Senior Test Automation Engineer | 12-Month Contract | Hybrid – Melbourne

Salary: Competitive

The hiring company is a global leader in scientific instrumentation and laboratory technology, delivering software and hardware solutions relied on by researchers and scientists worldwide. To cover a period of leave within their software engineering team, they're seeking an experienced Senior Test Automation Engineer on an initial 12-month contract, with strong potential for extension.

The Opportunity

You'll take ownership of the automation strategy for a suite of scientific software products, working closely with Software Development, Product Management, and Quality Engineering to keep quality high and releases on track. This is a hands-on, high-trust role for someone who can lead automation initiatives while still balancing day-to-day delivery.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain robust automated test frameworks and test suites for desktop and enterprise applications

• Lead the automation strategy for a core scientific software platform and related initiatives

• Build scalable, reliable, maintainable automated tests using industry-standard tools and frameworks

• Integrate automated testing into CI/CD pipelines to support continuous quality assurance

• Partner with Software Development, Product Management, and Quality Engineering to define and implement test strategy

• Analyse product requirements and technical designs to spot automation opportunities and quality risks

• Investigate, troubleshoot, and resolve automation failures and test infrastructure issues

• Support releases with appropriate automated test coverage and execution

• Drive continuous improvement in test processes, coverage, and quality practices

• Mentor team members in automation best practice and modern testing methodology

• Contribute to test planning, estimation, and technical decision-making

About You

• Proven experience in software test automation, ideally in desktop or enterprise environments

• Strong hands-on experience with industry-standard automation frameworks and tools

• Experience integrating automated testing into CI/CD pipelines

• Demonstrated technical leadership and the ability to work independently and drive outcomes

• Excellent stakeholder management and collaboration skills

• A continuous improvement mindset and strong attention to detail

• A background or genuine interest in scientific/chemistry-related industries is highly regarded but not essential; attitude and willingness to learn count for a lot here

• Full working rights in Australia, available during Australian business hours

What's on Offer

• Initial 12-month contract with genuine potential for extension (and longer-term possibilities for the right person)

• Hybrid working, with a minimum of 3 days on-site

• A collaborative, growing engineering team

• The chance to work on scientific software used globally

• Competitive contract rate, based on experience