Senior Quality Analyst - Manual Testing

About the Role

Kernel is experiencing rapid growth and seeks a Senior Quality Analyst to ensure we deliver dependable, top-quality experiences as our engineering team expands. This is an opportunity to bring your expertise to a purpose-driven fintech dedicated to helping thousands of New Zealanders invest confidently in their futures.

This senior-level position focuses heavily on hands-on manual testing with responsibilities extending beyond mere ticket handling. You will craft test strategies early in the development cycle, analyze complex issues affecting customers and systems, and concentrate on risk, integration points, and edge cases requiring specialized judgment. Your role will also involve fostering a quality-first mindset across the engineering team by mentoring engineers and a junior QA colleague and collaborating closely with the Customer Success Team.

While automation knowledge is a plus, this role emphasizes manual testing exclusively.

About Kernel

We are a fully Kiwi-owned fintech dedicated to democratizing wealth for all New Zealanders. Our platform integrates KiwiSaver, Managed Funds, US shares and ETFs, and Smart Saver accounts, all with some of the industry’s lowest fees.

Our culture is collaborative, ambitious, and built on trust, innovation, and openness. We are laying critical foundations for future growth.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop risk-based test plans collaboratively during early project stages including discovery, refinement, and design evaluation.
• Conduct hands-on manual, exploratory, regression, and edge case testing across web, mobile, and internal platforms.
• Investigate complex problems involving data, databases, integrations, and third-party services.
• Communicate technical findings effectively to the Customer Success Team to assist customer support.
• Mentor and guide engineers toward owning routine testing tasks and support the development of junior QA staff.
• Evaluate release readiness and advocate for quality-driven decisions to prevent unsafe deployments.
• Collaborate with three engineering squads with an emphasis on enhancing mobile and customer experiences.

Required Qualifications and Experience

• A minimum of seven years in QA with extensive recent experience in manual testing.
• Background in financial services, fintech, or regulated industries, with knowledge of wealth management, funds, investment platforms, or KiwiSaver.
• Strong command of risk-based, exploratory, regression, smoke testing, and defect management methodologies.
• Experience troubleshooting multi-system, data, and integration issues.
• Advocate for shift-left testing practices improving requirements and design upfront.
• Proficiency with BDD/Gherkin and advanced test case design techniques.
• Track record of mentoring QA professionals and influencing cross-functional engineering teams constructively.
• Excellent communication, sound judgement, and a calm demeanor to handle challenges constructively.

Preferred Additional Skills

• Expertise in mobile, API, or complex integration testing.
• Familiarity with SQL and data-driven issue diagnosis.
• Interest in AI-assisted testing and complementary automation that enhances manual testing quality.

Why Join Kernel?

• Play a pivotal role in evolving Kernel’s quality culture and foster shared responsibility across engineering.
• Work on diverse products including customer-facing web and mobile, internal tools, data, and external integrations.
• Contribute your skills to a meaningful fintech mission helping New Zealanders grow their wealth.
• Be part of a trusting, collaborative, and flexible working environment valuing open feedback and diverse voices.
• Benefit from competitive pay with bonuses, health insurance, parental leave top-up, and professional development.
• Enjoy flexible hybrid work arrangements with at least three days per week onsite and up to two days remote.
• Take advantage of extra holidays, office perks like snacks, coffee, and a dog-friendly workplace.