Manual QA Tester (Contract 3+ months)

What You'll Do We're looking for a sharp, methodical manual tester to add dedicated manual-testing capacity to the QA org during a busy stretch of releases. You'll run structured manual and exploratory test passes across Standard Bots' software — the robot control apps, teach pendant, and core workflows — execute regression every release, and file clean, well-documented bugs. Because our software drives physical 6-axis robots, a bug isn't just a UI glitch; it can move real hardware. Careful, observant testing is the whole job. This is a contract role (roughly 3 months, with the option to extend). It's a strong fit for an experienced manual tester who is disciplined, hardware-curious, and writes crisp reproduction steps. Responsibilities Execute manual regression and smoke passes across software releases — on the product UI and on real robots — to catch regressions before they reach customers. Run broad exploratory testing across complex robotic workflows: probe edge cases, unusual sequences, and the failure modes scripted tests miss. Write and maintain clear, repeatable manual test cases in our test-management tool (Qase), and keep them current as features ship. File high-quality bug reports with precise reproduction steps, system state, logs, and firmware/build versions, so engineers can act without back-and-forth. Partner with SDETs and Systems Test Engineers to reproduce and isolate defects, and surface the coverage gaps you find along the way. Support release QA, including gated test runs and release-candidate validation, and report results clearly. Perform basic recovery on test hardware (re-home, reset) to keep test cells available. Skills You'll Bring Manual Testing Foundation: 2+ years of hands-on manual QA experience, with strong test-case design and disciplined, repeatable execution. Exploratory Instincts: A knack for breaking things — you find the failure modes no one thought to script. Clear Bug Reporting: Excellent written communication. You capture the state, logs, and steps needed to reproduce, not just a screenshot. Hardware Curiosity: Comfortable testing a product where software controls physical hardware, and aware that software bugs have physical consequences. Tooling Comfort: At home in Linux/CLI environments and with test-management tools (Qase or similar); basic scripting is a plus. Methodical & Reliable: You follow procedures precisely, notice when something is off, and chase it down. Who You Are A detail-oriented, self-driven tester who takes pride in catching what everyone else misses. You're comfortable around hardware, communicate clearly, and thrive in a fast-moving release cycle. No robotics background required. Nice To Have Experience testing products where software controls physical hardware (robots, EVs, drones, medical devices, appliances) Familiarity with test-management tools (Qase, TestRail) and bug trackers (Asana, Jira) Basic scripting (Python, Bash) or CLI comfort for log parsing and data extraction Exposure to robotic systems (6-axis arms, collaborative robots) or hardware-in-the-loop testing Familiarity with network protocols (SSH, #J-18808-Ljbffr Standard Bots