Note: The job is a remote job and is open to candidates in USA. X4 Engineering is seeking an experienced leader for a large, regulated laboratory testing operation. The role owns site-wide business performance, laboratory operations, quality and regulatory compliance, customer relationships, commercial growth, and people leadership.
Responsibilities
- Take full ownership of the site's P&L, budget, revenue, profitability and operating performance
- Develop and execute annual business plans and financial targets
- Monitor revenue, margins, operating costs, productivity and EBITDA performance
- Identify opportunities to improve profitability through pricing, productivity, capacity utilization and cost control
- Report business performance and strategic priorities to senior leadership
- Make informed decisions around capital expenditure, resources and organizational investment
- Lead the day-to-day operation of a high-volume, regulated testing laboratory
- Ensure laboratory capacity, staffing and resources are aligned with demand and customer requirements
- Drive improvements in turnaround time, productivity, utilization and operational efficiency
- Establish clear KPIs and performance management processes across the laboratory
- Ensure effective sample flow, scheduling, workload management and delivery against customer commitments
- Identify operational bottlenecks and implement continuous improvement initiatives
- Ensure appropriate maintenance, calibration and utilization of laboratory equipment and infrastructure
- Maintain a strong culture of quality, safety and regulatory compliance across the site
- Ensure the laboratory operates in accordance with applicable accreditation, regulatory and quality requirements
- Partner closely with Quality and Technical leadership on audits, corrective actions, proficiency testing and continuous improvement
- Ensure laboratory processes, documentation and technical practices meet required standards
- Maintain accountability for quality performance while balancing operational efficiency and commercial objectives
- Lead and develop a sizeable laboratory organization, including managers, supervisors, technical personnel and support functions
- Build a high-performing leadership team and develop succession capability within the site
- Set clear objectives, KPIs and performance expectations
- Recruit, retain and develop key laboratory and operational talent
- Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, continuous improvement and customer focus
- Make organizational and staffing decisions based on business demand and performance
- Partner with sales and commercial teams to drive revenue growth and customer retention
- Develop strong relationships with key customers and act as a senior escalation point
- Identify opportunities for new services, additional testing volumes and market expansion
- Support pricing, commercial negotiations and strategic account development
- Understand customer requirements and ensure the laboratory consistently delivers against expectations
- Use customer feedback and market intelligence to identify opportunities to improve the business
- Identify and implement initiatives that improve laboratory productivity, quality, customer experience and profitability
- Lead business transformation and operational improvement projects
- Evaluate opportunities to expand laboratory capabilities, services and capacity
- Drive a data-led approach to decision making
- Establish a culture where operational performance and continuous improvement are embedded into the organization
Skills
- An experienced Business Unit Manager / Site General Manager
- An experienced laboratory leader
- An established laboratory operations leader who has progressed into broader business leadership
- Significant experience managing regulated laboratory operations
- Previous responsibility for laboratory personnel, technical operations and day-to-day laboratory performance
- Demonstrable experience operating within an accredited or highly regulated laboratory environment
- Previous P&L and budget ownership , ideally for a multi-million-dollar laboratory or technical services business
- Experience leading sizeable teams and managing through multiple levels of leadership
- Strong understanding of laboratory quality systems, regulatory requirements and accreditation
- Proven track record of improving operational performance, productivity, turnaround times or profitability
- Strong commercial awareness and experience working with customers and/or sales teams
- Experience managing change, continuous improvement and organizational development
- Commercially minded – understands revenue, margin, EBITDA and growth
- Operationally rigorous – knows how to run a high-throughput laboratory effectively
- Quality driven – understands that regulatory compliance and technical quality are non-negotiable
- Entrepreneurial – comfortable taking ownership and making decisions
- Data driven – uses KPIs and financial information to manage performance
- Customer focused – understands the importance of service, turnaround time and retention
- A strong people leader – capable of developing managers and building a high-performing organization
- Change oriented – comfortable improving processes and challenging the status quo
- Environmental testing
- Industrial hygiene
- Built environment testing
- Analytical testing
- Materials testing
- Chemical testing
- Pharmaceutical testing
- Food testing
- Life sciences testing
- Other regulated third-party laboratory environments
- Direct experience in built environment testing is advantageous but not essential for the right laboratory leader with strong transferable experience
Benefits
- The opportunity to take ownership of a significant laboratory operation, influence its strategy and culture, and drive commercial and operational performance, with the autonomy and accountability of a General Manager / Business Unit President.
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