Quality Assurance Specialist

This position may be filled prior to the posted deadline. Interested candidates are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.  Koniag IT Systems, LLC a Koniag Government Services company, is seeking a Quality Assurance Specialist to support KITS and our government customer in Baton Rouge, LA. This position requires the candidate to be able to obtain a Public Trust. Benefits include medical, dental, and vision insurance, 401(k) retirement plan, paid time off, paid parental leave, life and disability insurance, flexible spending accounts, commuter benefits and tuition reimbursement.  Koniag IT Systems, LLC a Koniag Government Services company, is seeking a Quality Assurance Specialist to join our development team supporting mission-critical applications. The ideal candidate is a technically skilled QA professional with a strong development background who thrives in collaborative environments and is passionate about delivering scalable, secure, and high-performance web applications. This role requires strong technical leadership, expertise in modern testing frameworks and methodologies, and the ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams in an Agile environment. This candidate will be responsible for QA and for driving the deployment process for regular releases.  The Quality Assurance specialist will design, develop, and maintain comprehensive test strategies and automated testing frameworks while collaborating with government stakeholders, development teams, and project management to deliver high-quality solutions. Drawing on a strong development background, this individual will bridge the gap between development and quality assurance to ensure applications meet the highest standards of performance, security, and reliability. Principal responsibilities will include but are not limited to: Lead the design, development, and execution of comprehensive test plans, test cases, and test scripts across the full technology stack Develop, implement, and maintain automated testing frameworks and test suites for both front-end (React/TypeScript) and back-end (.NET/C#) applications Perform functional, regression, integration, performance, and security testing across multiple environments Leverage development background to perform code reviews with a quality-focused perspective, identifying potential defects, vulnerabilities, and maintainability concerns Participate actively in Agile ceremonies including sprint planning, daily standups, retrospectives, and backlog refinement to ensure quality is built into every stage of the development lifecycle Collaborate with cross-functional teams including Government stakeholders, QA, Development, Project Management, and Support to meet release and delivery requirements Coordinate release cycles across multiple environments, ensuring smooth deployments and minimal disruption through rigorous quality gates Maintain comprehensive test documentation including test plans, test cases, defect reports, and quality metrics Drive continuous improvement initiatives by identifying opportunities for test automation, process optimization, and enhanced quality practices Evaluate and ensure application quality against clean architecture principles, SOLID design patterns, and distributed system best practices Work with cloud platforms and containerized applications to design and execute environment-specific test strategies Contribute to and validate CI/CD pipeline implementations, ensuring automated testing is fully integrated into deployment workflows Provide technical guidance and mentorship to QA team members and promote a culture of quality across the development organization Define and track quality metrics, KPIs, and reporting to communicate quality status to stakeholders at all levels   Education and Experience: Demonstrated experience managing release cycles and quality gates across multiple environments 4+ years of professional experience in Quality Assurance, including test automation and manual testing 2+ years of experience in a QA lead or senior QA role, overseeing testing efforts and mentoring QA team members 2+ years of professional software development experience with .NET, ASP.NET Core, and Entity Framework Core Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Information Systems, Software Engineering, or related field from an accredited college or university OR equivalent experience   Required Skills and Competencies: Strong proficiency in designing and executing test plans, test cases, and test scripts for both front-end and back-end applications Excellent attention to detail Proactive in giving feedback and finding solutions to discovered issues Proficiency with version control systems, particularly Git and collaborative workflows (branching strategies, pull requests, code reviews) Working knowledge of C#, ASP.NET Core, and RESTful APIs to effectively test and validate back-end services Working knowledge of React and TypeScript to effectively test and validate front-end applications Understanding of relational database management systems (RDBMS) and the ability to write and validate SQL queries for data integrity testing Experience with cloud platforms (Azure or AWS) including testing and validation of deployed applications Hands-on experience with containerized applications using Docker and the ability to execute tests within containerized environments Hands-on experience developing automated test frameworks using tools such as Playwright, Selenium, xUnit, or similar Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines and the ability to integrate automated testing into deployment workflows Strong understanding of clean architecture, SOLID principles, and distributed system design patterns from a quality assurance perspective Exceptional communication skills in English – both written and oral – with the ability to communicate effectively across technical and non-technical stakeholders Excellent collaboration skills working with distributed teams across different time zones and organizational boundaries Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities with meticulous attention to detail Ability to work effectively in an Agile development environment Self-motivated with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines Commitment to championing quality, clean code standards, and well-documented testing practices Ability to obtain a Public Trust Clearance   Desired Skills and Competencies: Experience with Redux Toolkit and state management testing strategies in React applications Experience working within federal government IT environments and understanding of government system requirements Familiarity with Agile methodologies, including Scrum and Kanban frameworks Proficiency with Atlassian tools including Jira for defect tracking and test management, and Confluence for documentation Experience with CI/CD tooling (Jenkins, GitHub Actions, Azure DevOps) and infrastructure automation (Terraform, CloudFormation) Expertise in database performance and data integrity testing, including: Index design and query optimization validation Query plan analysis and performance benchmarking Partitioning strategies and large dataset testing Knowledge of security best practices, secure coding practices, and authentication/authorization testing patterns Experience with performance and load testing tools such as JMeter, k6, or Locust Familiarity with microservices architecture and event-driven design patterns from a testing perspective Understanding of accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1), A11y, and Section 508 compliance testing Knowledge of DevOps practices and site reliability engineering principles ISTQB certification or equivalent quality assurance certification   Our Equal Employment Opportunity Policy The company is an equal opportunity employer. The company shall not discriminate against any employee or applicant because of race, color, religion, creed, ethnicity, sex, sexual orientation, gender or gender identity (except where gender is a bona fide occupational qualification), national origin or ancestry, age, disability, citizenship, military/veteran status, marital status, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. We are committed to equal employment opportunity in all decisions related to employment, promotion, wages, benefits, and all other privileges, terms, and conditions of employment.   The company is dedicated to seeking all qualified applicants. If you require an accommodation to navigate or apply for a position on our website, please get in touch with Heaven Wood via e-mail at accommodations@koniag-gs.com or by calling 703-488-9377 to request accommodations. Koniag Government Services (KGS) is an Alaska Native Owned corporation supporting the values and traditions of our native communities through an agile employee and corporate culture that delivers Enterprise Solutions, Professional Services and Operational Management to Federal Government Agencies. As a wholly owned subsidiary of Koniag, we apply our proven commercial solutions to a deep knowledge of Defense and Civilian missions to provide forward leaning technical, professional, and operational solutions. KGS enables successful mission outcomes for our customers through solution-oriented business partnerships and a commitment to exceptional service delivery. We ensure long-term success with a continuous improvement approach while balancing the collective interests of our customers, employees, and native communities. For more information, please visit www.koniag-gs.com. Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled. Shareholder Preference in accordance with Public Law 88-352