Principal Software Development Engineer in Test (SDET) in Trenton
Role details
Job location
Tech stack
Job description
We are seeking a Principal Software Development Engineer in Test (SDET) to lead and modernize quality engineering across UI, API, services, and data layers, with a strong emphasis on Playwright-based and AI-enabled automation frameworks.
This is a hands-on technical leadership role responsible for:
· Defining next- automation standards
· Building scalable, resilient Playwright-first test frameworks
· Enabling continuous testing in Azure DevOps
· Embedding AI-assisted and agent-driven quality practices across teams
You will partner closely with engineering, product, DevOps, and business stakeholders to drive quality by design, reduce production risk, and enable high-confidence releases in complex, data-driven systems-preferably within wealth management or financial services environments.
Data Quality & Backend Validation (Core Expectation)
· Lead the design and automation of data quality validation frameworks across:
o Databases
o Data pipelines
o System-to-system integrations
· Validate and automate checks for:
o Data completeness, accuracy, consistency, and reconciliation
o ETL / ELT transformations
o Batch jobs, scheduled processes, and file-based integrations (CSV / JSON / XML)
· Build reusable data validation utilities using SQL and Python/Java
· Implement automated reconciliation for financial or transactional data where applicable
· Integrate data quality tests into CI/CD pipelines or scheduled automation runs with actionable reporting
· Proactively identify data anomalies and quality risks before production releases
Azure, DevOps & Platform Enablement
· Drive quality engineering practices within Azure environments
· Design and govern test execution strategies in Azure DevOps
· Define test stages, quality gates, and reporting standards across pipelines
· Ensure traceability across requirements, tests, defects, and releases
AI-Driven Quality Engineering
· Champion the use of AI-assisted tools (GitHub Copilot, Copilot agents, AI assistants) to:
o Accelerate test case
o Improve automation code quality and maintainability
o Analyze test failures, logs, and quality trends. · Define guardrails and best practices for responsible AI usage in QA.
Requirements
Must Have Technical/Functional Skills
1- Playwright-Centric UI & Backend Automation Leadership (Core Expectation)
2- AI-Driven Quality Engineering (Strategic Expectation)
3- Azure, DevOps & Platform Enablement
4- Data Quality & Backend Validation
5- Principal-Level Leadership & Influence 6- Domain Experience (Strong Advantage)
Experience Profile: 10+ years in SDET / Test Automation / Quality Engineering Demonstrated Principal-level influence across platforms, teams, and architecture decisions. Deep hands-on experience designing and scaling Playwright-based automation frameworks Proven experience integrating AI-assisted capabilities into modern test frameworks
