Lead Software Engineer in Test

Lead Software Engineer - Test

Company Description

Organizations everywhere struggle under the crushing costs and complexities of “solutions” that promise to simplify their lives. To create a better experience for their customers and employees. To help them grow. Software is a choice that can make or break a business. Create better or worse experiences. Propel or throttle growth. Business software has become a blocker instead of ways to get work done.

There’s another option. Freshworks With a fresh vision for how the world works.

At Freshworks, we build uncomplicated service software that delivers exceptional customer and employee experiences. Our enterprise-grade solutions are powerful, yet easy to use, and quick to deliver results. Our people-first approach to AI eliminates friction, making employees more effective and organizations more productive. Over 72,000 companies, including Bridgestone, New Balance, Nucor, S&P Global, and Sony Music, trust Freshworks customer experience (CX) and employee experience (EX) software to fuel customer loyalty and service efficiency. And, over 4,500 Freshworks employees make this possible, all around the world.

Fresh vision. Real impact. Come build it with us.

Job Description

About the Role

At Freshworks, quality isn’t a checkpoint—it’s part of our engineering DNA. As a Lead Software Engineer in Test, you’ll be the technical owner of automation strategy and test architecture for products used by thousands every day. You’ll work at the intersection of code, tooling, performance, and product confidence—ensuring we ship fast without breaking things.

If you think like a developer, test like a user, and automate like an architect—this role is built for you.

The Impact You Own

• Architecting the Quality Ecosystem: You will own and evolve our entire testing strategy. By designing and building scalable automation frameworks for UI, API, and microservices from scratch, you will set the technical foundation for how Freshworks ensures enterprise-grade product reliability.

• Accelerating Engineering Velocity: You will define the quality gates across the SDLC and champion "shift-left" testing practices. By seamlessly integrating your automation into CI/CD pipelines with DevOps, you will empower the engineering org to ship code faster without breaking things.

• Championing System Performance: You will look beyond functional testing to lead performance, cross-browser, and non-functional testing initiatives. Using deep debugging skills in distributed systems, you will proactively identify bottlenecks before they reach the user.

• Multiplying Team Capability: As a technical leader across multiple QA pods, you will elevate the engineering standards of everyone around you. Through rigorous test code reviews, architectural guidance, and dedicated mentorship, you will build a culture where quality is truly in the engineering DNA.

 

Responsibilities

• Own and evolve the entire testing lifecycle—strategy, tools, coverage, and automation ROI.

• Build scalable automation frameworks for UI, API, and microservices.

• Define quality gates across SDLC and drive shift-left testing practices.

• Lead performance, non-functional, and cross-browser testing initiatives.

• Partner with Dev and DevOps teams to integrate automation into CI/CD pipelines.

• Drive continuous improvement in test coverage, stability, and developer confidence.

• Provide technical leadership across multiple QA pods.

• Review test code, mentor team members, and guide debugging and root cause analysis.

Qualifications

Skill Inventory & Qualifications

Core Engineering & Architecture

• 7–9 years of proven experience in QA engineering and advanced automation.

• Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field.

• Data Structures & Algorithms (DSA): Strong analytical problem-solving skills, capable of writing optimized code (time/space complexity) and applying OOP principles for highly extensible automation.

• System Design for Test: Experience architecting reusable automation frameworks from scratch for distributed systems and microservices.

• Engineering Mindset: A hands-on builder who codes and tests at production-level standards and naturally biases toward excellent documentation.

Automation & Tooling Stack

• UI & API Automation: Deep expertise in Selenium (Webdrivers, XPath, CSS Selectors), Postman, and API testing methodologies.

• Performance Testing: Hands-on experience with JMeter or similar load-testing tools to validate non-functional requirements.

• DevOps Integration: Strong experience embedding test strategies into CI/CD pipelines and partnering directly with Dev/DevOps teams.

Testing Methodologies & Leadership

• End-to-End STLC: Deep understanding of the Software Testing Life Cycle, Test Management, Test Coverage, and complex release processes (including comprehensive manual testing when needed).

• Root Cause Analysis: Advanced debugging and defect analysis skills within highly complex, scalable environments.

• Technical Leadership: A proven track record of mentoring junior engineers, leading code reviews, and clearly articulating complex architectural thought processes to cross-functional stakeholders.

Additional Information

At Freshworks, we have fostered an environment that enables everyone to find their true potential, purpose, and passion, welcoming colleagues of all backgrounds, genders, sexual orientations, religions, and ethnicities. We are committed to providing equal opportunity and believe that diversity in the workplace creates a more vibrant, richer environment that boosts the goals of our employees, communities, and business. Fresh vision. Real impact. Come build it with us.

Experience Level

Senior Level