Principal Software Engineer at Markel in Richmond, VA

Job description

• What part will you play? If you’re looking for a place where you can make a meaningful difference, you’ve found it.
• The work we do at Markel gives people the confidence to move forward and seize opportunities, and you’ll find your fit amongst our global community of optimists and problem-solvers. We’re always pushing each other to go further because we believe that when we realize our potential, we can help others reach theirs.
• Join us and play your part in something special!
• As a key member of the Testing Center of Enablement, the Principal QA Engineer is responsible for contributing to Enterprise Test strategy, automation, and quality governance across a multi-workstream insurance technology portfolio. This role requires a balance of individual technical contribution, including hands-on automation and framework design along with leading and mentoring junior QA resources. Candidate must demonstrate the capacity to manage multiple concurrent initiatives with competing deadlines.
• Markel USB Test Center of Enablement (TCoE) is seeking a Principal QA Engineer to establish enterprise-grade testing standards, governance frameworks, and automation blueprints that drive consistent, high-quality QA delivery across USB

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end and system integration test strategy for one or more insurance value streams (Policy, Claims, Billing, Data etc.)
• Design, develop, and maintain scalable automation frameworks (Playwright, Postman) integrated within CI/CD pipelines
• Provide oversight to a distributed team of onsite and offshore QA engineers, establishing standards for test design, defect management, and reporting
• Translate business and regulatory requirements into testable scenarios for insurance systems (policy administration, claims, billing platforms)
• Conduct root-cause analysis of defect leakage, production incidents, and data or reporting discrepancies
• Evaluate and pilot emerging tools and methodologies (e.g., AI-assisted testing, low-code automation) to drive continuous improvement in efficiency
• Manage multiple concurrent projects, adjusting priorities in response to evolving release schedules and business requirements

Requirements

• Minimum 8 years of experience in quality assurance/testing,
• Direct experience testing insurance systems (PolicyCenter, Guidewire, claims, or billing platforms strongly preferred)
• Demonstrated proficiency in automation, including the ability to independently develop and maintain code (Playwright, Selenium, API testing tools)
• Proven track record of collaborating with distributed teams across onsite and offshore locations
• Superior written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to adapt technical detail to the intended audience, from engineering staff to executive leadership
• Demonstrated success managing multiple parallel workstreams under time-sensitive conditions
• US Work Authorization required. Markel does not provide visa sponsorship for this position, now or in the future.

Skills

Required

• CI/CD integration
• Test strategy and governance
• Defect management and reporting
• Root-cause analysis
• Communication skills
• Project management
• US Work Authorization

Preferred

• AI-assisted testing
• Low-code automation

Benefits

• In keeping with the values of the Markel Style, we strive to support our employees in living their lives to the fullest at home and at work.
• We offer competitive benefit programs that help meet our diverse and changing environment as well as support our employees’ needs at all stages of life.
• All full-time employees have the option to select from multiple health, dental and vision insurance plan options and optional life, disability, and AD&D insurance.
• We also offer a 401(k) with employer match contributions, an Employee Stock Purchase Plan, PTO, corporate holidays and floating holidays, parental leave.
• The salary range for this position is $108,800 - $226,800. The posted salary range reflects the lowest and highest base salary applicable to this role across our U.S. locations. Individual offers are determined based on geographic location, experience, qualifications, internal equity, and other job-related factors. As a result, the salary offered for a specific location will fall within a narrower range than the overall range displayed in this posting. This position may also be eligible to participate in the Company's annual incentive plan.