Vladimir Filipescu
Test Automation Engineer
Experienced SDET and Cloud Engineer with 25+ years of experience in software development, testing and technical support, including 10+ years in Test Automation, Agile Testing and Quality Assurance. Strong track record designing and implementing automated test frameworks and CI/CD DevOps pipelines for FinTech (banking), medical, automotive, industrial and IoT clients. Proficient in Java, Selenium, REST Assured, mobile testing, AWS (including Amazon Connect and Amazon Bedrock), Docker and Kubernetes. Used to working in cross-functional international Agile teams, collaborating closely with business and IT stakeholders and mentoring QA engineers. Pragmatic and curious, I combine technical leadership with close collaboration to deliver scalable, maintainable solutions. I value clear communication and continuous improvement across both technology and team practices.
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Years experience
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Languages
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Skills
Work Experience
SDET Consultant
Freelance
11/2025 — PresentCurrent
- Engineered rapid prototypes for diverse automation projects through prompt engineering using Claude, Copilot, Gemini, and ChatGPT, then developed in Visual Studio Code with embedded agentic AI
- Implemented Spec-Driven Development (SDD) and Test-Driven Development (TDD) methodologies in Python utilizing Claude Code
- Executed Behavior-Driven Development (BDD) with Python and pytest-bdd to enhance testing effectiveness
AWS Cloud Engineer
Accenture
02/2024 — 11/2025Zürich, Switzerland
- Showcased an AWS pilot project, Personal Virtual Assistant, at Amazon Summit Day in Zürich for automobile sellers
- Engineered precise cloud consumption estimations (ARR) and optimized architectures for enhanced client solutions
- Developed Amazon Connect-ServiceNow integration, creating Amazon Bedrock AI agents to automate incident management via Python Lambda functions
- Integrated Amazon Q with Amazon Connect, embedding a GenAI contact center assistant to deliver real-time recommendations to agents
- Designed and deployed a versatile, multi-language test automation framework in PowerShell with Pester to verify SLAs for AWS EC2 high-availability testing
- Spearheaded POC infrastructure projects utilizing Terraform and Ansible, streamlining provisioning from 3 hours to 1 hour
Test Automation and Requirements Engineer (Banking)
Accenture
02/2021 — 02/2024Zürich, Switzerland
- Engineered and executed test strategies and best practices for complex banking applications, ensuring high-quality, production-ready releases using Scrum and SAFe methodologies
- Spearheaded and mentored QA team members, enhancing test design and automation implementation while promoting a shift-left testing approach within Agile/DevOps workflows
- Conducted microservices testing and ensured acceptance criteria traceability in Jira with Xray, developing self-updating dashboards and comprehensive reports
- Optimized quality gates by owning the defect lifecycle, including logging, root cause analysis, and coordinating fixes with development and product teams
- Monitored service health through Grafana dashboards and implemented Prometheus alerting for proactive issue resolution
- Troubleshot microservices deployed in Kubernetes clusters, collaborating effectively with developers, DevOps, and architects to resolve issues
- Designed and executed functional test automation for API and UI Testing using Java, REST Assured, Selenium, and Cucumber (BDD), delivering reports in Serenity
- Developed backend automation scripts in PowerShell with Pester for robust regression and SLA verification
- Created campaigns, iterations, and test suites in Squash to enhance test management and execution efficiency
- Migrated high-value test scenarios from Selenium to Playwright, facilitating a controlled transition that balanced modernization with stability and maintained release confidence
- Enhanced requirements analysis to ensure user stories included clearly defined and individually testable acceptance criteria
Test Automation Engineer (Automotive, IoT, Medical Software, Industrial)
Accenture
11/2018 — 02/2021Cluj-Napoca, Romania
- Engineered automation test scripts in Kotlin using the Espresso framework for medical mobile applications, applying Test-Driven Development (TDD) principles
- Executed and refined manual test cases on simulated devices in Android Studio and Sauce Labs for an IoT mobile app; automated regression tests with Appium using GitHub versioning
- Designed and implemented a comprehensive backend smoke-testing suite in HipTest, ensuring thorough coverage of API definitions for IoT solutions
- Developed a proof-of-concept UI automation framework in Java with Selenium and Cucumber (BDD), integrating AutoIt for seamless third-party security authentication
- Established backend testing suites utilizing TestRail, Postman, and SoapUI for functional testing in automotive projects
- Optimized GitLab CI/CD DevOps integration pipelines for backend test automation frameworks using Docker-based containers
- Delivered a robust load testing strategy for an e-commerce platform using JMeter and k6, validating performance under peak traffic conditions
Integration and Test Engineer (Aeronautical Information Systems)
Frequentis
01/2017 — 11/2018Cluj-Napoca, Romania
- Engineered and executed automated tests with TestComplete, SoapUI/ReadyAPI, and Selenium, utilizing Jira for defect management and documenting best practices in Atlassian Confluence
- Monitored and optimized application configurations and status through Oracle WebLogic
- Developed and implemented Bash scripts for XML data transformation and effective Linux server monitoring
- Maintained and enhanced Jenkins jobs to streamline the CI/CD DevOps process
Test Engineer (Platform Engineering, High-Availability, Disaster Recovery)
Neverfail / Artisan Infrastructure
01/2015 — 01/2017Cluj-Napoca, Romania
- Led the comprehensive lifecycle of product testing for on-premises and cloud deployments
- Engineered automated deployments and test scenarios utilizing Bash and PowerShell
- Validated high-availability failover scenarios in on-prem and cloud environments, ensuring RTO/RPO targets
- Analyzed and replicated intricate customer environments to validate new features and fixes
Senior Technical Support Engineer (Platform Engineering, High-Availability, Disaster Recovery)
Neverfail / Artisan Infrastructure
06/2005 — 01/2015Cluj-Napoca, Romania
- Delivered exceptional technical support within SLAs to global customers and partners through phone, email, and remote sessions using Kanban Agile methodology
- Executed comprehensive root cause analysis of production incidents by interpreting Java stack traces and conducting network traffic analysis with Wireshark, defined corrective actions, and ensured resolution follow-up
- Facilitated escalation of complex issues to Engineering while coordinating clear communication among all stakeholders
- Developed and maintained robust knowledge base articles and technical documentation to enhance team resources
Business Application Consultant and Developer (Telecom, Retail)
Various IT companies
04/1997 — 06/2005Cluj-Napoca, Romania
- Analyzed and optimized business data flows, creating essential business diagrams to facilitate project implementation
- Engineered diverse projects utilizing relational databases, including PostgreSQL, SQLite, and MS SQL
- Developed comprehensive reports with Oracle Reports and implemented Oracle Payables and Oracle Purchasing solutions
- Designed and executed customer service systems integrating data modeling and robust business logic
Skills
Stakeholders communication, mentoring, coachingTest strategy, Defect Management, QA Governance, Quality Assurance, Quality EngineeringShift-Left testing, SDET, Test automation: API testing, UI testing, mobile, regression testingCI/CD, DevOps, containerisation, microservicesRequirements Analysis, Acceptance Criteria (BDD Gherkin Given/When/Then format)Cloud engineering (AWS): architecture, cost optimisation, high availability, AI integrationTest Automation Frameworks: Java, Selenium, Cucumber, Playwright, RESTAssured, Postman, Jenkins
Education
Master, International Business Administration
Babeș-Bolyai University (Cluj-Napoca, Romania)
Master, Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) Rezonanz – Coaching & Communication
Kutschera Institute (Cluj-Napoca, Romania)
Master, Computer Science
Babeș-Bolyai University (Cluj-Napoca, Romania)
Bachelor, Computer Science
Babeș-Bolyai University (Cluj-Napoca, Romania)
Certifications
AWS Cloud Practitioner
ISTQB Certified Tester – Foundation Level
Languages
English
Fluent C1/C2 (Cambridge Certificate)
German
Advanced B1/B2
French
Advanced B1/B2
Romanian
Native
TECHNICAL SKILLS
Development:
- Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, Agentic AI Development, VS Code, Prompt Engineering
Methodologies:
- Root cause analysis (RCA), Agile testing, SAFe, Scrum, Kanban, TDD, SDD
Agile backlog refinement, Acceptance criteria authoring:
- BDD Gherkin Cucumber
Requirements engineering, Business analysis
Test Management:
- Atlassian Jira (Xray), Atlassian Confluence, HipTest, TestRail, Squash
Test Automation:
- API testing (RESTful APIs, JSON, Postman, Java REST Assured), UI testing (Selenium, Playwright), Python, PowerShell (Pester), TestComplete, SoapUI / ReadyAPI, AutoIt
Mobile Testing:
- Appium, Kotlin, Espresso (Android Studio)
Test Reporting Framework:
- Serenity
Test Platform:
- Sauce Labs
Performance Testing:
- JMeter, k6
Observability:
- Grafana, Prometheus
Cloud:
- Cloud cost modelling /ARR estimation AWS Amazon Connect, Amazon Q, Bedrock, Lambda, EC2
DevOps
- CI/CD, DevOps, Docker, Jenkins, GitHub, GitLab CI
Architecture:
- Kubernetes, microservices architecture/ distributed systems troubleshooting
Generative AI
- Kubernetes, microservices architecture/ distributed systems troubleshooting
Programming & Scripting:
- Java, Kotlin, Python (pytest), PowerShell, Bash
Infrastructure as a Code:
- Terraform, Ansible, PowerShell
SaaS/ITSM Platform:
- ServiceNow
Networking:
- Network analysis/ TCP-IP troubleshooting, Wireshark, Linux
High-availability and disaster recovery
Operating Systems:
- Windows, Linux
IDEs:
- Visual Studio Code, Android Studio
Data Processing:
- XML transformation via Bash scripting
Technical documentation, knowledge base authoring
References available upon request.