QA Lead

About Data Society Group
At Data Society Group, we provide the highest quality, leading-edge, industry-tailored data and AI training and solutions for Fortune 1,000 companies and federal, state, and local governmental organizations. We partner with our clients to educate, equip, and empower their workforces with the skills they need to achieve their goals and expand their impact. Our portfolio of brands and services sits at the intersection of people, data, and AI and consists of:

• CDO Magazine, the trusted voice of global data and AI leadership
• The Data Lodge, a pioneer in data literacy and cultural transformation
• Data Society, delivering applied AI education and custom-built solutions
• InspiredMinds!, a convening force behind the world’s most inclusive AI community

We are working to empower the workforces of the future; if you’re as passionate about transforming workplaces with the power of Data & AI as we are, we’d love to hear from you!

About the Role
The QA Lead owns the end-to-end test strategy for the platform, coordinating system integration testing (SIT), user acceptance testing (UAT), defect triage, and go/no-go readiness across all functional areas. In this role, you will lead our offshore QA team, manage the test exit criteria process, and serve as the critical quality gate between build completion and production cutover.

This is a senior-level, project-based engagement requiring demonstrable test leadership, strong client-facing communication skills, and hands-on authority over quality assurance. This role is work-from-home (remote) though must be able to commute to client offices in Falls Church, VA as needed (estimated every 2 weeks).This is a full-time W2 employment position with benefits. Please note that this role is tied to a client contract and is structured as an initial 9-month position. Opportunities for extension or longterm placement are highly likely based on client renewal and project performance.

Responsibilities
As the QA Lead, you will be responsible for setting quality standards, coordinating cross-functional testing, and validating end-to-end platform integrity. Your primary duties include:

• Test Strategy & Governance: Define and own the end-to-end test strategy, covering SIT, UAT, regression, integration, data reconciliation, and performance testing across all functional areas. Provide formal QA sign-off at each sprint demo and phase exit gate.
• UAT Facilitation: Coordinate and facilitate UAT sessions with business users across all functional workstreams, managing scheduling, guidance, and formal sign-off.
• Team Leadership & Defect Triage: Lead and direct the offshore QA Engineer team by assigning test coverage, reviewing defect logs, and managing resolution timelines. Triage defects by severity, assign ownership, and track issues to resolution.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with the DevOps/Platform Engineer and Data Engineering Lead to ensure test environment readiness and data availability prior to test cycles. (Note: This role owns the acceptance gate, not environment provisioning).
• Data Freshness & Reconciliation: Own the test evidence and acceptance process for OIC data freshness and reconciliation validation, confirming delta sync accuracy against agreed SLAs.
• Go/No-Go & Audit Readiness: Manage the go/no-go readiness checklist, ensuring all exit criteria are met prior to production cutover authorization. Maintain comprehensive test documentation, traceability matrices, and defect logs for audit and handoff purposes.

Required Skills & Experience

• 6–10 years of progressive QA experience, with at least 3 years in a QA Lead or Test Management role (must have demonstrable test leadership experience, not just hands-on execution).
• Proven experience owning an end-to-end test strategy for enterprise web applications.
• Strong experience coordinating UAT with non-technical business stakeholders and presenting go/no-go recommendations to executive leadership.
• High proficiency with Jira or equivalent enterprise defect and test management tooling.
• Experience validating data outputs against source system records.
• Experience managing offshore QA teams and coordinating asynchronous test execution.
• Familiarity with automated testing frameworks (e.g., Playwright, Selenium, or similar).
• Familiarity with AI-generated test suites and agentic QA approaches, with the ability to review and govern AI-assisted test coverage.
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior experience testing enterprise financial, ERP, or data-intensive applications.
• Familiarity with Oracle Integration Cloud (OIC) or API integration testing, validating end-to-end data flow across system boundaries.
• Experience with Azure DevOps test plans or similar enterprise test management tooling.
• ISTQB certification or equivalent formal QA qualification.