Senior Quality Manager, Microbiology & Sanitation

The Clorox Company • Alpharetta, GA

3d • Hybrid

About The Position

As part of the Corporate Quality Assurance team, this position Lead Clorox’s enterprise microbiology strategy, standards, and incident response across all BUs. Partner with R&D, QA, Engineering, Supply Chain, and Procurement to set science-based specifications, deploy validated methods, strengthen hygienic design and EM programs, and build global microbiology capability. Own microbiology and sanitation QMS documents and analytics to proactively identify trends and reduce risk. Represent Clorox externally as corporate SME.

Requirements

• B.S. in Microbiology, Food Science, Biology, Biochemistry, Medical Technology, or related field
• 10+ years in industrial microbiology/food safety, including 3–5 years in method development/verification and incident/crisis management.
• Food & consumer microbiology, microbial growth/survival, contamination control, hygienic design, environmental monitoring, sanitation systems, preservative efficacy/challenge testing, and predictive microbiology.
• Demonstrated interaction with regulators/customers; familiarity with FSMA/HACCP/PCQI, GMPs, AOAC/ISO/USP methods, and ISO 17025 (for labs) is a plus.
• Influence without authority across multiple BUs/sites; change leadership for global reapplication.
• Systems thinking: Connects lab methods, process controls, EM, and QMS analytics.
• Decisive under pressure: Rapid, data-based decision making in incidents; clear risk communication.
• Change leadership: Orchestrates global reapplication, training, and compliance sustainment.
• Data fluency: Experimental design, trend analytics, anomaly detection

Nice To Haves

• M.S./Ph.D. preferred.
• Thermal Process Authority: Preferred if scope includes shelf-stable/acidified foods; otherwise leave as “preferred” to avoid over-narrowing.
• ASQ (CQE/CQE-like), PCQI, HACCP—plus any relevant hygienic design or lab accreditation experience.

Responsibilities

• Lead the corporate microbiology and sanitation program and enterprise standards across all Clorox BUs; align with company strategy and regulatory/industry best practices.
• Monitor emerging microbiological risks (product/facility bioburden levels, pathogens, spoilage organisms, biological hazards); perform risk assessments for raw materials, processes, and finished products; define science-based controls.
• Develop, validate, and deploy microbiological test methods; lead site method verification with R&D Microbiology; drive global reapplication of proven approaches and technologies.
• Develop, validate and deploy sanitation; guide site verification for effectiveness, drive global implementation of proven methodologies.
• Direct rapid response to microbiological incidents across BUs; lead root cause analysis and corrective/preventive actions; capture and disseminate lessons learned.
• Govern microbiological testing laboratory standard to sites executing testing.
• Govern hygienic design standards with Engineering/Hygienic Design leaders; strengthen environmental monitoring, zoning, sanitation, and contamination control programs.
• Establish and lead a global network of site sanitation leaders and/or microbiology leaders; provide coaching and escalation support for troubleshooting at product supply and starting‑material sites.
• Design and deliver training that elevates microbiological and sanitation methods, risk‑based decision making, and practical problem‑solving (scientific method, root cause analysis); align site training plans with QA leadership.
• Embed microbiological safety into product/process design—predictive microbiology, challenge testing, raw material risk evaluation, and “quality by design” principles.
• Own microbiology and sanitation relevant QMS documents/SOPs; conduct periodic reviews, benchmarking, and updates to keep standards current and effective.
• Review site data; maintain enterprise scorecards; ensure timely, accurate monthly reporting; apply analytics (including AI/ML where appropriate) to identify trends and prioritize actions.
• Serve as corporate SME with customers and regulators; represent Clorox in trade associations/scientific forums; monitoring emerging trends related to microbiology, influence standards and share learnings across the industry.
• Help rapidly resolve any contamination incidents in any of the sites within the region to minimize the cost, product and consumer risk.
• Ensure that any learning resulting from the incident are rapidly deployed and implemented in both the sites within the region and globally.

Benefits

• robust health plans
• a market-leading 401(k) program with a company match
• flexible time off benefits (including half-day summer Fridays depending on location)
• inclusive fertility/adoption benefits

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees