Lab head – technical / technical manager (food & pharma testing)

ISO/IEC 17025:2025 | Wide Scope | Audit-Facing Leadership Role
Location: Kolkata, Barasat
Experience: Typically 12–20+ years
Reporting to: Senior Management / CEO
Read This First (Mandatory)
This role requires:
- clear, confident spoken English for audit discussions, client interactions, and senior management reviews
- strong computer literacy for direct use of LIMS, Excel, Word, Power Point, and digital quality systems
If you are not comfortable communicating in English during audits or depend on others for basic computer work, this role will not be suitable.
Role Summary
We are hiring an Overall Lab Head – Technical / Technical Manager to own and defend the complete technical operations of Food and Pharmaceutical testing laboratories under ISO/IEC 17025:2025.
This is a high-accountability leadership role, requiring hands-on technical judgement, audit leadership, and strong communication with regulators, customers, and senior management.
Mandatory Experience (Non-Negotiable)
You must demonstrate most of the following:
- Leadership of Food and/or Pharma testing laboratories under ISO/IEC 17025 (latest version)
- Responsibility for wide scope coverage, such as:
- Food: pesticides, antibiotics, veterinary drugs, mycotoxins, contaminants, additives
- Pharma: impurities, nitrosamines, residual solvents, elemental impurities
- Direct ownership of:
- scope approval, maintenance, and expansion
- method validation oversight across multiple techniques
- technical risk assessment and corrective actions
- Audit-facing leadership during NABL and regulatory audits
- Ability to communicate technical positions clearly in English during audits and management reviews
⛔ Candidates limited to single-section leadership, non-audit roles, or documentation-only responsibilities are not suitable.
Acceptable Backgrounds
We will consider candidates from either:
Profile A — Third-Party Testing Lab Leader (Preferred)
- Technical leadership in Food and/or Pharma testing labs
- Strong command over ISO/IEC 17025 interpretation and implementation
- Experience managing multi-section, multi-instrument laboratories
Profile B — Strong Pharma Technical Leader (Selective)
- Senior technical role in Pharma analytical / QC environments
- Strong understanding of:
- method validation lifecycle
- data integrity and audit trails
- regulatory expectations (USFDA / EMA / CDSCO)
- Ability to transition into third-party, multi-client lab environments
✔ Prior hands-on analytical background (LC-MS/MS, GC-MS, ICP-MS, HPLC) is a strong advantage
⛔ Pure research or manufacturing leadership profiles will not be considered
Key Responsibilities
- Act as final technical authority for Food & Pharma laboratories
- Lead and defend NABL audits and regulatory assessments
- Drive scope expansion and technical harmonization
- Review and approve:
- method validations and transfers
- deviations, investigations, and CAPA
- technical risk assessments
- Ensure data integrity culture across labs
- Present technical performance and risks to senior management
- Mentor section heads and senior analysts
Mandatory Skills & Competencies
- Strong spoken and written English communication
- Confident audit-facing discussion with assessors and clients
- High level of computer literacy, including:
- LIMS / QMS systems
- MS Excel (data analysis, trackers)
- MS Word & Power Point (technical reports, presentations)
- Ability to independently prepare and review technical documents