Cucumber
Jared Hood
Software Quality Assurance Lead Technologist
Aurora,CO
Summary
Quality Engineering leader with 20+ years of experience and 7+ years managing QA organizations for cloud-based SaaS platforms. Proven success defining and executing automation-first Quality Engineering strategies, embedding test automation into CI/CD pipelines, and driving data-backed quality decisions using observability, metrics, and dashboards. Deep expertise in UI, API, performance, integration, and end-to-end automation, release governance, and reliability engineering. Trusted partner to Engineering, Product, DevOps/SRE, and Security teams delivering predictable, low-defect releases at scale.
Overview
20
20
years of professional experience
2
2
Certificates
Work History
Quality Assurance Manager
UDR
Highlands Ranch, CO
10.2021 - 11.2024
- Designed and implemented a SOC compliant risk based regression testing
framework, prioritizing high risk areas for accelerated validation.
• Championed ISO 9001 adherence by aligning QA documentation, audit logs, and
process controls with certification requirements.
• Scaled QA from 2 to 16 engineers across onshore/offshore locations, integrating
automation in CI/CD pipelines to cut release cycles by 30%.
• Established KPI dashboards (DRE, MTTR, coverage) to drive data informed quality
decisions.
• Led process audits, quality planning sessions, and introduced AImbased test case
generation to improve coverage.
• Mentored engineers and developed technical career paths aligned with
Quality Assurance Lead
Pax8
Greenwood Village, CO
07.2021 - 10.2021
- Delivered UAT and API testing for vendor integrations with a focus on billing systems and backend validation.
- Led defect triage and test plan execution within Agile pods.
- Created detailed test cases and collaborated cross-functionally to ensure feature readiness.
UAT/Quality Analyst Lead
Charter Communications
Greenwood Village, CO
03.2018 - 07.2021
- Created QA/UAT process for 6 applications distributed across Spectrum organization for Account Executives, Associate Sales Managers, etc
- Led functional, end-to-end, and UAT testing effort for SalesForce integration across 3 platforms increasing product success through iterative deployments on a Saas product.
- Reduced defect rates by 40% within 6 months by implementing a structured approach to automated regression, integration, and user acceptance testing that allowed for product releases in a timely manner.
- Assist project stakeholders with technical issues during high priority UAT rollout, inspiring trust and accelerating the UAT delivery timeline.
Sr Mobile Quality Assurance Engineer
Four Winds Interactive
Denver, CO
09.2017 - 03.2018
- Conducted cross-platform usability and regression testing on native and web mobile apps.
- Decreased production defects by 40% through comprehensive exploratory and automated testing.
Principal Quality Engineer Lead
SpotX
Broomfield, CO
04.2017 - 09.2017
- Led 3 QA teams delivering weekly feature releases.
- Migrated test management to Zephyr and implemented QA best practices across teams.
Senior Systems Test Engineer
Starz LLC
Englewood
07.2013 - 03.2017
- QA-tested OTT streaming systems and backend services; validated app content delivery using Wireshark and Charles Proxy.
- Built CI/CD pipelines with GitLab and CircleCI to accelerate release velocity by 50%.
Automation Engineer
Booj
Lakewood
05.2012 - 06.2013
Senior Quality Assurance Engineer
Nagrastar
Englewood
11.2009 - 05.2012
Software Quality Engineer
Harris Corporation
Englewood
12.2008 - 06.2009
Automation and QA Engineer
booj LLC
02.2008 - 09.2008
Software Test Engineering Technician
Echostar Technologies LLC
Englewood
08.2004 - 02.2008
Education
Bachelor of Arts - Business Management
Patten University
Oakland, CASkills
QA Team Management & Coaching
Web & Mobile App Testing (iOS/Android)
Manual & Automated Testing
UAT, Regression, and E2E Testing
Cross-Functional Collaboration
Jira, Azure DevOps, Zephyr, TestRail
API Testing (Postman, REST)
Agile/Scrum Methodologies
CI/CD: Jenkins, GitHub, Docker
Onboarding & Process Improvement
Accomplishments
- Certified ISTQB software testing professional
- Managed onshore, nearshore and offshore teams of 16 staff members.
- Lead/managed several product launches including OTT, Ad technologies, Salesforce, Real Estate specific technologies
- Implemented shift left, shift right, analytics and automated & performance QA strategies
- Documented and resolved tech debt/communication issues which led to ontime deliverables.
- Achieved full regression by introducing test automation for many manual tasks.
Software
Selenium
JSON
REST API
Java
Python
Xcode
Jenkins
Bamboo
Docker
Charles
Fiddler
Postman
SQL
Jmeter
BDD
Certification
ISTQB: Certified Tester
Work Preference
Work Type
Full TimeContract WorkLocation Preference
HybridRemoteOn-SiteImportant To Me
Company CultureWork-life balanceFlexible work hoursWork from home optionPaid time offInterests
Classic BMW's, Horology, Baseball
Timeline
Quality Assurance Manager
UDR
10.2021 - 11.2024
Quality Assurance Lead
Pax8
07.2021 - 10.2021
ISTQB: Certified Test Manager
08-2019
UAT/Quality Analyst Lead
Charter Communications
03.2018 - 07.2021
Sr Mobile Quality Assurance Engineer
Four Winds Interactive
09.2017 - 03.2018
Principal Quality Engineer Lead
SpotX
04.2017 - 09.2017
ISTQB: Certified Tester
02-2017
Senior Systems Test Engineer
Starz LLC
07.2013 - 03.2017
Automation Engineer
Booj
05.2012 - 06.2013
Senior Quality Assurance Engineer
Nagrastar
11.2009 - 05.2012
Software Quality Engineer
Harris Corporation
12.2008 - 06.2009
Automation and QA Engineer
booj LLC
02.2008 - 09.2008
Software Test Engineering Technician
Echostar Technologies LLC
08.2004 - 02.2008
Bachelor of Arts - Business Management
Patten University