Dr. Ekrem Erol PhD
Computer Engineer, PhD · Quality Architect · AI & Test Automation
ISTQB® Certified · Istanbul, Türkiye
MMA Türkiye AI Executive Board · Data-Driven Marketing Working Group Member
PhD, Computer Engineering Quality Architect ISTQB® CTFL AI-Enhanced QA 10+ Years in QA Istanbul, TR
Open to opportunities
Download CV ekremerol.com linkedin/drekremerol

An experienced Computer Engineer, PhD, bridging the gap between academic rigor and high-paced software delivery. As a Quality Architect with a PhD in Computer Engineering and ISTQB® certification, I look beyond traditional testing to design sophisticated, end-to-end quality strategies. My focus is on AI-Driven Quality Engineering: architecting automation ecosystems that reduce manual overhead and strengthen process reliability through intelligent feedback loops. Rooted in a research-driven mindset, I work to turn Quality Assurance from a routine phase into a strategic driver of engineering excellence.

10+
Years Experience
30+
Industry Awards
25+
Mobile Games QA'd
3
Academic Degrees
2
Books Published
5
Academic Publications
1
Conference Speaker
2
MMA Board Roles

Industry Roles

🏛️ MMA Türkiye · Industry Board Positions
🤖 AI Executive Board Member 📊 Data-Driven Marketing Working Group Member

Languages

🇹🇷 TurkishNative
🇬🇧 EnglishProfessional
🇪🇸 SpanishIntermediate

Interests

🎮 Gaming Photography ✍️ Creative Writing 🎻 Violin 🕹️ Video Games 🎾 Tennis 📚 Reading 🖊️ Poetry
Strategic Leadership
Quality StrategyTeam LeadershipStakeholder EngagementRisk-Based TestingResource Planning
Test Architecture
SeleniumAppiumPlaywrightPythonJavaSQLCI/CD
Quality Governance
QA KPIs & MetricsProcess OptimizationAgile / SDLCHealth ChecksShift-Left Testing
AI & Innovation
AI-Enhanced QALLM ApplicationsHyperautomationIntelligent Feedback Loops
Platforms & Domains
Android / iOSMobile AdvertisingAd TechGame QAE-Learning
Academic & Research
Test Automation ResearchAcademic PublishingConference SpeakingTechnical Writing
Digital Turbine · Istanbul
May 2021 - Jul 2026
Quality Strategy Lead Apr 2026 - Jul 2026
  • Transforming quality from a gatekeeping function into a strategic organizational mindset, bridging high-level engineering strategy with hands-on execution across the full SDLC.
  • Leading the QA Community of Practice (Guild) · mentoring teams on Shift-Left, Risk-Based Testing, and Exploratory Testing.
  • Establishing KPIs and "Health Checks" to measure and drive quality excellence across product squads.
  • Acting as "Troubleshooter of Last Resort" for complex cross-team defects and architectural bottlenecks.
  • Building scalable, automated, and high-impact quality frameworks that accelerate delivery without compromising excellence.
🤖 MMA Türkiye · AI Executive Board Member 📊 MMA Türkiye · DDM Working Group Member
Team Lead, Quality Assurance Engineering Oct 2023 - Apr 2026
  • Led and scaled a high-performing QA team supporting global mobile advertising operations, ensuring 100% defect-free delivery.
  • Architected and implemented automated testing pipelines, significantly reducing time-to-market for complex ad products.
  • Strategized cross-functional collaboration between Dev, Product, Data, Creative and AdOps teams to optimize quality lifecycles.
Software Quality Assurance Engineer May 2021 - Sep 2023
  • Executed comprehensive test cases and rigorous troubleshooting for high-quality mobile advertisement products.
  • Leveraged mobile platform expertise (Android & iOS) to optimize test execution and product reliability.
Research Assistant
Istanbul Arel University · Istanbul
Jan 2018 - May 2021
  • Computer Engineering (English) Department.
  • Distance Learning Coordinator.
  • IEEE EBBT Committee Member.
  • Arel University Rover Team (ART) Advisor.
Lead QA Engineer
Gigafun Games (formerly Infosfer) · Istanbul
Jul 2015 - Dec 2017
  • Led full QA cycles for 25+ mobile (Android & iOS) games end-to-end.

Internships & Early Career

Software Test Engineer (Intern)
Anadolu Bilişim Hizmetleri (abh)
2014
Hardware Test Engineer (Intern)
CASPER Computer Systems
2013
Game Tester & Writer
LEVEL Online Video-Game Magazine
2012
PhD in Computer Engineering
Istanbul University-Cerrahpaşa
Completed · 2026
  • Thesis: AI-Based Self-Testing System Design
MSc in Computer Engineering
Istanbul University
Completed · 2019
  • Thesis: A Comparison of Software Test Automation Tools
BSc in Computer Engineering
Istanbul University
Completed · 2016
  • Thesis: Smart Home Automation Systems
🏆
30+ Industry Awards
MMA Smarties (Turkey · MEA · MENA · EMEA) · IAB TR Mixx · Campaign of the Month / Week · 2022-2024
2024 · MMA Smarties Global campaigns
🥉
MMA Smarties MEA · Bronze
Spotify · Digital Turbine
🥈
MMA Smarties MENA · Silver
Sony PlayStation · Digital Turbine
2023 · MMA Smarties & Campaign of the Month Regional excellence
🥇
MMA Smarties MENA · Gold
Almarai · Customer Experience · May 2023
🚀
Campaign of the Month · KOÇTAŞ & Ingage
212% Playable Engagement CTR · 1.9M+ Engagements · Dec 2023
🚀
Campaign of the Month · Ford Trucks International
89% Engagement Rate · 396K+ Impressions · Oct 2023
🚀
Campaign of the Month · Absa Group
13.25% DEC Engagement Rate · Jul 2023
🚀
Campaign of the Month · Coca-Cola
100% Completed Views on 1M+ videos · Jul 2023
🚀
Campaign of the Month · Carte D'or (Unilever)
76% DEC Engagement Rate · Jun 2023
🚀
Campaign of the Month · Penti & Spotify
143% Audio Uplift Rate · +5.5M Impressions · May 2023
🚀
Campaign of the Month · Colgate-Palmolive
6.4% DEC Engagement Rate vs 1% benchmark · May 2023
2022 · MMA Smarties Turkey, EMEA & IAB TR Multiple category wins
🥇
IAB TR Mixx Türkiye · Gold
Games & In-Game Ads · Olips · Dec 2022
🥈
IAB TR Mixx Türkiye · Silver
Games & In-Game Ads · Durex · Dec 2022
🥈
MMA Smarties Turkey · Silver
KazandıRio · Data Insight
🥈
MMA Smarties Turkey · Silver
Durex · Gamification
🥉
MMA Smarties Turkey · Bronze
Uni Baby · Data Insight
🥉
MMA Smarties Turkey · Bronze
Nescafé Ne'App · Service Launch
🥉
MMA Smarties Turkey · Bronze
Opet-Yandex Navi · Partnership
🥉
MMA Smarties Turkey · Bronze
KazandıRio · Personalization
🥉
MMA Smarties Turkey · Bronze
Opet-Yandex Navi · Gamification
🥉
MMA Smarties EMEA · Bronze
Opet-Yandex Navi · Partnership Marketing
🥉
MMA Smarties EMEA · Bronze
Durex · Gamification
🚀
Campaign of the Month · Sanofi
92% video completion vs 80% benchmark · Oct 2022
🚀
Campaign of the Month · Colgate-Palmolive KSA
15.4% DEC Engagement Rate · Sep 2022
🚀
Campaign of the Month · Continente Portugal
Sep 2022
🚀
Campaign of the Week · Nestlé South Africa
90% completed views · 17.93% engagement · Sep 2022
🚀
Campaign of the Week · Nestlé South Africa (2nd)
90% completed views · 17.93% engagement · Sep 2022
🚀
Campaign of the Month · ESTEVE Spain
94% completion on 20s pre-roll · Aug 2022
🚀
Campaign of the Month · Hyundai France
100% completed views · Jun 2022
Other Recognition
🥉
Arçelik · Unit Test Event · 3rd Place
2018
🎻
Violin Training Program
Republic of Turkey, Ministry of National Education · 2009
Journal Article · SCIE Q2 · 2026
AI-based feedback-driven framework for quality assurance of synthetic data generated for use in mobile advertising software testing
Software Quality Journal · Springer · May 2026
Book Chapter · Scopus · 2024
Enhancing Software Testing Through Artificial Intelligence: A Comprehensive Review
Advancing Software Engineering Through AI, Federated Learning, and LLMs · IGI Global
Journal Article · TR Dizin · 2022
A Comparative Study for Evaluating Automated Software Testing Tools
Journal of Information Technologies (JIT) · DergiPark · Jul 2022
PhD Thesis · 2026
AI-Based Self-Testing System Design
Istanbul University-Cerrahpaşa · YÖK Tez Merkezi
MSc Thesis · 2019
A Comparison of Software Test Automation Tools
Istanbul University · YÖK Tez Merkezi
Conference Speaker · 2025
Test Automation Summit Istanbul 2025 · Hyperautomation
TestingMind · Istanbul
Book · English
Canvas & Brush
ISBN: 13979-8722375940 · 165 pages
Book · Turkish
Tuval & Fırça
ISBN: 9786257811484 · 192 pages
ISTQB® Foundation Level (CTFL) Core credential
Turkish Testing Board · Feb 2023
0223-CTFL-4061
Diploma in Applied Generative AI
Alison · Sep 2025
7213-12384730
Master Generative AI (Artificial Intelligence)
Alison · Sep 2025
6565-12384730
Generative AI & LLMs for Beginners
Alison · Sep 2025
6683-12384730
Diploma in Software Testing
Alison · May 2023
1582-12384730
Appium Mobile Automation Testing from Scratch
Udemy · Jul 2019
UC-435EFFUA
Automated Software Testing with Python
Udemy · Jul 2019
UC-X7OUMLN6
Selenium WebDriver with Python 3.x · Novice to Ninja
Udemy · Jul 2019
UC-N3FI0AJM
Selenium WebDriver with Java · Advanced + Frameworks
Udemy · Jul 2019
UC-W56BC7UU
Unit Test Yazma Sanatı
Udemy · Jul 2019
UC-8CZ6Q0GE
Arçelik · Unit Test Event · 3rd Place 🥉
2018