How to hire a laboratory director

How to hire a laboratory director, step by step

Here's a step-by-step laboratory director hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a laboratory director job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new laboratory director
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a laboratory director do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a laboratory director, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect laboratory director also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of laboratory director salaries for various roles:

   Type of Laboratory Director	Description	Hourly rate
   Laboratory Director	Medical and health services managers, also called healthcare executives or healthcare administrators, plan, direct, and coordinate medical and health services. They might manage an entire facility, a specific clinical area or department, or a medical practice for a group of physicians... Show more	$26-75
   Clinical Manager	A clinical manager is responsible for monitoring medical procedures and administrative duties to ensure the smooth flow of operations in a healthcare facility. Clinical managers manage the facility's staffing needs, evaluate budget reports, assist healthcare professionals on administering medical duties, and develop strategic procedures to optimize treatments and maximize productivity... Show more	$26-61
   Nurse Manager	The primary role of nurse managers is to supervise the nursing staff in a clinical or hospital setting. They are the ones who are in charge of patient care, setting work schedules, and making budgetary and management decisions... Show more	$28-55

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Clinical Laboratory
   • Patients
   • Patient Care
   • CLIA
   • Test Results
   • Laboratory Services
   • Chemistry
   • Microbiology
   • Laboratory Procedures
   • Oversight
   • Proficiency Testing
   • Hematology
   • Regulatory Agencies
   • OSHA

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Perform and manage quality control, maintenance and calibration of all equipment in hematology, coagulation and urinalysis.
   • Set up forensic DNA laboratory, train laboratory technicians in advance molecular techniques, and manage day-to-day activities of forensic DNA laboratory
   • Consult patients on various laboratory procedures involve in IVF.
   • Supervise 8 managers and 130 full-time employees (FTEs).
   • Focus on sterility, endotoxin, water and bioburden testing.
   • Restore compliance integrity of lab back to full capacity in time for JCAHO inspection.

   More laboratory director duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the laboratory director job description is a good way to get more applicants. A laboratory director salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a laboratory director in Florida may be lower than in Delaware, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level laboratory director. Additionally, a laboratory director with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average laboratory director salary

   $92,971yearly

   $44.70 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level laboratory director salary

   $55,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 15, 2025

   Average laboratory director salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$116,633	$56
   2	New York	$110,579	$53
   3	District of Columbia	$103,063	$50
   4	Washington	$100,280	$48
   5	Massachusetts	$98,733	$47
   6	Texas	$96,262	$46
   7	Pennsylvania	$93,139	$45
   8	Oregon	$92,651	$45
   9	Colorado	$87,861	$42
   10	Oklahoma	$84,708	$41
   11	Georgia	$84,094	$40
   12	Missouri	$79,430	$38
   13	Alabama	$74,124	$36
   14	Minnesota	$73,309	$35
   15	Tennessee	$69,494	$33
   16	Arkansas	$67,914	$33
   17	Wisconsin	$63,869	$31
   18	Mississippi	$63,566	$31
   19	Florida	$63,550	$31
   20	Kansas	$60,905	$29

   Average laboratory director salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Reed Smith	$174,168	$83.73
   2	Meta	$166,781	$80.18	10
   3	Google	$163,434	$78.57
   4	Methodist Hospital Of Henderson, Kentucky	$140,324	$67.46	11
   5	St Vincent Medical Group Inc	$138,323	$66.50
   6	Applied Materials	$135,119	$64.96	2
   7	CHI Mercy Health	$131,471	$63.21	10
   8	Bristol-Myers Squibb	$128,582	$61.82	16
   9	Supermicro	$127,831	$61.46
   10	Cleveland Clinic	$123,895	$59.56	63
   11	Ncar - The National Center For Atmospheric Research	$123,526	$59.39
   12	Park Nicollet Medical Center Inc	$123,480	$59.37
   13	Montefiore Mount Vernon Hospital	$122,414	$58.85	5
   14	Seattle Cancer Care Alliance	$120,950	$58.15
   15	Dignity Health	$118,825	$57.13	138
   16	Hca Hospital Services Of San Diego	$117,561	$56.52
   17	Verathon	$116,713	$56.11
   18	Illumina	$116,677	$56.09
   19	Omnicom Media Group	$115,744	$55.65	2
   20	Brookhaven National Laboratory	$114,951	$55.26

4. Writing a laboratory director job description

   A laboratory director job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a laboratory director job description:

   Laboratory director job description example

   A 300 bed hospital in Southern Montana is looking for an experienced Laboratory Director to join their Magnet designated organization. This award winning facility is looking for a strong leader to oversee the operations of their busy laboratory.
   
   The Laboratory Director will join a hospital with a team of 5,000 employees. This Level II Emergency and Trauma Center offers over 50 specialties and is the region's largest multi-specialty group. Additionally, this facility was one of the first Magnet designated facilities in Montana. In addition to its Magnet designation, this hospital is a member of the Mayo Clinic, and has been recognized as one of America's best in 100 Best Hospitals for Patient Experience, Orthopedics, Breast Centers, Heart Care, Bariatric Surgery and Stroke Centers.
   
   The Laboratory Director plays a central role in managing operations in a busy department. Supporting the Director is an outstanding team of CLS Managers, Supervisors and Supporting Staff.
   
   The Laboratory Director will work in a busy, fast paced environment that services a radius of 400 miles. This unit prides itself on providing excellent customer service and quality testing. Additionally, this laboratory is known for rapid turnaround times. The director will work alongside physicians, pathologists, administration, health care providers and medical staff.
   
   The Laboratory Director is responsible for spearheading day to day operations within the laboratory. The Director will perform diagnostic testings on patients to diagnose potential diseases and infections. Additionally, the Director is responsible for ensuring that the department is meeting and exceeding department goals, developing and implementing quality control programs, and supervising the unit by assigning tasks to get the job done as a team.
   
   The Laboratory Director will live in a city known for it's historical significance. The Director will enjoy all four seasons and outdoor activities in the world famous Yellowstone Park. Additionally, this city is known for its cleanliness, liveability and it's safety. The Director will get to enjoy many options for dining ranging from casual to fine. Come work and live in one of the most beautiful states in the country!
   The Laboratory Director will have the opportunity to play a central role in the day-to-day and in the strategic operations of this critical department. This person will work with an amazing team of professionals and experts. For all this work and dedication, the Director will earn a very competitive salary and generous benefits package.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right laboratory director for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your laboratory director job on Zippia to find and recruit laboratory director candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit laboratory directors, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new laboratory director

   Once you have selected a candidate for the laboratory director position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new laboratory director. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a laboratory director?