Laboratory Team Leader

Eurofins; Linlithgow; On-site; GBP 28,000 - 36,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company Pension Plan

Life Assurance Scheme (4x annual)</n>

Healthcare Cash Plan

Enhanced Maternity, Adoption and Pater

Job summary

Eurofins is seeking a Laboratory Supervisory professional to support the Microbiology Laboratory operations, ensuring safe, efficient testing aligned with quality and customer requirements.

The role involves leading a team of 5–15, coordinating staffing and workloads, investigating non-conformances, and maintaining training and competency across the lab. It also includes audits, CAPA, and daily liaison with Customer Services and Quality teams.

Qualifications

• Science qualification or equivalent with laboratory experience.
• Understanding of laboratory operations, quality systems, investigation techniques, root cause analysis and Health & Safety requirements.
• Laboratory experience with workload coordination, training and/or coaching colleagues.
• MS Office and laboratory system.
• Excellent communication skills both written and spoken.
• Organisation and problem solving skills.
• Commitment to continuous improvement.
• Knowledge of ISO 17025, UKAS requirements and food microbiology testing.
• Previous Team/Line Leader or Supervisor experience; investigations into non-conforming work.

Responsibilities

• Provide day-to-day leadership and supervision to defined area(s) of the laboratory and lead a team of approximately 5-15 laboratory personnel.
• Support Laboratory Managers with operational planning, resource allocation and workload management.
• Investigate non-conformances and quality issues, identifying root causes and implementing corrective actions.
• Coordinate staffing, work rota, holidays and workload allocation.
• Conduct probation reviews and performance reviews.
• Support recruitment, onboarding and induction activities.
• Ensure staff training and competency assessments are maintained.
• Work with other teams to ensure productivity and quality targets are met.
• Ensure compliance with quality, customer, UKAS and regulatory requirements.
• Participate in audits and support corrective and preventative actions.
• Lead investigations into laboratory errors and deviations.
• Monitor trends to identify improvement opportunities.
• Ensure investigation records and actions are completed on time.
• Liaise with customers regarding quality incidents and service issues.
• Produce KPI and operational reporting.
• Promote and maintain Health & Safety standards.
• Deputise for Laboratory Managers as needed.

Skills

Communication

Organisation

Problem solving

Team leadership

Education

Science qualification

Laboratory experience

Tools

MS Office

Laboratory systems

Job description

Eurofins Scientific is an international life sciences company, providing a unique range of analytical testing services to clients across multiple industries, to make life and our environment safer, healthier and more sustainable. From the food you eat, to the water you drink, to the medicines you rely on, Eurofins laboratories work with the biggest companies in the world to ensure the products they supply are safe, their ingredients are authentic, and labelling is accurate.

The Eurofins network is dedicated to delivering testing services that contribute to the health and safety of society and the planet, and to its corporate responsibility to protect the environment and ensure diversity, equity, and inclusion across its companies around the world.

We’re proud to be an armed forces-friendly place to work and welcome applications from reservists, armed forces veterans (including the wounded, injured and sick), as well as cadet instructors, and military spouses and partners.

Job Description

Unfortunately, we are unable to offer sponsorship for this role.

The purpose of this role is to support the Laboratory Managers in the day-to-day operation of the Microbiology Laboratory, ensuring testing activities are delivered safely, efficiently and in line with quality and customer requirements

This is a full time role working 40 hours per week, working a four week rotational shift pattern on 08:30-17:00 & 11:00-19:30 shift patterns. This role will involve working one weekend in every four on a 08:30 - 17:00 shift.

• Provide day-to-day leadership and supervision to defined area(s) of the laboratory and lead a team of approximately 5-15 laboratory personnel.
• Support Laboratory Managers with operational planning, resource allocation and workload management.
• Investigate non-conformances, customer complaints, quality issues and operational incidents, identifying root causes and implementing corrective and preventative actions.
• Coordinate staffing, work rota, holidays and workload allocation.
• Conduct probation reviews, performance reviews and return-to-work meetings.
• Support recruitment, interviewing, onboarding and induction activities.
• Ensure staff training, competency assessments and e-learning requirements are maintained.
• Work collaboratively with other Team Leaders, Supervisors and Managers to ensure productivity and quality targets are met.
• Ensure compliance with quality, customer, UKAS and regulatory requirements.
• Participate in audits and support corrective and preventative actions.
• Support the management of non-conforming work, ensuring appropriate containment, documentation, escalation and follow-up actions are completed.
• Lead or support investigations into laboratory errors, deviations, out-of-specification results and process failures.
• Monitor trends in non-conformances, customer complaints and quality indicators to identify improvement opportunities.
• Ensure investigation records, corrective actions and associated documentation are completed accurately and within required timescales.
• Support customer query and complaint investigations and liaise directly with customers where required regarding quality incidents, service issues, investigations and corrective actions.
• Work closely with Customer Services, Quality and Laboratory Management teams to ensure customer concerns are appropriately addressed.
• Produce and review KPI and operational reporting.
• Promote and maintain the highest standards of Health & Safety.
• Deputise for Laboratory Managers when appropriate.
• Undertake any other reasonable dutieswithin the role.

Qualifications

• Science qualification, relevant laboratory experience, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Understanding of laboratory operations, quality systems, investigation techniques, root cause analysis and Health & Safety requirements.
• Laboratory experience withworkload coordination,training and/or coaching colleagues.
• MS Office and laboratory system.
• Excellent communication skills both written and spoken.,
• Organisation and problem solving skills.
• Commitment to continuous improvement.
• Knowledge of ISO 17025, UKAS requirements and food microbiology testing.
• Previous Team/Line Leader or Supervisor experience; experience conducting investigations into non-conforming work, customer complaints or quality incidents.

Additional Information

At Eurofins we are growing, innovating and always learning. We celebrate the achievements of our employees through annual long service awards, recognise our colleagues special life events, and we are committed to charitable causes through global fundraising activities.

As a Eurofins employee you will benefit from:

• Additional Annual Leave at Employees set service dates
• Company Pension Plan
• Life Assurance Scheme (4 times annual salary)
• Healthcare Cash Plan (6+ months service)
• Enhanced Maternity, Adoption and Paternity Schemes
• Employee Assistance Programme – 24/7 confidential
• Health and Wellbeing Programmes
• Free parking
• Worldwide career opportunities
• We also have in place rewards recognising the great work ouremployees deliver, their dedicated service and celebrating special life events.

What Happens Next

Our people are the backbone of what we do, so it's incredibly important we find the right individuals to join us. As a potential new recruit you'll be invited to meet the team in the form of an assessment centre or a staged interview process dependent on the role and it's requirements, this will give you the opportunity to see what working for Eurofins is really like and enable us to get you know your key skills and strengths.

Weembracediversity!

Eurofins network of companies believe in strength and innovation through diversity, being an Equal Opportunity Employer. We prohibit discrimination against employees or applications based on gender identity and/or expression, race, nationality, age, religion, sexual orientation, disability, and everything else that makes employees of Eurofins companies unique.