Manager, Testing & Lab Operations (Cortland)

Opportunity: Compliance Testing & Lab Operations Manager (Cannabis / Regulated Manufacturing)Location: Cortland, NYSalary: $65,000–$75,000 (flexible above this range for right candidate)Full-Time - Will relocated for right candidate.A rapidly growing, mission-driven organization in the regulated cannabis manufacturing space is seeking a Compliance Testing & Lab Operations Manager to own and optimize its third-party testing ecosystem.This role is central to ensuring product compliance, production scalability, and operational efficiency across all finished goods testing. You will act as the cross-functional lead between Production, Quality, R&D, Supply Chain, and external laboratories, ensuring testing throughput supports business growth without compromising regulatory integrity.About the RoleThis is a high-impact operational role responsible for the strategy, performance, and continuous improvement of all compliance testing activities.You will not be performing day-to-day sampling or paperwork execution—instead, you will oversee the system, manage vendor relationships, analyze performance data, and drive improvements across the entire testing lifecycle.This role is critical to:Preventing production delays caused by lab bottlenecksEnsuring regulatory compliance and audit readinessImproving turnaround times and testing efficiencyProtecting revenue through proactive risk and failure managementKey ResponsibilitiesTesting Operations & StrategyOwn end-to-end compliance testing workflow for finished goodsForecast testing volume aligned with production planningIdentify and resolve bottlenecks impacting turnaround timeDevelop proactive testing schedules to support scaleLaboratory & Vendor ManagementManage relationships with third-party testing laboratoriesNegotiate pricing, service levels, and contractsMonitor lab performance and resolve discrepanciesEnsure priority service during peak production periodsData & Performance ManagementTrack and analyze testing data (TAT, failure rates, variance, etc.)Build reporting dashboards for leadership visibilityIdentify systemic risks and quality trendsSupport financial insights tied to yield and potencyFailure Management & RemediationOwn testing failure tracking and resolution workflowsCoordinate cross-functional corrective actionsLead root cause analysis and prevention strategiesMaintain audit-ready documentationCross-Functional LeadershipServe as the central point of coordination across departmentsAlign testing timelines with production and product launchesEnsure compliance is embedded into new product developmentProcess ImprovementDevelop and maintain SOPs for testing operationsStandardize workflows with internal testing staffContinuously improve efficiency, escalation, and communication systemsWhat We're Looking For5+ years in regulated manufacturing (Cannabis, Pharma, Food, CPG, or similar)Experience managing third-party lab relationshipsStrong data analysis and reporting capabilityVendor negotiation and contract experienceProject management across cross-functional teamsUnderstanding of regulatory compliance frameworks (GMP preferred)Ability to interpret and challenge technical lab dataStrong communication and organizational skillsPreferred ExperienceCannabis industry compliance or testing experienceERP systems (Acumatica or similar)Root cause analysis / CAPA workflowsBachelor's degree in a scientific, technical, or business fieldAbout VangstVangst is the cannabis industry's hiring platform. Vangst helps cannabis companies find the talent they need to grow their business. From on-demand gig workers to trained & credential full-time employees, Vangst has built the industry's go-to talent marketplace for all cannabis hiring. Vangst is proud to work with 1,200+ of the cannabis industry's leading businesses.Since raising their seed round in 2018, Vangst has become one of the fastest-growing companies in the cannabis industry and was recognized as one of Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies.Today, over 300,000 people have full-time jobs in the cannabis industry and this number is expected to triple over the next five years. Vangst is on a mission to fill every job in the cannabis industry.Vangst's headquarters is in Denver, CO. Vangst is a Series B company backed by Lerer Hippeau, Colle Capital, Level One Fund, Snoop Dogg's Casa Verde Capital, and others.Vangst provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.