Pilot Plant Manager

Relocation Assistance Offered Within Country
Job Number #169497 - Piscataway, New Jersey, United States

Who We Are

Colgate-Palmolive Company is a global consumer products company operating in over 200 countries specializing in Oral Care, Personal Care, Home Care, Skin Care, and Pet Nutrition. Our products are trusted in more households than any other brand in the world, making us a household name!

Join Colgate-Palmolive, a caring, innovative growth company reimagining a healthier future for people, their pets, and our planet. Guided by our core values—Caring, Inclusive, and Courageous—we foster a culture that inspires our people to achieve common goals. Together, let's build a brighter, healthier future for all.

The Pilot Plant Manager will lead the operations of the Process Technology Center (PTC) pilot plant, which is responsible for developing, testing, and optimizing new products and manufacturing processes for reliable scale-up from laboratory to commercial production. They will drive operational excellence and compliance with regulatory and Company standards and requirements through leading by example. This person will drive innovation and sustained growth by efficiently executing Global Activity Grid projects and providing timely support for both the base business and global initiatives, fostering growth through effective use of the pilot plant for Oral Care (OC), Personal Care (PC) and Skin Health (SH). They will integrate continuous improvement initiatives and Corporate Sustainability Strategies and enhance the competitive advantage by identifying and implementing new technology, digitization and automation, global Funding the Growth (FTG) and simplification programs.

 

Responsibilities:

• Manage all pilot plant operations and projects, adherence to safety and quality standards, and alignment with global business objectives.

• Lead, motivate, manage, coach and develop a team of 10+ direct reports, fostering a high-performance culture focused on continuous improvement, cross-functional knowledge sharing and operational excellence within the pilot plant. Allocate and manage pilot plant resources to support operation, projects and continuous improvement according to department and evolving business priorities,

• Ensure excellence in delivering core fundamentals by ensuring adherence to Quality, Safety, Regulatory, Environmental Affairs, Occupational Health and Safety (EOHS) and Factory Performance and Reliability(FP&R) standards and guidelines. Monitor progress on implementation of systems and actions.

• Lead, develop and update pilot plant strategic plan and roadmap based on operational requirements and capital investments.

• Identify, execute and manage Capital Budget Expenditure (CEB) per aligned roadmap and latest CEB review approval decision. Plan, coordinate, and monitor approved pilot plant projects, ensuring timely completion within budget and scope and without safety accidents.

• Build strong partnerships with cross functional teams to enable smooth transition of innovation from development to market.

• E nsure to communicate timely updates with all the stakeholders on plans, priorities, progress, challenges and support required.

• Identify and implement continuous improvement plans for operation, process and equipment to boost efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance product quality.

• Lead by example to promote safe behaviors and awareness, sound environmental practices, commitment to quality and a continuous improvement mindset by championing new initiatives.

• Develop and approve the pilot plant operation expense budget and manage the actual spending within the approved budget (raw materials, PRM, etc).

• Serve as a key interface among external business partners such as R&D, Veolia, and Sodexo maintenance/janitorial to support daily pilot plant activities and maintain infrastructure.

• Oversee and ensure creation and adherence of the pilot plant production schedule, working with Product Development, Implementation & Support, Process Development & Innovation to support Delivering the Grid and FTG projects. Assuring scheduling of pilot plant equipment by R&D and Global PD&I Engineers according to the SOP. Escalating exceptions to the scheduling SOP.

• Oversee the raw material management process, assuring ordering, storage and waste disposal is executed between the appropriate internal and external stakeholders.

• Oversee the maintenance of pilot plant equipment, water system and other critical utilities. Coordinating maintenance team to provide corrective and preventative maintenance on the equipment.

• Ensure pilot plant is available to perform the validation of formula and process robustness and Key Release Specification with local raw materials and local manufacturing after Product Development completes formula robustness in designing the global formula.

• Ensure accurate documentation is maintained, including but not limited to notebooks, Standard Operating Procedures (SOP's), claims dossiers, Bundle Books , accurate records of experiments, processes, and results and so on.

• Other duties and responsibilities as assigned.

 

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor Degree in Engineering (e.g. Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Biochemistry, or Biotechnology).

• 5+ years experience in Engineering or Operations, or equivalent field.

• Experience as a people leader or with influencing large cross-functional teams.

• Consumer Goods Industry Experience.

 

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master's or a Ph.D.: Engineering (e.g. Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Biochemistry, or Biotechnology).

• Experience in manufacturing sites as operation leader or engineering leader, familiar with GMP and FDA requirements on consumer products operation.

• Excellent communication and collaboration skills.

• Organizational skill with ability to manage multiple cross-functional initiatives and stakeholders simultaneously.

• Knowledge of production equipment.

Compensation and Benefits
Salary Range $120,000.00 - $168,500.00 USD

Pay is determined based on experience, qualifications, and location. Salaried employees may also be eligible for discretionary bonuses, profit-sharing, and long-term incentives for Executive-level roles.

Benefits: Salaried employees enjoy a comprehensive benefits package, including medical, dental, vision, basic life insurance, paid parental leave, disability coverage, and participation in the 401(k) retirement plan with company matching contributions subject to eligibility requirements. Additional benefits include a minimum of 15 vacation/PTO days (hourly employees receive a minimum of 120 hours) and 13 paid holidays (vacation days are prorated based on the employee's hire date within the calendar year). Paid sick leave is adjusted based on role and location in accordance with local laws. Detailed information regarding paid sick leave entitlements will be provided to employees upon hiring and may be subject to adjustments based on changes in legislation or company policies.

Our Commitment to Inclusion
Our journey begins with our people—developing strong talent with diverse backgrounds and perspectives to best serve our consumers around the world and fostering an inclusive environment where everyone feels a true sense of belonging. We are dedicated to ensuring that each individual can be their authentic self, is treated with respect, and is empowered by leadership to contribute meaningfully to our business.

Equal Opportunity Employer
Colgate is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, ethnicity, age, disability, marital status, veteran status (United States positions), or any other characteristic protected by law.

Reasonable accommodation during the application process is available for persons with disabilities. Please complete this request form should you require accommodation.

For additional Colgate terms and conditions, please click here .

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