HIRE · QA ENGINEER (MANUAL TESTING)
A manual QA engineer who owns every release check, with AI writing the first draft of the test plan. Contributing in 15 days, from $3,375 a month.
NDAs are standard · start with 20 hours
15 days
From kickoff to merged contributions
$3,375
Retainers from, per month, for 150 hours
Every merge
Reviewed by a senior engineer
Day 1
Your repo, your cloud, your IP
WHAT YOU GET
01
Test cases for each feature, written from the ticket before the build is finished.
02
New features first, then the regression list for the flows you can't afford to break.
03
Each report has steps to reproduce, expected and actual results, and a screen recording.
04
Odd inputs, slow connections, a back button at the wrong moment, a second tab open.
05
A written sign-off per release, with known issues listed.
06
Flags the checks repeated every release, so automation goes where it pays off.
SKILLS & STACK
HOW AI MAKES THIS ROLE FASTER
Manual testing is judgment: does this feel broken to a user? AI can't make that call. It does take the writing off the tester's hands, which leaves more of each week for actual testing.
| Step | What AI does | What the tester does | Gate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plan | Drafts test cases from the ticket and the acceptance criteria | Adds the edge cases only someone who knows your users would think of, and cuts the noise | Plan reviewed before the build is done |
| Report | Turns notes and a recording into a structured bug report | Confirms the steps reproduce and sets severity | Developer can reproduce it first time |
| Regress | Suggests which regression checks a change is likely to affect | Decides what to run and runs it | Release sign-off |
| Summarise | Drafts the release note of what was tested and what failed | Signs it | Your go / no-go |
Where AI stays out: whether a flow is confusing, whether a screen looks wrong on a real phone, and the final call on shipping. Those stay with the tester.
Client code and data are never used to train models.
WAYS TO WORK TOGETHER
Recommended
from $3,375/month · 150 hours
150 hours a month of your QA engineer on a backlog we agree with you, with senior review on every merge. The price depends on the role and is confirmed on a 30-minute call.
See the retainer →$45/hour · 20-hour minimum
Buy 20 to 120 hours for scoped work, valid for 12 months. Bigger blocks cost less per hour. Need more than 120? The retainer fits better.
See hour blocks →lead + 1 engineer from $8,000/month
A tech lead plus your QA engineer inside your repo, your Slack and your sprint rituals. Bigger teams are quoted to fit.
See embedded teams →Smaller teams often start with prepaid hours for each release. Teams shipping weekly usually move to a retainer.
HIRING VS. SOCIILABS
| Hiring your own | Working with SociiLabs | |
|---|---|---|
| Time to first contribution | A search, interviews, notice period, then onboarding | Contributing in 15 days |
| If it doesn't work out | 46% of new hires fail within 18 months (Leadership IQ) | We replace the engineer, handover time isn't billed, and you keep the code and history |
| Who reviews the code | Whoever you already have | A senior engineer, on every merge |
| How AI is used | Depends on the person | AI in the loop on every task, behind a review gate |
| Commitment | Salary, benefits, equity | Monthly retainer or a block of hours |
PROOF
12 weeks
Hospitality
A live hospitality platform built on Replit had no tests at all. We rebuilt auth and payments and merged three conflicting dashboards into one. Production-ready in 12 weeks, built to support 2,000+ providers.
Read the HELM case study →3.5 months
Gaming & venues
Multi-round scoring and live TV displays under 300 ms in real venues, where a bug shows up on a screen in front of players. Live in 4+ venues.
Read the PlayBombhole case study →FAQ
Not the judgment part. AI drafts test cases and bug reports well. Deciding whether a flow makes sense to a user, or whether a release is safe to ship, still needs a person.
