in

Engineering Leader · SDET · Automation Strategist

I lead quality and automation initiatives that scale teams, accelerate delivery, and align engineering execution with business strategy.

Leadership

My Story

My career has evolved from hands-on testing into leading automation strategy, influencing delivery decisions, and mentoring engineers across teams. I thrive at the intersection of technology, people, and business — elevating not just systems, but the people who build them.

How I Lead

I believe strong engineering teams are built through trust, clarity, and technical excellence. My leadership style focuses on setting clear standards, enabling autonomy, and ensuring quality is a shared responsibility — not a gate at the end.

Execution & Impact

What I Do
  • Design and scale automation frameworks across web, mobile, and APIs
  • Lead quality strategy for teams with low or zero automation maturity
  • Mentor engineers and influence delivery decisions across squads
  • Bridge engineering execution with business and product priorities
Impact Highlights
  • 🚀 Built automation where none existed → 90%+ regression coverage
  • ⏱️ Reduced release validation time from days to hours
  • 📈 Framework adopted across multiple teams and platforms
  • 🧠 Mentored engineers transitioning from manual to automation

Technical & Leadership Stack

Automation

Playwright, Postman, Cypress, Selenium, ReadyAPI, Perfecto, Quantum Testing (QTF), Appium

AI-Powered Tools

GitHub Copilot, Helios AI, Perfecto AI, Lumina, Figma

Cloud & APIs

AWS, Swagger/OpenAPI, RESTful Services

CI/CD & Delivery

Jenkins, GitHub Actions, Helios on Actions, Azure Pipeline, qTest, Allure

Languages

JavaScript, TypeScript, Java, SQL, HTML, CSS, Swift, Kotlin, Gherkin

Test Strategy & Governance

Automation standards, coverage models, risk-based testing, release readiness frameworks

Leadership Capabilities

Technical influence without authority, cross-team alignment, mentorship, risk communication, and translating engineering signals into business decisions.

Professional Experience

Leadership & Scale

RBC — Software Development Engineer in Test

March 2025 – Present | Toronto, Canada

Operating in a staff-level capacity, I lead automation and quality strategy across multiple teams and platforms, focusing on scalability, consistency, and long-term engineering outcomes rather than isolated execution.

  • Cross-Team Technical Leadership: Influenced quality and automation direction across web, mobile, and backend teams, aligning standards and tooling without direct authority.
  • System-Level Ownership: Designed and evolved shared automation frameworks to balance execution speed, maintainability, and platform-wide reuse.
  • Engineering Enablement: Mentored engineers transitioning from manual testing into automation ownership, raising overall quality maturity and reducing dependency on centralized QA.
  • Delivery & Risk Leadership: Partnered with product and delivery leads to surface quality risks early and integrate testing strategy into release planning.

Impact: Automation frameworks adopted across teams, improving release confidence, reducing validation cycles, and enabling faster, safer delivery.

From Contributor to Owner

Cognizant (Client: Desjardins Insurance) — Associate Software Engineer

January 2024 – March 2025 | Toronto, Canada

Took ownership of backend API validation and automation within a large-scale modernization initiative, operating in an environment with evolving requirements and limited existing automation maturity.

  • Ownership Under Ambiguity: Defined backend testing strategy and automation patterns where no prior framework existed, establishing repeatable and scalable practices.
  • Execution Leadership: Drove the transition from manual testing to automated validation for critical services, improving reliability and feedback loops.
  • Stakeholder Communication: Translated technical test outcomes into clear risk assessments for developers, analysts, and delivery leads.

Impact: Improved coverage and confidence in critical backend services while accelerating validation timelines.

As my scope expanded, my work shifted from task execution to ownership, influence, and long-term technical decision-making.
Building Foundations

Early Career & Internships @ TD Bank, IBM Canada, York University, Story Planet, Stark Enterprises

2021 – 2023 | Toronto, Canada

Built strong engineering fundamentals through diverse roles, focusing on test design, system behavior, and collaborative problem-solving across teams.

  • Engineering Discipline: Developed a strong foundation in debugging, test design, and understanding complex systems end-to-end.
  • Collaboration: Worked closely with developers, analysts, and researchers to validate requirements and ensure reliable delivery.

Career Vision

In the near term, I aim to take on roles where I can lead technical initiatives end-to-end — owning quality strategy, mentoring engineers, and driving execution across teams while remaining hands-on with architecture and automation.

Over time, my goal is to grow into senior engineering leadership positions where I shape technical direction, build high-performing teams, and influence how organizations scale reliable, maintainable systems.

Education

York University

Honours Bachelor of Engineering — Computer Engineering 2019 – 2023

Completed a rigorous engineering curriculum with a strong foundation in software development, systems design, and problem-solving. Recognized through academic scholarships and competitive engineering achievements.

Contact

Email
philipmanojthomas@gmail.com

LinkedIn
linkedin.com/in/philipmt