Functional Test Lead

Functional Test Lead

Location: Toronto United States

Job Description:

Job#: 3027005

Job Description:

E2E Functional Test Lead - Retail Payments

Client: Leading Canadian Bank (Retail Payments)

Engagement: Contract (12 months, extension likely)

Location: Hybrid - Downtown Toronto (on-site Tuesdays)

Role Overview

• This E2E Functional Test Lead role focuses on validating critical retail banking, credit card, and payments workflows across multiple integrated systems. The role does not own applications and does not manage people. Success depends on the candidate's ability to understand how systems work together behind the UI, design end-to-end test strategies, and explain how and why data flows across the enterprise.
• The ideal candidate has deep functional testing experience across frontend channels, APIs, middleware, core banking systems, real‑time and batch integrations, and understands Canadian banking and/or credit card ecosystems.
• This is not a UAT Lead role and not a siloed application QA role.

Purpose of the Role

• Validate that end‑to‑end business flows work correctly across multiple systems
• Design and lead E2E functional test strategies, not just test execution
• Ensure data integrity, integration correctness, and downstream impacts
• Provide visibility into system behavior behind the scenes, not just UI validation

Key Responsibilities

End‑to‑End Functional Test Leadership

• Lead and execute E2E functional testing across 10+ integrated systems within Retail Payments and Credit Cards
• Design risk‑based end‑to‑end test strategies focused on critical business flows (onboarding, payments, settlements, reporting)
• Validate data flow across UI → APIs → middleware → core banking → downstream systems
• Explain how systems interact and what happens behind the scenes when customers take actions in digital channels
• Identify, manage, and escalate environment gaps, test data gaps, and integration issues

Integration & Data Validation

• Validate real‑time integrations (latency, retries, failures) and batch-based processes (file drops, schedules, reconciliation)
• Perform backend validation using logs, APIs, databases, and reconciliation checks
• Validate contract behavior, message events, and cross‑system data consistency

Cross‑Team Coordination

• Coordinate testing across multiple application teams without owning any single system
• Partner closely with solution architects, developers, BAs, and SMEs
• Ask "why" questions when requirements lack architectural clarity
• Clarify assumptions and adapt test strategies as solution understanding evolves

Quality & Risk Focus

• Design test scenarios tied to customer impact, financial exposure, and regulatory risk
• Perform root cause analysis and articulate business relevance of defects
• Maintain clear documentation of flows, dependencies, and known failure points

Required Qualifications

Core Experience

• 5+ years in End‑to‑End Functional Testing within banking, payments, or credit cards

• Proven experience testing complex, multi‑system integrations without application ownership

• Strong understanding of:

• Frontend channels (mobile/web)

• APIs and services

• Middleware and integration layers

• Core banking and card platforms

• Downstream reporting and data stores

• Experience with Canadian Credit Cards and/or Payments systems

Technical & Testing Skills

• Ability to interpret solution architecture diagrams
• API validation experience (Postman or similar)
• Backend validation (SQL, logs, traces)
• Experience testing real‑time vs batch processes
• Hands‑on functional testing (not purely coordination)
• ALM / JIRA / Confluence experience
• TSYS or similar card platform experience

Nice to Have

• Exposure to API automation
• CI/CD familiarity

How Success Is Measured

• Can clearly walk through an end‑to‑end banking flow, explaining systems and data movement
• Understands dependencies between systems, not just screens
• Designs test strategies, not just test cases
• Validates integrations even without system ownership
• Proactively seeks architectural clarity when documentation is weak

Interview Signals (Embedded Expectation Setting)

Strong Candidates Will:

• Describe UI → API → core → downstream flows
• Explain data movement, not just user actions
• Differentiate real‑time vs batch testing approaches
• Tie test scenarios to business and risk impact
• Demonstrate curiosity about architecture and integration behavior

Red Flags:

• Only talks about screens or scripted test cases
• Cannot explain where data goes after the frontend
• Treats real‑time and batch testing the same
• Relies solely on documented requirements
• Assumes integration validation is someone else's responsibility

EEO Employer

Apex is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Apex will consider qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable law. If you have visited our website in search of information on employment opportunities or to apply for a position, and you require an accommodation in using our website for a search or application, please contact our Employee Services Department at [email protected] or 844-463-6178.

Apex Systems is a world-class IT services company that serves thousands of clients across the globe. When you join Apex, you become part of a team that values innovation, collaboration, and continuous learning. We offer quality career resources, training, certifications, development opportunities, and a comprehensive benefits package. Our commitment to excellence is reflected in many awards, including ClearlyRated's Best of Staffing in Talent Satisfaction in the United States and Great Place to Work in the United Kingdom and Mexico. Apex uses a virtual recruiter as part of the application process. Click here for more details.

Apex Benefits Overview: In terms of professional development, Apex hosts an on-demand training program, provides access to certification prep and a library of technical and leadership courses/books/seminars once you have 6+ months of tenure, and certification discounts and other perks to associations that include CompTIA and IIBA.

Employee Type:

Contract

Location:

Toronto, ON, CA

Job Type:

Date Posted:

March 20, 2026

Pay Range:

$60 - $70 per hour

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