QA Lead - Integration & Systems Testing (BMO)

Job Description

Client: BMO

Role: QA Lead - Integration & Systems Testing

Start date: ASAP

End date: October 31, 2026

Number of resources needed: 1

Location & work model: Toronto, ON - Hybrid (2-3 days onsite per week)

Range of target pay rate: $75-95 CAD/hour

Project Background:

·       We are looking for a QA Lead who can define the testing strategy from scratch and own it end-to-end for a complex integration programme. This is not a test execution role, the QA Lead will be carving out what needs to be tested, how it will be tested, and leading that effort across functional and technical test scopes.

Qualifications:

·       6+ years in QA with at least 2 years in a lead capacity.

·       Proven experience testing system integrations, APIs, ETL pipelines, and event-driven flows.

·       Strong understanding of REST API testing (Postman, RestAssured, or equivalent).

·       Experience testing Kafka-based or messaging-based systems able to validate message structure, ordering, and error handling.

·       Experience with data validation and data mapping test design.

·       Proficient in defect management tooling and test management platforms (Jira, Zephyr, or equivalent).

·       Able to write and review SQL for data validation purposes.

Preferred:

·       Banking or financial services domain experience.

·       Automation experience (API or integration test automation).

·       Familiarity with AWS environments and testing Lambda or event-driven components.

Key Responsibilities:

·       Define and own the end-to-end test strategy covering functional, integration, regression, and non-functional testing.

·       Design test scenarios and cases for ETL jobs, API integrations, Kafka event flows, and Lambda function behaviour.

·       Lead and coordinate the QA effort across test phases, SIT, UAT support, and regression.

·       Build traceability between acceptance criteria, test cases, and defects.

·       Define and validate data mapping test scenarios ensuring source-to-target data integrity across all integration points.

·       Set up or oversee test data management, test environment readiness, and entry/exit criteria.

·       Work closely with the BSA and Tech Lead to review stories and specs before development begins, identifying gaps early.

·       Track and manage defect lifecycle, escalating risks to the PM when quality gates are at risk.

Qualifications