Principal Quality Engineer

Contracting period: 6 months, with possibility to extend. Contract details: B2B/ PFA or SRL Location: EU/Remote Role Overview We are seeking a Principal Quality Engineer for a senior leadership role dedicated to driving quality strategy, standards, and continuous improvement across our enterprise-level programs. As a quality advocate, you will provide thought leadership, technical direction, and governance while operating with a high degree of autonomy. This role requires strong ownership, the ability to influence key stakeholders, and a proactive mindset to challenge existing processes to achieve superior quality outcomes. Key Responsibilities Quality Strategy & Advocacy Quality Champion: Act as a Quality Advocate across missions and programs, ensuring that quality is embedded throughout the entire delivery lifecycle. Thought Leadership: Provide strategic direction in quality engineering, test automation, and agile best practices. Assessment & Governance: Assess the current state of quality across multiple teams, identifying gaps, risks, and specific opportunities for process improvement. Automation & Technical Direction Roadmap Development: Lead the automation strategy and roadmap across teams, ensuring solutions are scalable, maintainable, and aligned with business goals. Metrics & ROI: Drive the definition and reporting of automation metrics to measure effectiveness and Return on Investment (ROI). Technical Guidance: Guide teams on automation coverage, tooling selection, and the implementation of an effective test pyramid strategy (UI, API, and Backend). Mentorship & Collaboration Team Development: Mentor and guide QE and SDET team members to elevate the overall technical capability of the organization. Stakeholder Management: Work independently to influence stakeholders and ensure quality standards are met without introducing delivery bottlenecks. Required Skills & Experience Quality Engineering Expertise: Extensive experience in Quality Engineering, test automation, and delivery within Agile environments. Enterprise Scale: Proven track record of leading or significantly contributing to enterprise-scale programs. Hands-on Technical Depth: * Deep knowledge of test automation frameworks (UI, API, and Backend) and their integration into CI/CD pipelines. Proficiency in modern programming or scripting languages used for automation (e.g., Python, Bash, or JavaScript). Autonomy & Ownership: Demonstrated ability to work with a high degree of independence and take full accountability for quality outcomes. Communication: Strong stakeholder management skills with the ability to communicate complex quality concepts to diverse audiences. Desired Profile Self-Driven: A proactive professional with a natural mindset for continuous improvement. Influential: Confident in making high-level recommendations and driving them through to completion. Strategic Thinker: A balanced profile offering both deep technical expertise and the ability to think strategically about long-term quality goals.