Sudharson Arulgnanam

Results-driven Lead SDET with 14+ years of experience in test automation, framework design, and QA leadership across Banking, Retail, Semiconductor, Healthcare, and SaaS/CRM domains. Expert in Selenium WebDriver, Cucumber BDD, TestNG, Java, and Ruby. Proven ability to build scalable hybrid automation frameworks using POM, Data-Driven, and Keyword-Driven methodologies.

Skilled in CI/CD integration (Jenkins, GitHub Actions) and actively leverages AI tools — Cursor AI, GitHub Copilot, and ChatGPT — to accelerate automation development. Led and mentored 10–12 engineers at Freshworks delivering high-quality automation for Freshsales and Freshservice.

Lead SDET - Freshworks - Chennai, India

(2022-08 - 2026-05)

• Led and mentored a team of 10–12 QA engineers, providing technical direction and coaching to achieve sprint goals and quality benchmarks.
• Designed and implemented hybrid automation frameworks using Selenium WebDriver, Java, TestNG, and Cucumber BDD with Page Object Model (POM).
• Integrated CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins, GitHub Actions) to enable continuous testing and reduce release cycle times.
• Adopted AI-powered Cursor IDE and GitHub Copilot for Selenium automation, reducing manual scripting effort and improving team productivity.
• Performed regression RCA after each deployment to identify failures and improve suite reliability.
• Collaborated with product and engineering teams early in SDLC for testability reviews and test estimation.
• Led all Agile Scrum ceremonies: daily stand-ups, backlog grooming, sprint planning, and retrospectives.

Lead Consultant – Test Automation - HCL Technologies - Chennai, India

(2021-10 - 2022-07)

• Prepared test plans and automation strategies for semiconductor domain web applications.
• Executed Selenium WebDriver scripts across Chrome, Firefox, and IE ensuring cross-browser compatibility.
• Integrated Sikuli image recognition into Selenium framework to automate Windows-based desktop applications.
• Coordinated with client SMEs to prepare test scenarios, defect reports, and release sign-off documentation.

Lead Consultant – QA Automation - Virtusa - Chennai, India

(2019-06 - 2021-09)

• Built automation framework from scratch using Selenium WebDriver, Cucumber BDD, and Java for RBC Trade-360 banking platform.
• Defined test estimations, requirement analysis, and comprehensive test planning for banking trade workflows.
• Planned and executed full regression suites achieving automation coverage across all critical business workflows.
• Managed complete defect lifecycle using JIRA in collaboration with product and development teams.

Senior Test Automation Lead - Toppan Merrill - Chennai, India

(2018-08 - 2019-06)

• Automated 10+ major web application releases using Selenium WebDriver and TestNG, improving release confidence.
• Improved regression cycle efficiency by 40% through reusable, modular test components.
• Implemented Fillo API Library for Excel-driven test data management and Sikuli for Windows UI automation.
• Served as SME for onboarding and training new QA engineers on automation best practices.

Automation Test Lead / Senior Test Engineer - Cognizant Technology Solutions - Chennai, India

(2011-05 - 2018-07)

• Built and maintained data-driven regression frameworks using Selenium WebDriver, Cucumber BDD, Apache POI, and TestNG.
• Automated regression suites for banking (Discover Financial) and retail (Canadian Tire, Loblaws) domains.
• Led mobile testing across cloud-based platforms and real Android/iOS devices.
• Led all Agile ceremonies with onshore US counterparts; managed full testing lifecycle end-to-end.
• Acted as SME; trained new QA engineers and authored course material for Software Testing Fundamentals.
• Operated in offshore/onshore model with regular coordination with US-based client teams.

Master of Computer Applications - Computer Applications - K.S.R. College of Technology (2010)