Job Intel

Over the last couple weeks, I’ve had 3 conversations with different candidates applying to “manual + automation” listed QA roles…that are actually much more engineering-heavy than they appear.

How long has this been an issue?

Quick note: if you’re ~75% of a fit, apply. Don’t overthink it.
My opinion: The goal of your resume is simply to get that conversation. If it’s a solid company and you’re reasonably aligned, that first call is always worth it.

Once you’re in that conversation, here are a few questions I think might help you actually vet the role:

▶️ If someone spent 70% of their first 90 days on automation backlog and 30% on sprint coverage, would that be the right balance? What does the week-to-week actually look like?
▶️ What does the current automation setup look like: building from scratch, inheriting a framework, or maintaining what’s already there?
▶️ When you say “manual testing when needed,” who decides when it’s needed? The QA engineer, product, or a defined process?

If the rep doesn’t know the answers, that’s fine: ask them to go get them. That clarity helps everyone.

A friend got double-submitted by two staffing firms and ended up in a dispute after an offer last week for a performance gig. The details were vague, client name was shared, a canned job description was used, but there was no req ID, R2R or hiring manager listed. That made it almost impossible to track at an active enterprise bank.

We walked through the scenerio and came up with a simple set of questions candidates can use to understand how a firm actually operates and how transparent their process is.

1) Req ID or approval status

• “What is the req ID for this role?”
• If there is no ID: “Where is this role in the approval process?”

2) Hiring context

• “Can you share the hiring manager or at least the team or business unit?”
• “If not, can you give more detail on the project or scope beyond the job description?”

3) Relationship depth

• “How long have you supported this client and this specific manager?”
• “Do you currently have anyone on payroll there?”

4) Submission process

• “How is my resume submitted and presented?”
• “Do you hop on a call with the manager, or submit directly via email? Or does it go through a coordinator, or vms portal?”
• “Do you personally present candidates or is it handled by an account manager?”

5) Submission volume

• “How many submissions is your firm allowed for this role?”
• “How many other vendors have this role?”

These are not meant to be combative. They simply help clarify how the process works, reduce ambiguity, and surface how transparent the relationship really is. It’s very easy to bake these into conversations.

You know what they say…clear process upfront usually means fewer surprises later.

Don’t know why these questions are important, or have one of your own you want answered? DM.

Hiring Pipeline Intelligence

Sharing a quick snapshot from recent conversations across QA hiring in the Charlotte market. This is based on candidate interviews, recruiter outreach, and staffing-side signals I’m hearing week to week.

Charlotte market activity
Multiple candidates recently interview for QA roles at companies: Ben AI, Hemmings, CPI Security, Fastbreak AI, LoopQA, Bank of America, Ally Financial, Paylocity, Vanguard, Digital Kings Networking, Charter, and Wells Fargo, etc.

Staffing + pipeline signals
I’m hearing early-stage outreach from staffing partners tied to QA testing work at SMBC.
I expect to continue to see roles come out from Ally Financial.

Open reqs online in the last couple weeks:
Selective Insurance, Total Quality Logistics, AssetMark and The Hartford currently show openings. If you’ve interviewed at any of these recently, I’d genuinely be interested in hearing about your feedback and what the process was like. Always helpful to compare notes, especially when job postings and actual interview activity don’t always match.