Director of Technical Services

Gilder Search Group; Merced (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

Gilder Search Group seeks a senior Technical Services Director to lead food safety, quality, and R&D for a large food manufacturer. You will partner with the COO to drive a multi-year improvement roadmap, strengthen technical systems, and build a proactive quality culture on-site in Merced County.

The role requires deep expertise in thermal and aseptic processing, leadership of QA and microbiology, and the ability to influence across functions while delivering measurable improvements in product

Qualifications

• Significant technical leadership in large-scale food manufacturing.
• Deep experience with thermal and aseptic processing.
• Experience leading QA, Food Safety, microbiology, and/or R&D.
• Proven ability to identify and lead microbiological and food safety responses.
• Bachelor’s in related field; master’s preferred; on-site in Merced County.

Responsibilities

• Lead food safety, quality, microbiology, and R&D; develop the team.
• Drive investigation and resolution of microbiological and quality issues.
• Strengthen technical systems, documentation, and audit readiness.
• Optimize thermal and aseptic processing to improve quality and reliability.
• Support new product development, process improvement, and commercialization.
• Improve customer complaint and corrective action processes with Operations.
• Serve as a technical resource for customers and translate needs into priorities.

Skills

Technical leadership

Food safety

Quality assurance

R&D leadership

Microbiology

Process improvement

Cross-functional collaboration

Team development

Education

Bachelor's in Food Science

Master's preferred

Tools

Thermal processing equipment

Aseptic processing equipment

Evaporators

Job description

• Lead food safety, quality, and R&D for a large, established food manufacturer
• Partner directly with the COO to strengthen technical systems, drive process improvement, and build a proactive quality culture
• On-site position in Merced County, CA; $180K–$200K base salary + bonus

About the Role

Reporting to the COO, this is a senior technical leadership role with broad responsibility across manufacturing, quality, food safety, process improvement, product development, and customer technical support. The Technical Services Director will assess existing systems and processes, establish priorities, and lead a multi-year roadmap to strengthen the technical function as the business continues to grow.

The ideal candidate combines deep technical expertise in thermal and aseptic processing with the leadership presence to operate as a trusted partner to senior management. This person will lead a capable technical team, strengthen cross-functional collaboration with plant operations, and bring greater rigor and consistency to quality systems, documentation, and problem-solving.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead food safety, quality, microbiology, and R&D, developing the team and strengthening cross-functional collaboration.
• Drive investigation and resolution of microbiological, food safety, and quality issues.
• Strengthen technical systems and documentation, including sanitation, hygiene, change management, corrective actions, and audit preparedness.
• Optimize thermal and aseptic processing to improve product quality, consistency, reliability, and manufacturing performance.
• Support new product development, process improvement, and commercialization.
• Improve customer complaint and corrective action processes in partnership with Operations.
• Serve as a technical resource for customers and translate customer needs into manufacturing and R&D priorities.

Candidate Profile

• Significant technical leadership experience within large-scale food manufacturing.
• Deep experience with thermal and aseptic processing.
• Experience leading Quality Assurance, Food Safety, microbiology, and/or R&D functions.
• Demonstrated ability to identify and lead the response to microbiological and food safety issues.
• Experience with evaporators and kill steps is a plus.
• Strong, hands-on leader who can operate autonomously, develop others, and influence across functions.
• Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Food Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Microbiology, or a related field; master’s degree preferred.
• Able to work onsite five days per week in Merced County.