About the role

Kernel is growing and quality is critical to how we scale.

We’re looking for a Junior Quality Analyst to join our product and technology team, helping ensure our investment platform delivers reliable, high‑quality experiences for our customers.

This is a hands‑on role where you’ll build strong foundations in manual testing, working closely with product, design, and engineering. You’ll be supported by an experienced team and given the opportunity to develop your QA skills while contributing meaningfully to real product outcomes.

This role goes beyond testing the UI - you’ll help validate integrations, workflows, and end‑to‑end processes that sit at the heart of how Kernel works.

About Kernel

We're a 100% Kiwi owned and operated fintech on a mission to make wealth accessible for every Kiwi. Our investment platform takes the guesswork out of investing – offering KiwiSaver, Managed Funds, US shares & ETFs, and Smart Saver accounts, all in one place with some of the lowest fees in the market.

We're at an exciting stage. Scaling fast, expanding our team of globally experienced financial professionals, and building the foundations for what's next. Our culture is collaborative, hands-on and ambitious – built on trust, innovation and saying it like it is. We value diverse perspectives, empower individuality, and believe the best ideas come from thinking together.

Things move quickly here, and every person plays a key role in shaping our future.

What you’ll do

• Manually test new features, enhancements, and change requests against acceptance criteria, user needs, and business requirements

• Write and maintain clear, structured manual test cases and scenarios (including exposure to BDD / Gherkin)

• Take a risk‑based approach to testing, focusing on critical flows, integrations, edge cases, and failure points

• Identify, replicate, and clearly document defects with accurate steps and supporting detail

• Log and manage bugs in tools such as Linear (or similar), supporting developers to resolve issues efficiently

• Review requirements and designs early to identify gaps, ambiguities, risks, and missing scenarios

• Work closely with product managers, designers, developers, and stakeholders to clarify expected behaviour

• Support regression testing and release readiness to help prevent defects reaching production

• Contribute ideas to improve QA practices, documentation, and ways of working

• Participate in sprint planning, stand‑ups, reviews, and retrospectives as part of an agile delivery team

You’ll be great if you bring

• At least 1 year of experience in a QA role, with strong foundations in manual testing and test case design

• Solid understanding of QA fundamentals, including exploratory, regression, smoke testing and defect management

• Confidence validating work against acceptance criteria, expected behaviour, and user outcomes

• Strong investigative skills - able to consistently reproduce issues and communicate them clearly using tools like Linear (or similar)

• An understanding that quality goes beyond the UI, including integrations, workflows, and wider business processes

• A curious, proactive, and collaborative mindset, with clear professional communication style

Bonus things you could bring along to the role

• Exposure to test automation (nice to have, not required)

• Experience testing APIs, integrations, or complex workflows

• Familiarity with BDD / Gherkin practices in a team environment

• Interest in fintech, investing, or complex digital platforms

Why You’ll Love it at Kernel

• Shape investment products in a way no other fintech in New Zealand is approaching, connecting everyday financial goals with intuitive and customer centric design.

• Contribute to a platform trusted by tens of thousands of Kiwis, helping them feel more confident and in control of their money.

• Join a team built on trust, collaboration, and flexibility, where feedback is constructive and everyone has a voice.

• Competitive compensation package

• Enjoy the best of both worlds with a flexible hybrid setup, connect in person while keeping the freedom to work from home up to couple of days each week (minimum 3 days/week in the office).

• Health insurance, parental leave top-up, and professional development support

• Extra staff holidays, office snacks, coffee, and a dog-friendly environment

Join our team

Not sure you meet every requirement? We encourage you to apply. We value growth, impact, and mindset just as much as specific experience. If this opportunity sounds like you, send us your cover letter explaining why you’re excited about the role and working at Kernel, along with your CV.

Visit our careers page for more on working at Kernel and follow us on LinkedIn & Instagram. to stay connected.