Senior Associate, Software Engineering: Software Development Test (SDET)

OCC • Chicago, IL

1d • $86,500 - $148,700 • Hybrid

About The Position

OCC's Enterprise Quality Engineering organization seeks a Senior Associate in Performance Testing to execute performance and failover testing for mission-critical clearing, risk, and settlement systems. This hands-on role focuses on designing test scenarios, executing performance tests, analyzing results, and validating system behavior during failover and disaster recovery scenarios. The ideal candidate combines strong performance testing execution skills with the ability to work across multi-region cloud and hybrid architectures, ensuring systems meet strict RTO/RPO regulatory requirements.

Requirements

• 3+ years hands-on experience in performance testing, including executing performance tests with LoadRunner, JMeter, or similar tools
• 2+ years designing and executing failover/disaster recovery testing in cloud or hybrid environments
• Proficiency in LoadRunner scripting and test scenario creation, OR strong hands-on experience with JMeter/Gatling
• Scripting experience in Python or Java for test automation and data generation
• Experience with AWS cloud environments and understanding of performance implications in cloud-native applications
• Working knowledge of Kafka and event-driven systems, including producer/consumer testing
• Hands-on experience with relational databases (SQL Server, Oracle, DB2) and ability to write queries for test data and validation
• Experience with test automation tools and frameworks for performance regression testing
• Familiarity with APM/observability platforms (Splunk, Dynatrace, AppDynamics, or similar)
• Experience with CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins, GitHub, GitLab) and integration of performance tests
• Proficiency with Linux command-line tools and basic understanding of Linux operating systems
• Experience with test management and issue tracking tools (Jira, Zephyr, SpiraTest)
• Experience testing multi-region architectures or distributed systems with performance validation
• Experience or familiarity with financial systems, clearing, settlement, or highly regulated, low-latency environments
• B.S. Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent practical experience
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills; attention to detail in test execution and result documentation
• Experience in Agile methodology.
• Experience in integration of Jira and Test management tool.
• Strong communication skills, written and oral, analytical abilities, problem solving skills, sound judgment and time management skills.
• Experience in creating automation scripts.
• Experience in developing automation frameworks.
• Experience in developing Jenkins pipelines.

Nice To Haves

• Performance testing certification (ISTQB Performance Tester, LoadRunner certification, or equivalent)
• Experience with Kubernetes and containerized application performance testing
• UC4 (Automic) job scheduling experience
• API testing experience (Postman, RestAssured)
• Experience with data pipeline testing (ETL tools, Tableau)
• AWS certification or cloud architecture knowledge
• Experience in Options/Futures industry
• Hands-on experience with Kafka cluster setup, monitoring, and performance tuning
• Experience in the Options and Futures industry is preferred
• AWS certification or performance engineering certification preferred

Responsibilities

• Design and execute performance tests using LoadRunner, JMeter, and Gatling across AWS and on-premise environments per established test plans and load profiles
• Create, maintain, and enhance LoadRunner scripts, test scenarios, and script repositories
• Analyze performance test results to identify bottlenecks, anomalies, and optimization opportunities; generate findings reports
• Develop and maintain performance test automation scripts (Python, Java) and integrate regression testing into CI/CD pipelines
• Create parameterized test data and document test procedures, expected results, and baselines
• Work with DevOps to set up and validate multi-region test environments
• Correlate performance results with APM/monitoring platforms (Splunk, Dynatrace, AppDynamics) and generate dashboards and trend analysis
• Collaborate with development, DevOps, and infrastructure teams on performance requirements and testing plans
• Execute failover and disaster recovery testing across primary, secondary, and tertiary regions, including applications, databases, Kafka, and middleware
• Validate RTO/RPO metrics and post-failover performance against SLAs, including compliance with regulatory requirements
• Test multi-region deployments for replication lag, data consistency, Kafka topic replication, and failover behavior during region switches
• Document and present test results, trends, and findings to QE leadership

Benefits

• A hybrid work environment, up to 2 days per week of remote work
• Tuition Reimbursement to support your continued education
• Student Loan Repayment Assistance
• Technology Stipend allowing you to use the device of your choice to connect to our network while working remotely
• Generous PTO and Parental leave
• 401k Employer Match
• Competitive health benefits including medical, dental and vision

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior