Test Engineer - Firmware & Systems

Overview

Geo Spectrum is growing and has a career opportunity for an experienced Test Engineer - Firmware & Systems. Help us raise the bar on reliability for embedded and hardware-integrated products. If you enjoy getting to the root of hard problems where hardware, firmware, and real-world operating conditions collide, this role will feel like home.

In this hands-on role, you’ll partner closely with firmware and systems engineers to define how quality is designed, validated, and maintained across the full development lifecycle. You’ll help build practical test processes and tooling from the ground up such as test methodology, automation strategy, lab/test infrastructure, and integration with CI/CD workflows so teams can ship with confidence.

Geo Spectrum Technologies was founded in 1994 by friends who wanted to work together and build a collaborative workplace where employees take pride in contributing to cutting-edge technology from concept to delivery. Based in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, we design and manufacture state-of-the-art underwater acoustic components, transducers, and end-to-end systems for maritime surveillance and exploration. We serve clients across ocean science, defence, and oil and gas industries, and we are known for our innovation and for delivering reliable, customized solutions that exceed customer expectations.

Over three decades, our core values have shaped a supportive and creative environment that emphasizes employee engagement, technical excellence, and strong customer relationships.

To learn more about who we are and what it’s like to work at Geo Spectrum, we invite you to watch our company video by visiting

• Shape the quality vision by partnering with firmware and systems engineers to define and implement a scalable QA strategy for embedded and hardware-integrated products.
• Build practical QA foundations, including test planning, architecture, tooling, reporting, and release readiness criteria.
• Put complex systems to the test by designing smart verification approaches across functional, integration, regression, endurance, and fault‑injection testing.
• Develop and maintain test automation, scripts, utilities, and CI jobs to drive, observe, and validate firmware behaviour.
• Enable reliable testing even when hardware is limited by building test harnesses, mocks, simulators, and emulators.
• Validate the details of low-level digital interfaces and protocols, helping teams define clear, measurable acceptance criteria.
• Track and report test execution, defects, and coverage, maintaining clear traceability to requirements.
• Lead failure analysis and root cause investigations, translating findings into actionable engineering improvements.
• Produce clear test documentation and reports that reflect coverage, assumptions, and system risks.

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field; or Computer Science with hands-on experience in embedded or firmware-centric systems.
• Minimum 5 years experience testing firmware, embedded systems, or hardware-integrated software; including building or significantly shaping a QA process, test framework, or validation strategy in an early or evolving environment.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and deliver thorough test procedures, automation, and formal test reports for complex systems, including integration, regression, endurance, and edge-case testing.
• Strong experience in Linux environments, including command-line tools and system-level diagnostics.
• Experience developing test tools, scripts, and automation, with the ability to read and reason about firmware and system-level code.
• Experience with source control systems (Git / Git Hub / Bitbucket / SVN) and modern engineering practices.
• Experience with Jira and Xray (or similar tools) for defect tracking, test management, and test-to-requirement traceability.

• Strong understanding of low-level communication protocols and system constraints, with the ability to debug across hardware, firmware, and software.
• Proven ability to collaborate effectively and communicate test results as clear, actionable, and technically grounded feedback.