OpenGov is the leader in AI-enabled software for cities, counties, state agencies, and special districts. With a mission to power more effective and accountable government, OpenGov serves 2,000 communities across the United States. OpenGov is built exclusively for the unique asset management, permitting and licensing, procurement and contract management, tax and revenue, budgeting and planning, and financial management needs of the public sector. The OpenGov platform empowers organizations to operate more efficiently, adapt to change, and strengthen public trust.
Learn more or request a demo at opengov.com
Job Summary:
We are seeking a highly experienced and technically proficient Staff Software Development Engineer in Test (Staff SDET) to lead and innovate quality engineering initiatives across our organization. In this critical role, you will define and implement testing standards, mentor teams, and own end-to-end quality strategies for scalable, reliable, secure, and high-performing systems. Collaborating with cross-functional and cross-product teams, you will champion modern testing practices, enhance automation frameworks, and ensure continuous quality across our suite of products.
Responsibilities:
- Define and drive the quality strategy across a suite of products, establishing testing standards, quality gates, and driving continuous improvement initiatives.
- Collaborate with cross-functional and cross-product teams, including developers, product managers, and architects, to ensure quality is embedded in every phase of the software development lifecycle.
- Lead the development and maintenance of scalable test automation frameworks for regression, feature, performance, and system integration testing.
- Define process for review of test plans, test cases and automation code ensuring adherence to best practices and maintainability.
- Perform exploratory and manual testing for high-priority, time-sensitive, or unscheduled hotfix releases, serving as a safety net for automation gaps.
- Continuously improve test automation frameworks by analyzing test failures, optimizing test execution, and incorporating feedback from production observability insights.
- Use defect patterns and system telemetry to refine testing practices, ensuring scalability, reliability, and resilience in delivered products.
- Own and report on key quality metrics such as test coverage, defect rates, and automation efficiency, providing actionable feedback to stakeholders.
- Integrate automated testing into CI/CD pipelines and ensure consistent execution and reporting.
- Mentor the Engineering Team on testing best practices, automation strategies, and continuous quality improvement techniques.
- Lead cross-functional quality initiatives, fostering a culture of collaboration and shared accountability for quality.
- Evaluate and integrate cutting-edge testing tools and methodologies, such as performance testing with k6, security testing, and accessibility testing, ensuring alignment with organizational goals.
- Drive innovation in quality engineering, contributing to the adoption of AI/ML-driven testing and predictive quality analysis where applicable.
Requirements:
- BS/MS in Computer Science or related field, or equivalent professional experience.
- 12+ years of industry experience, with at least 8 years in an SDET role.
- Proven experience driving quality improvement across multiple applications or products using a combination of unit tests, integration tests, UI and API tests, load/performance tests, and monitoring tools.
- Proficiency in TypeScript and JavaScript.
- Hands-on experience with test automation frameworks, including Playwright (preferred), Cypress, Selenium, etc.
- Deep understanding of automated testing for REST and GraphQL APIs and microservice architectures.
- Hands-on experience with security testing and accessibility testing.
- Strong knowledge of cloud-native principles, containerization (e.g., Docker), and orchestration tools (e.g., Kubernetes).
- Proficiency in database fundamentals and SQL.
- Extensive experience with load/performance testing tools, with preference for k6.
- Solid understanding of CI/CD pipelines and tools (e.g., GitHub Actions), and experience integrating testing into deployment workflows.
- Strong knowledge of Agile methodologies, DevOps principles, and the software development lifecycle.
- Effective communicator and collaborator with cross-product and cross-functional teams, including product managers, developers, and architects.
- Proven ability to gather requirements, resolve ambiguities, and create comprehensive testing artifacts and metrics, such as test coverage and execution status.
- Experience in quality engineering for SaaS platforms with a solid understanding of system internals.
- Proficiency with event-driven architectures and testing event-driven systems is a plus.
- Experience with GovTech or FinTech domains is preferred but not required.
Why OpenGov?
A Mission That Matters
At OpenGov, public service is personal. We are passionate about our mission to power more effective and accountable government. Government that operates efficiently, adapts to change, and strengthens public trust. Some people say this is boring. We think it’s the core of our democracy.
Opportunity to Innovate
The next great wave of innovation is unfolding with AI, and it will impact everything—from the way we work to the way governments interact with their residents. Join a trusted team with the passion, technology, and expertise to drive innovation and bring AI to local government. We’ve touched 2,000 communities so far, and we’re just getting started.
A Team of Passionate, Driven People
This isn’t your typical 9-to-5 job; we operate in a fast-paced, results-driven environment where impact matters more than simply clocking in and out. Our global team of 800+ employees is united in our commitment to challenge the status quo. OpenGov is headquartered in San Francisco and has offices in Atlanta, Boston, Buenos Aires, Chicago, Dubuque, Plano, and Pune.
A Place to Make Your Mark
We pride ourselves on our performance-based culture, where every employee is encouraged to jump in head-first and take action to help us improve. If you have a great idea, we want to hear it. Excellent performance is recognized and rewarded, and we love to promote from within.
Benefits That Work for You
Enjoy an award-winning workplace with the benefits to match, including:
- Comprehensive healthcare options for individuals and families.
- Flexible vacation policy and paid company holidays
- 401(k) with company match
- Paid parental leave, wellness stipends, and HSA contributions
- Professional development and growth opportunities
- A collaborative office environment with weekly catered lunches
Top Skills
What We Do
OpenGov Citizen Services simplifies the way governments serve their communities by offering one cloud solution to power every permitting and licensing workflow.
