Post job

What is a senior quality manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

A senior quality manager designs and creates high-standard control techniques to ensure an organization's goods match their standard. As a senior quality manager, you will usually work with analysts and various professionals to determine the clusters and market demands. Also, you are in charge of designing product characteristics and monitoring workers' efficiency. Furthermore, you must analyze current quality control techniques and develop strategies to enhance the production of methods. Besides improving quality control, as a senior quality manager, you must ensure the obedience of staff to the organizations' standards. You must also evaluate the quality of crude materials that are utilized in production.

The educational requirement to get a job as a senior quality manager is a bachelor's or master's degree. However, you must have outstanding communication, interpersonal, and analytical skills. More importantly, you have to display great leadership and problem-solving skills. With these met, you will earn an average of $120,867 per annum or $58.12 per hour.

ScoreSenior Quality ManagerUS Average
Salary
8.3

Avg. Salary $127,285

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
9.8

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
2.1
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.51%

Asian 9.25%

Black or African American 3.89%

Hispanic or Latino 13.36%

Unknown 3.88%

White 69.11%

Gender

female 30.57%

male 69.43%

Age - 48
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 48
Stress level
9.8

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level
9.6

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance
3.5

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Senior quality manager career paths

Key steps to become a senior quality manager

  1. Explore senior quality manager education requirements

    Most common senior quality manager degrees

    Bachelor's

    66.4 %

    Master's

    20.6 %

    Associate

    7.7 %
  2. Start to develop specific senior quality manager skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Continuous Improvement7.65%
    Oversight5.24%
    Project Management4.31%
    FDA4.16%
    Quality Standards3.82%
  3. Complete relevant senior quality manager training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New senior quality managers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a senior quality manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real senior quality manager resumes.
  4. Research senior quality manager duties and responsibilities

    • Manage material review board (MRB) reviews to address issues.
    • Manage the daily activities consisting of a team of 3 QC inspectors and 1 Jr.
    • Manage all aspects of change control for business operational, overseeing all CAPA programs and management.
    • Assist Sr. Director QRC in producing QC metrics and managing corrective and preventive action (CAPA) system.
  5. Get senior quality manager experience

    Generally, it takes 4-6 years to become a senior quality manager. The most common roles before becoming a senior quality manager include quality manager, quality assurance manager team lead and quality engineer.
  6. Prepare your senior quality manager resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your senior quality manager resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a senior quality manager resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable senior quality manager resume templates

    Build a professional senior quality manager resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your senior quality manager resume.
    Senior Quality Manager Resume
    Senior Quality Manager Resume
    Senior Quality Manager Resume
    Senior Quality Manager Resume
    Senior Quality Manager Resume
    Senior Quality Manager Resume
    Senior Quality Manager Resume
    Senior Quality Manager Resume
    Senior Quality Manager Resume
  7. Apply for senior quality manager jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a senior quality manager job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first senior quality manager job

Zippi

Are you a senior quality manager?

Share your story for a free salary report.

Average senior quality manager salary

The average senior quality manager salary in the United States is $127,285 per year or $61 per hour. Senior quality manager salaries range between $90,000 and $178,000 per year.

Average senior quality manager salary
$127,285 Yearly
$61.19 hourly

What am I worth?

salary-calculator

How do senior quality managers rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Senior quality manager reviews

profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Oct 2019
Pros

Planning and ensuring project success by implementing QA standards

Cons

administrative tasks - lack of basic QA tools such as MS Project for scheduling


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on May 2019
Pros

Quality compliance, Concurrent documentation, Good Laboratory practice

Cons

Misconduct, Manipulation


Working as a senior quality manager? Share your experience anonymously.
Overall rating*
Career growth
Work/Life balance
Pay/Salary

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Browse executive management jobs