QA/Test Developer for Data Foundation

Introduction

RedHat OpenShift Data Foundation (RH ODF) is Red Hat's container‑native, software‑defined storage layer for OpenShift-providing persistent storage, data management, and disaster recovery for Kubernetes workloads at scale. IBM Fusion, and Fusion Data Foundation in particular, extends these capabilities with advanced data services, multi‑cluster workflows, and integrated disaster recovery across hybrid‑cloud environments.

As part of the IBM Infrastructure& TechnologyOrganisation, this team builds and validates hybrid‑cloud data and storage capabilities that support mission‑critical enterprise platforms.You will join the Red Hat ODF and IBM Fusion Quality Engineering group, working closely with development, product, and cross‑functional platform teams to ensure release‑grade quality, performance, scale, and reliability across both RH ODF and Fusion Data Foundation solutions.
Working in Infrastructure & Technology means tackling complex challenges with curiosity and collaboration. You'll work with diverse technologies and colleagues worldwide to deliver resilient, future-ready solutions that power innovation. With continuous learning, career growth, and a supportive culture, IBM provides the opportunities to build expertise and shape the infrastructure that drives progress.

Your role and responsibilities
Your Role and Responsibilities

We are seeking a Senior QA Test Developer / Technical Lead with strong Python automation experience and deep understanding of cloud‑native storage to contribute to OpenShift Data Foundation (ODF) and hybrid cloud infrastructure. This role blends hands‑on test development, increasing ownership of complex features, cross‑team collaboration, and leadership behaviors expected at this level. The candidate will deliver work of increasing scope and complexity with high quality and on time, applying new technologies, learned skills, and innovation-including AI tools-to continuously improve team productivity, test coverage, and code quality.

You will be part of a QA team responsible for ensuring product quality through test planning, automation, execution, reporting, and continuous improvement.

Key responsibilities:

1. Technical Ownership & Feature Delivery

Design, develop, and maintain automation for ODF using Python and PyTest.

Deliver work of increasing complexity with high quality and on time, while applying new technologies and innovative approaches.

Own test planning, execution, automation, defect reporting, and quality sign-off for storage workflows.

Break complex ODF features into actionable tasks and drive them to completion.

2. AI‑Driven Productivity & Innovation

Use AI tools (code assistants, test‑case generators, log‑analysis/triage assistants, doc summarizers) to accelerate automation, improve signal‑to‑noise in failures, and reduce repetitive effort;

Identify and implement AI‑assisted improvements that elevate team efficiency and code quality.

champion responsible AI adoption within the team.

3. Quality Engineering & Test Strategy

Contribute to functional, system test strategies.

Contribute to automation and CI pipelines to increase reliability, coverage (e.g. DR, scale, upgrade, performance, system), and execution efficiency.

Troubleshoot complex failures and drive root‑cause analyses across ODF and dependent components.

4. Collaboration & Cross‑Team Alignment

Collaborate with peers and cross‑functional teams-including OpenShift, Ceph, and customer‑scenario teams

participate in sprint planning, backlog refinement, daily status meetings, and release readiness activities.

5. Mentoring, Leadership & Team Contribution

Mentor junior engineers in automation, storage fundamentals, Kubernetes/ODF internals, and debugging.

Simplify existing procedures by documenting and refining workflows.

Demonstrate ownership and autonomy in day‑to‑day work, with guidance only for new or complex topics.

Engage in peer discussions, propose solutions, and provide recommendations for improvements.

6. Core QA Responsibilities

Develop and execute test plans, test cases, and automation scripts.

Report defects with clear reproduction paths and supporting logs.

Compile test reports, analyze failures, and provide actionable insights for release decisions.

Ensure completeness of testing and alignment with team KPIs.

Required education
Bachelor's Degree

Preferred education
Bachelor's Degree

Required technical and professional expertise

• 5-10 years of hands-on test automation with Python and PyTest (including fixtures).
• Strong Linux, Kubernetes, and OpenShift fundamentals; familiarity with containerized, cloud‑native architectures.
• Proven ability to write test plans/cases, execute suites, analyze failures end‑to‑end, and produce clear test reports.
• Working knowledge of GitHub, Jenkins, Jira, and a test management system.
• Solid grasp of storage concepts (e.g. - virtualization, backup/restore, disaster recovery, distributed storage).
• Strong Problem‑solving and debugging skills
• Clear written and verbal communication.
• Practical use of AI‑assisted tools to speed up coding, test creation, log analysis, and documentation.

Preferred technical and professional experience

• Experience with Data Foundation internals, Ceph Storage, and IBM Storage products such as Spectrum Scale, combined with exposure to VMware virtualization and cloud platforms like AWS, Azure, and GCP, as well as on‑prem BareMetal infrastructure.
• Test Automation Frameworks: Exposure to popular test automation frameworks, including their architecture and implementation.
• Understanding of how to integrate these frameworks into existing testing processes. Experience with performance/scale/upgrade testing at cluster level. Ability to optimize test scripts for performance and reliability.
• Ability to work independently with minimal guidance, make sound trade‑offs, and influence outcomes across teams.
• Demonstrated mentorship, process simplification, and documentation of best practices.
• Experience integrating AI tools into team workflows (e.g., test generation pipelines, log‑triage automations, doc bots) to elevate productivity and consistency.
• Agile Methodologies: Experience with agile development methodologies, including iterative testing and continuous integration.
• Ability to adapt test automation strategies to fit agile development cycles.
• Takes on greater responsibilities and shows a developing capacity to influence team goals and outcomes.
• Exercises some autonomy in decision-making, with supervision on complex topics
• Typically focuses on providing standard professional advice and creating outputs for review by experienced team professionals.
• Volunteers individual contributions aligned to collective goals.
• Studies and begins to understand of the client's business, industry, market, & technology
• Communicates effectively with peers, gains trust by being transparent and honest with others.

Years of Experience:
5-10