About the Opportunity
JOB SUMMARY
The Building Safety Manager (BSM) serves as an embedded lab safety professional who provides environmental health and safety guidance, oversight, and support for research and teaching laboratories within their assigned buildings on the Northeastern Boston campus. The BSM advises Principal Investigators, lab personnel, Department Safety Officers (DSOs), and College Safety Officers (CSOs) on safe laboratory practices and regulatory compliance across chemical, biological, and radiation safety. Through regular building walkthroughs, lab inspections, and ongoing relationship-building with research groups, the BSM identifies hazards, recommends corrective actions, and helps labs understand and meet applicable city, state, and federal safety regulations. This can include supporting the appropriate management of hazardous material inventories within defined control areas, in coordination with lab personnel and Facilities. The BSM is a key point of contact for their local research community. The BSM also participates in building-level emergency planning, incident response, and coordinates with Northeastern's ECOS (Environmental Compliance and Occupational Safety) team on hazardous waste handling when needed. The role requires strong interpersonal skills, sound judgment to build trust with research groups, the ability to communicate risk clearly, and promote a collaborative, non-punitive safety culture rather than a purely enforcement-driven one.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
Bachelor’s degree in a physical science, life science, environmental science, engineering, occupational safety, or other applicable area
Minimum of five years demonstrated work experience in meeting EHS requirements in a laboratory setting
Preferred Qualifications
Employment experience within higher education
Experience in hazardous material emergency planning
Experience in laboratory process safety
Master’s degree in one of the fields listed above
Background in laboratory research and environmental health and safety compliance in research laboratories
Necessary Skills:
Working knowledge of the regulatory landscape governing laboratory operations (OSHA, RCRA, Massachusetts DEP, NFPA, and related standards), with the ability to translate regulatory requirements into practical, actionable guidance for lab personnel
Experience conducting laboratory inspections, hazard and risk assessments, and tracking corrective actions to closure
Ability to effectively negotiate and influence the safety behavior of PIs and research, building credibility and trust
Experience fostering a collaborative, non-punitive safety culture across research groups with varying levels of safety maturity
Experience with laboratory safety data management and tracking platforms
Ability to coordinate across multiple internal stakeholders such as Facilities, Department and College Safety Officers, ECOS, and other OARS programs on cross-functional safety initiatives
Experience responding to and participating in investigation of laboratory incidents and emergencies, including coordination with emergency responders
Ability to assist with hazardous material emergencies and post-event remediation
Ability to operate instrumentation used to monitor personnel chemical exposures and evaluate monitoring results
Excellent time, organizational, and project management skills, including planning, prioritizing, and scheduling multiple ongoing projects to work independently and with the BSM team
Demonstrated ability to work with a diverse population and foster a collaborative work environment
Be medically qualified to wear respiratory protection and other personal protective equipment
Lift up to 50 lbs and move up to 500 lbs of materials using rolling carts or drum carts.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES & ACCOUNTABILITIES
1) Laboratory Safety Support and Inspections
Serve as the primary safety advisor for PIs, lab managers, and research staff within assigned buildings. Conduct regular lab inspections…