Manager of Test Operations

Join Apptronik, a leading company in advanced humanoid robot manufacturing. As the Manager of Test Operations, you will be a hands-on technical leader responsible for driving the development, maintainability, and scalability of hardware and software integrated solutions used for manufacturing and validation testing of robotic systems. You will work closely with various teams to implement robust and maintainable test infrastructure, focusing on test automation, systems integration, and manufacturing support.

• Lead the team that deploys manufacturing test software and hardware for various components, ensuring the development of scalable and modular test frameworks.
• Establish criteria for APIs and interfaces between test software and hardware systems, and own the testing process reliability, maintainability, and deployment consistency.
• Collaborate with test and validation engineering teams to ensure products are designed with testability and manufacturability in mind, driving best practices and process improvements.

• Experience in robotics, aerospace, automotive, or similar electromechanical systems
• 5+ years of experience in leading complex electromechanical system test development for automated manufacturing systems
• Ability to move throughout operational areas and maintain awareness of surrounding people, equipment, and robotic systems
• Ability to communicate effectively with team members during normal operations and when responding to safety or operational concerns
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Robotics, or related field
• Experience developing scalable architectures for test infrastructure
• Issue tracking systems (Jira or similar)
• Familiarity with modern software development practices:
• Periods of sitting at a workstation and working on a computer
• Experience using AI-assisted software development tools and workflows
• Comfortable working in fast-paced and evolving environments
• Experience with communication protocols: ROS/ROS2, EtherCAT, CAN, RS485 …etc
• Familiarity with Linux-based development environments
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management; able to represent the team to senior leadership and customers
• Experience with automated data analysis and reporting tools
• CI/CD workflows
• Code reviews
• Proven technical leadership — leading engineers and owning delivery of complex, cross-disciplinary systems
• Serial communication protocols
• Networked systems
• Ability to safely lift and/or move approximately 15 pounds at times
• Experience supporting contract manufacturers or production environments
• Experience with manufacturing databases, MES systems, or traceability systems
• Willingness to travel to manufacturing sites, up to 20%
• Strong troubleshooting and problem-solving skills working with complex electromechanical systems
• Experience leading teams engaged with:
• Hardware/software integration
• Visual ability necessary to operate equipment, monitor robotic systems, and read printed and digital materials
• Formal people-management experience — hiring, developing, and directing a team
• Embedded systems
• Git
• Prolonged periods of standing and walking