Mark Mardechaev

Hands-on QA & Quality Engineering Leader and Senior SDET with extensive experience building Quality Engineering capabilities, test automation frameworks, and high-performing QA teams across startups and enterprise environments.

Throughout my career, I have often joined organizations where QA, Quality Engineering, or automation needed to be built from the ground up.

My work spans defining quality strategy and building QA functions, designing reusable automation frameworks, developing automated tests and engineering tools, integrating validation into CI/CD pipelines, and enabling developers and QA engineers to contribute to automation.

I remain highly hands-on technically, with experience in Python, Pytest, Playwright, Go, Java, Bash, REST APIs, GraphQL, UI/CLI automation, performance testing, Docker, Kubernetes, and cloud environments across AWS, Azure, and GCP.

My background includes AI-powered enterprise platforms, secure software supply chains, cybersecurity, SaaS, cloud networking, telecommunications, and distributed systems. I have worked across UI, API, integration, end-to-end, regression, performance, container, networking, and system-level validation.

I also bring significant QE leadership experience: building and transforming QA teams, hiring and mentoring engineers, establishing quality strategy, introducing test management and automation practices, improving release readiness, and partnering with Engineering, Product, DevOps, Architecture, and executive stakeholders.

My recent work includes testing AI-powered products and extensive hands-on use of Cursor, Augment Code, Playwright MCP and AI-assisted development to accelerate test automation and Quality Engineering workflows.

Core areas

🔹 Automation: Python • Pytest • Playwright • Selenium • UI • API • CLI • GraphQL

🔹 Frameworks: Test Automation Architecture • Automation Infrastructure • CI/CD

🔹 AI-Assisted QE: Cursor • Augment AI • Playwright MCP • AI-Assisted Automation • AI Testing

🔹 Cloud: Kubernetes (CKAD) • Docker • AWS • Azure • GCP • OpenShift

🔹 Leadership: Quality Strategy • QA Team Building • Test & Automation Strategy

🔹 Systems: TCP/IP • Ethernet • HTTP/S • VLANs • DNS • DOCSIS • OTN • DWDM

I enjoy roles where Quality Engineering is treated as an engineering discipline combining hands-on automation and problem-solving with practical quality leadership to help teams build and release reliable software.

• B.Sc. in Electrical & Electronic Engineering and Computer Science

• Practical Computer & Electronic Engineer

• Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD) — The Linux Foundation