Manager, Quality Control

Baxter International Inc.; São Paulo; On-site; BRL 180,000 - 300,000; Full time

Job summary

Baxter International Inc. is seeking a Quality Control Manager in São Paulo to lead Microbiology and Chemistry laboratories, ensuring compliant, timely, scientifically sound testing supporting product quality and patient safety. Role spans environmental monitoring, investigations, risk management, and cross-functional collaboration.

You will drive laboratory performance, staffing, and continuous improvement while ensuring readiness for inspections and audits in a regulated healthcare environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Microbiology, Biology, Chemistry or related field.
• Master’s degree preferred for advanced roles.
• Progressive leadership experience in QC/QA within regulated industry.

Responsibilities

• Lead daily operation of Microbiology and Chemistry labs, ensuring timely testing and approvals.
• Ensure testing supports product disposition, batch release, and regulatory commitments.
• Develop staffing, capacity planning and performance objectives.
• Maintain cGMP compliance and data integrity across all records.

Skills

Microbiology

Analytical Chemistry

Leadership

Quality Systems

cGMP

Education

Bachelor's in Microbiology/Related

Master's preferred

Tools

LIMS

Chromatography

Job description

This is where your work makes a difference.

At Baxter, we believe every person—regardless of who they are or where they are from—deserves a chance to live a healthy life. It was our founding belief in 1931 and continues to be our guiding principle. We are redefining healthcare delivery to make a greater impact today, tomorrow, and beyond.

Our Baxter colleagues are united by our Mission to Save and Sustain Lives. Together, our community is driven by a culture of courage, trust, and collaboration. Every individual is empowered to take ownership and make a meaningful impact. We strive for efficient and effective operations, and we hold each other accountable for delivering exceptional results.

Here, you will find more than just a job—you will find purpose and pride.

Your role at Baxter

The Quality Control Manager is responsible for providing strategic, technical, operational, and people leadership for the site’s Microbiology and Chemistry Laboratories. This role ensures compliant, timely, and scientifically sound execution of all laboratory activities supporting product quality, patient safety, regulatory compliance, batch disposition, and uninterrupted supply.

The position oversees laboratory operations, environmental monitoring, analytical testing, contamination control programs, microbiological and chemical investigations, data integrity, inspection readiness, laboratory performance, talent development, and continuous improvement initiatives. The role serves as the primary quality laboratory subject matter expert and collaborates closely with Quality Assurance, Manufacturing, Engineering, Validation, Technical Services, Regulatory Affairs, Supply Chain, and Global Quality to proactively identify and mitigate quality and compliance risks.

What you’ll be doing

• Lead daily operations of the Microbiology and Chemistry Laboratories, ensuring timely execution, review, and approval of testing activities.
• Ensure laboratory testing supports product disposition, batch release, manufacturing operations, regulatory commitments, and supply continuity.
• Manage laboratory resources, staffing, workload prioritization, capacity planning, and performance objectives.
• Ensure all testing is performed in accordance with approved methods, specifications, procedures, sampling plans, regulatory filings, and cGMP requirements.
• Maintain laboratories in a continuous state of inspection readiness for regulatory inspections, customer audits, internal audits, and corporate assessments.
• Ensure laboratory documentation, calculations, records, electronic data, and audit trails comply with data integrity requirements.
• Provide technical leadership for microbiological and analytical quality systems, laboratory controls, instrumentation, contamination control strategies, sterility assurance programs, environmental monitoring, utility monitoring, and analytical methodologies.
• Support analytical method validation, verification, transfer, implementation, and lifecycle management.
• Oversee qualification, calibration, maintenance, troubleshooting, and lifecycle management of laboratory equipment and computerized systems.
• Ensure laboratory systems, chromatography platforms, electronic laboratory records, and data management processes remain compliant and effective

Investigations & Risk Management

• Lead microbiological and analytical investigations related to OOS, OOT, deviations, contamination events, environmental monitoring excursions, sterility failures, utility excursions, equipment failures, and data integrity concerns.
• Drive root cause analysis, quality risk assessments, CAPA development, effectiveness verification, and continuous risk mitigation activities.
• Ensure timely escalation and management of risks that may impact product quality, patient safety, regulatory compliance, or supply continuity.
• Support quality risk assessments for manufacturing processes, facilities, equipment, utilities, product changes, validation activities, and process improvements.

Cross-Functional Partnership

• Partner with Manufacturing, Engineering, Validation, Technical Services, Regulatory Affairs, and Quality Assurance to support product quality decisions and operational excellence.
• Support aseptic processing controls, cleanroom operations, contamination control programs, facility expansions, process validations, cleaning validations, equipment qualifications, and new product introductions.
• Participate in technology transfers, product lifecycle management, stability programs, and continuous improvement initiatives.

Operational Excellence & Business Performance

• Establish and monitor laboratory performance metrics including turnaround times, environmental monitoring trends, investigation cycle times, right-first-time performance, compliance indicators, and productivity measures.
• Develop laboratory dashboards, performance reports, capacity assessments, and improvement plans.
• Lead Lean Laboratory initiatives to improve workflow efficiency, reduce cycle times, eliminate non-value-added activities, and optimize resource utilization.
• Drive adoption of automation, laboratory digitization, electronic systems, and innovative analytical technologies to improve efficiency, data quality, and cost effectiveness.
• Manage laboratory budgets, forecasting, resource planning, and cost optimization initiatives.
• Develop business cases and ROI assessments for laboratory investments, automation projects, and technology upgrades.

What you’ll bring

• Bachelor’s degree in Microbiology, Biology, Biotechnology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chemical Engineering, Life Sciences, or related scientific discipline required.
• Master’s degree or other advanced scientific qualification preferred.
• Advance level of English
• Progressive experience in Quality Control, Microbiology, Analytical Chemistry, Pharmaceutical Manufacturing, Biotechnology, Medical Devices, Healthcare Manufacturing, or other regulated industries.
• Minimum of 3-5 years of leadership experience managing laboratory operations, technical teams, or quality organizations.
• Proven experience supporting regulatory inspections, customer audits, compliance remediation, and inspection readiness programs.
• Experience leading microbiological and analytical investigations, contamination control strategies, environmental monitoring programs, quality risk management activities, and CAPA systems.
• Strong background in cGMP laboratory operations, quality systems, method lifecycle management, equipment qualification, and data integrity requirements.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Baxter is an equal opportunity employer. Baxter evaluates qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, protected veteran status, disability/handicap status or any other legally protected characteristic.

Reasonable Accommodations

Baxter is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities globally.