R&D Senior Scientist, Industrial Microbiologist

Clorox is the place that’s committed to growth – for our people and our brands. Guided by our purpose and values, and with people at the center of everything we do, we believe every one of us can make a positive impact on consumers, communities, and teammates. Join our team. #CloroxIsThePlace

Your role at Clorox:

R&D Quality Transformation COE was established to ensure consistent, trusted, and efficient management of microbial risk across Clorox by embedding technical rigor into standards, tools, and decision making. We are looking for Scientists who thrive at the intersection of science, manufacturing, and organizational transformation.
As the Senior Scientist - Microbiologist in the R&D Quality Transformation group you will be responsible for advancing Clorox’s Microbiological Risk Assessment (MRA) capability. As products, materials, processes, and timeline pressures cause projects to become more complex, microbiological risk must be anticipated, designed out, and managed upstream – integrating into innovation and product design through to manufacturing and market introduction.
This role is ideal for a technical leader who has experience with the Product Lifecycle through manufacturing, understands where failures originate, and is motivated to build systems, standards, and behaviors that prevent them—at enterprise scale.
Partnering with R&D Microbiology, Supply Chain Quality Microbiology, and External Networks this R&D role is focused on microbial risk prevention, innovation enablement, and technical strategy – that achieves business results. You will shape how microbiology enables innovation—while protecting consumers and the Clorox brands.
This position, hybrid, may be based in either the Pleasanton, CA or Durham, NC office, with an expectation to work onsite at least 3 days per week.

In this role, you will:

Enterprise MRA Enablement & Influence

• Serve as a key Microbiology technical lead in the improvements of the Microbiological Risk Assessment (MRA) process across all Business Units.

• Shape microbiology-related expectations, guide appropriate use of the MRA framework, and support consistent application of microbiological risk thinking—while allowing flexibility for BU-specific needs.

Technical review & escalation discipline

• Support the rollout of the MRA process by conducting first-line technical review and approvals to build rigor and consistency across BUs—assessing completeness, clarity, and early adherence to emerging standards and appropriately escalating novel or higher-risk issues to senior leaders.

Microbiological Risk Strategy while Balancing Business Outcomes

• Serve as the R&D Microbiologist resource for enterprise Quality Transformation efforts collaborating closely with Microbiology teams in R&D and Supply Chain.

• Coordinate and provide technical judgment on medium- and high-risk MRA situations, helping leadership teams navigate trade-offs while maintaining consumer and business objectives.

Standards, Best Practices & External Networking

• Collaborate and evolve R&D microbiology preservative standards, guidance, and expectations in partnership with R&D Microbiology & Quality Transformation leadership.

• Stay connected to industry trends, emerging risks, and microbiology best practices, translating external learning into practical internal application.\Represent R&D microbiology perspective in cross-functional and enterprise discussions when microbiological risk is a key consideration.

What we look for:

SKILLS & ABILITIES

Experience in applied / industrial microbiology as it relates to consumer products.

Strong understanding of microbiology impact across:

• Formulation and preservation

• Raw materials and water systems

• Manufacturing processes and environments

Ability to apply microbiology judgment in ambiguous, real-world scenarios with incomplete data.

Credibility to influence senior technical leaders and business stakeholders without formal authority.

EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:

Bachelor’s degree or higher in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Microbiology, Food Science, Materials Science, or a related technical discipline.

5+ years of experience including Microbiology across one or more of the following:

• R&D Product Development

• R&D Applied Microbiology

• Manufacturing, Quality, or Industrial Microbiology

Strong understanding of:

• Product development lifecycles

• Microbiological Practices in Development and Manufacturing

• Risk-based quality and decision-making frameworks

• Change Management

#LI-Hybrid

Workplace type:

This position, hybrid, may be based in either the Pleasanton, CA or Durham, NC office, with an expectation to work onsite at least 3 days per week.

Our values-based culture connects to our purpose and empowers people to be their best, professionally and personally. We serve a diverse consumer base which is why we believe teams that reflect our consumers bring fresh perspectives, drive innovation, and help us stay attuned to the world around us. That’s why we foster an inclusive culture where every person can feel respected, valued, and fully able to participate, and ultimately able to thrive. Learn more.

[U.S.]Additional Information:

At Clorox, we champion people to be well and thrive, starting with our own people. To help make this possible, we offer comprehensive, competitive benefits that prioritize all aspects of wellbeing and provide flexibility for our teammates’ unique needs. This includes 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, and more.

We are committed to fair and equitable pay and are transparent with current and future teammates about our full salary ranges. We use broad salary ranges that reflect the competitive market for similar jobs, provide sufficient opportunity for growth as you gain experience and expand responsibilities, while also allowing for differentiation based on performance. Based on the breadth of our ranges, most new hires will start at Clorox in the first half of the applicable range. Your starting pay will depend on job-related factors, including relevant skills, knowledge, experience and location. The applicable salary range for every role in the U.S. is based on your work location and is aligned to one of three zones according to the cost of labor in your area.

–Zone A: $106,700 - $204,900

–Zone B: $97,800 - $187,900

–Zone C: $88,900 - $170,800

All ranges are subject to change in the future. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your location during the hiring process.

This job is also eligible for participation in Clorox’s incentive plans, subject to the terms of the applicable plan documents and policies.

Please apply directly to our job postings and do not submit your resume to any person via text message. Clorox does not conduct text-based interviews and encourages you to be cautious of anyone posing as a Clorox recruiter via unsolicited texts during these uncertain times.

To all recruitment agencies: Clorox (and its brand families) does not accept agency resumes. Please do not forward resumes to Clorox employees, including any members of our leadership team. Clorox is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.