a positive impact. Our leadership, with Big Four Consulting experience, fosters a nimble, client-focused environment, minimizing bureaucracy to enhance delivery and professional growth. You''ll work on complex technology projects that challenge and inspire, meeting high client expectations. Additionally, benefit from our profit-sharing model, reflecting our commitment to respect and integrity for all employees.

Job Summary

Accelyst is seeking an experienced Senior Quality Assurance Specialist to lead and execute quality assurance activities for enterprise-scale applications and large, complex systems. This role is responsible for defining testing strategies, developing test plans and test cases, executing functional and non-functional tests, implementing automation frameworks, and ensuring overall system quality throughout the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC).

The ideal candidate possesses strong expertise in manual and automated testing, performance testing, defect management, and Agile delivery methodologies. Experience with public sector environments and Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) compliance is highly desirable.

Job Roles and Responsibilities

• Develop and implement comprehensive test strategies, test plans, test cases, and test scripts to ensure complete coverage of functional and non-functional requirements.
• Plan and coordinate testing activities for large-scale GUI and non-GUI systems, including system integration, regression, performance, stress, load, and user acceptance testing.
• Execute functional, integration, system, and regression tests to validate application behavior under various conditions.
• Collaborate with project managers, business analysts, developers, and stakeholders to understand requirements and ensure quality objectives are met.
• Identify, document, prioritize, and track software defects using tools such as JIRA, Azure DevOps, ALM, and Bugzilla.
• Work closely with development teams to reproduce and resolve defects efficiently.
• Develop and maintain automated test scripts using Selenium, Postman, UFT, TestComplete, or similar automation frameworks.
• Integrate automated testing processes into CI/CD pipelines using Jenkins, Git, and GitLab.
• Perform API testing and backend data validation activities.
• Conduct performance, load, and stress testing using tools such as JMeter and LoadRunner to identify bottlenecks and ensure scalability.
• Validate data integrity, consistency, and accuracy across databases and applications, including migration and transformation testing.
• Support user acceptance testing activities and coordinate with business stakeholders during validation cycles.
• Participate in Agile ceremonies including sprint planning, stand-ups, reviews, and retrospectives.
• Maintain detailed documentation of testing activities, results, quality metrics, and defect reports.
• Ensure compliance with quality standards, accessibility requirements, and regulatory guidelines including AODA standards.
• Support release management activities and provide input for user manuals and release notes.
• Collaborate with security teams to support vulnerability and security testing initiatives.
• Develop and manage effective test data strategies while ensuring privacy and data integrity.
• Continuously improve QA processes, standards, and methodologies.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or a related discipline.
• 10+ years of experience in software quality assurance and testing within enterprise-level IT environments.
• Strong hands-on experience with manual and automated testing frameworks and tools.
• Extensive experience creating and maintaining test strategies, test plans, test cases, scripts, and test reports.
• Experience with automation tools such as Selenium, Postman, UFT, TestComplete, or similar platforms.
• Hands-on experience with performance testing tools including JMeter and LoadRunner.
• Experience with defect tracking and test management tools such as JIRA, Azure DevOps, ALM, Bugzilla, TestRail, and Zephyr.
• Strong knowledge of software testing methodologies including Agile, Scrum, and Waterfall.
• Experience executing functional, system, integration, regression, performance, and user acceptance testing.
• Strong understanding of Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) and Software Testing Life Cycle (STLC).
• Experience with backend testing and writing SQL queries for data validation.
• Knowledge of databases including SQL Server, Oracle, and related technologies.
• Experience with CI/CD tools and version control systems including Jenkins, Git, and GitLab.
• Working knowledge of cloud platforms such as Microsoft Azure and AWS.
• Understanding of QA compliance standards and security testing best practices.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and troubleshooting skills.
• Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Ability to work effectively in collaborative and fast-paced environments while managing aggressive timelines.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with Ontario Public Sector (OPS) standards and quality assurance practices.
• Knowledge and experience with Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) regulations and compliance testing.
• Experience testing Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) applications.
• Knowledge of object-oriented testing methodologies.
• Experience with information retrieval packages and CASE tools.
• Experience coding automated test scripts using Python, JavaScript, Java, or Bash.
• Experience in public sector or government environments.
• Knowledge of Information Management principles, policies, and practices.