Laboratory Team Lead

Our client is an international manufacturing organisation with a strong focus on quality, safety, and continuous improvement. The site operates in a highly regulated environment and plays an important role in delivering products to consumers around the world. The organisation offers a collaborative working culture, a practical business environment, and the opportunity to contribute to both daily operations and longer‑term improvements.

Our client is looking for a Laboratory Team Lead to support and guide a laboratory team at a busy production site. This role combines team leadership with operational oversight and close involvement in laboratory activities. The successful candidate will help ensure that daily lab operations run smoothly while maintaining a strong focus on safety, quality, and service to production.

• Lead and coordinate a team of around 15 QC Analyst across laboratory and sample logistics activities
• Oversee the daily operation of the lab and ensure work is carried out in line with agreed standards and procedures
• Support the team in managing changing priorities and workload peaks within a production-driven environment
• Act as a key point of contact for the laboratory within the wider site organisation
• Work closely with departments such as Quality Assurance, Production, and Technology
• Contribute to improvement initiatives and annual planning within the wider quality control team
• Help drive operational improvements, implement new ways of working, and support lab performance development
• Provide the right level of guidance and leadership to different team members with varying levels of experience

• Higher professional education level or equivalent working and thinking level
• Experience leading or coordinating a team
• Hands‑on laboratory experience is strongly preferred
• Experience in a regulated environment is beneficial
• Knowledge of ISO 17025 is an advantage
• Strong communication skills in both Dutch and English
• Able to stay organised and effective in a dynamic production environment
• Strong people skills, with the ability to adapt leadership style to different team needs

This is a broad and visible role for someone who enjoys combining people leadership, laboratory knowledge, and operational improvement. It would suit a candidate who wants to make an impact in a quality-focused production environment and who is comfortable working closely with both teams and stakeholders across the site.