The Health Safety & Environment (HSE) Director provides strategic leadership for HSE performance across the Global Operations Business Unit. This role is responsible for establishing and executing the HSE strategy, driving operational excellence, strengthening risk management, and ensuring compliance with applicable regulatory requirements and enterprise standards while supporting business growth.
As a member of the Business Unit Leadership Team, the Director partners with Operations, Engineering, Quality, Human Resources, and Corporate HSE to integrate HSE into business planning, operational decision making, capital investments, acquisitions, and facility expansion. The role influences leaders at all levels to embed a proactive safety culture, prioritize risk, and improve performance across manufacturing environments with varying levels of HSE maturity.
Success in this role requires both strategic vision and operational execution. The Director translates enterprise HSE objectives into practical business solutions, balances enterprise consistency with specific needs, and builds organizational capability through influence, collaboration, governance, and continued improvement. The Director is accountable for delivering sustainable improvements that protect employees strengthen environmental stewardship, and enable safe, compliance business growth.
The Director will also be an active member of the various corporate HSE teams and the HSE Council.
This is a remote-based position with a strong preference for candidates located near one of STERIS's manufacturing sites, including Mentor, OH; Plymouth, MN; Conroe, TX; or St. Louis, MO. The role requires up to 50% domestic and international travel.
Business Unit HSE Strategy & Performance (30%)
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Define and own the Business Unit HSE strategy, including safety, environmental compliance, and risk management, aligned to regulatory requirements, enterprise standards, and business objectives.
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Establish and drive BU-level HSE performance goals, KPIs, and dashboards; ensure accountability across sites.
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Own the BU risk profile, prioritizing initiatives and capital investments based on risk, compliance, and business impact.
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Integrate HSE into BU planning processes, including operations, capital planning, and growth initiatives.
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Provide strategic guidance to BU leadership on emerging risks, regulatory changes, and business impacts.
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Lead prioritization of capital investments related to HSE, including environmental compliance, risk reduction, and facility upgrades.
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Identify systemic risks and escalate to leadership with clear business cases to drive prioritization and resource allocation.
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Influence senior operations leaders to align priorities and drive execution.
Operational Integration & Execution (15%)
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Translate complex regulatory requirements (e.g., environmental permitting, emissions, waste, and safety regulations) and corporate HSE programs into effective BU execution plans across multiple sites.
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Ensure consistent implementation of HSE standards while adapting to BU-specific operational needs.
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Drive cross-site alignment, standardization, and sharing of best practices.
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Partner with Operations leadership to embed HSE into daily management systems and performance routines.
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Lead BU-wide initiatives focused on risk reduction, culture improvement, and operational excellence.
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Provide HSE leadership for facility expansions, renovations, and capital projects, ensuring safe design, regulatory compliance, and effective risk mitigation throughout all project phases.
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Maintain a strong field presence to understand operational realities and ensure solutions are practical and sustainable.
Risk Management (15%)
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Ensure full compliance with safety and environmental regulatory requirements, including air emissions, wastewater, hazardous waste, and chemical management standards.
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Oversee risk assessment processes, ensuring prioritization and mitigation of critical risks.
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Monitor and address compliance gaps, escalating significant risks and ensuring timely resolution.
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Provide leadership on incident investigation, ensuring high quality root cause analysis, corrective actions, and sharing of lessons learned.
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Oversee environmental permitting, reporting, and regulatory agency interactions across all Business Unit operations.
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Establish clear prioritization frameworks to focus resources on highest-impact risks and opportunities.
Environmental Compliance & Sustainability Leadership (10%)
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Provide strategic oversight of environmental compliance programs, including air emissions, wastewater, stormwater, hazardous waste, and chemical management.
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Ensure effective management of environmental permitting, reporting, and agency engagement across all BU operations.
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Lead environmental risk identification and mitigation strategies within manufacturing and operational environments.
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Oversee programs related to pollution prevention, resource conservation, and sustainability performance.
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Drive sustainability, waste reduction, and environmental performance improvements.
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Accountable for ensuring HSE considerations are embedded in Product lifecycle, facility design, and operational excellence initiatives to support safe, compliant, and sustainable growth.
People Leadership & Organizational Effectiveness (10%)
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Lead the Business Unit HSE organization, including direct and indirect team members across multiple sites.
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Set direction, priorities, and performance expectations aligned to BU strategy.
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Develop HSE leadership capability and bench strength across the Business Unit.
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Develop and maintain cross-functional HSE culture and engagement with operational leaders across the Business Unit.
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Drive momentum in environments where performance is stable but not improving.
Business Partnership & Enterprise Alignment (10%)
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Partner with Corporate HSE to ensure alignment with enterprise governance, compliance frameworks, and strategic initiatives.
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Represent the Business Unit in enterprise HSE forums and councils.
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Influence cross-functional stakeholders to integrate HSE into business decisions and drive performance outcomes.
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Support enterprise initiatives while ensuring relevance and effectiveness within the BU.
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Accountable for embedding HSE considerations into business strategy, operational excellence initiatives, facility design, and growth planning to enable safe, compliant, and sustainable operations.
Business Transformation, Integration & Expansion (10%)
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Lead HSE due diligence and integration activities for acquisitions, divestitures, and new site start-ups.
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Assess HSE risks during transactions and develop integration plans to align acquired operations with enterprise standards.
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Ensure rapid deployment of HSE management systems, compliance programs, HSE cultural development, and risk controls post-acquisition.
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Provide HSE leadership for facility expansions, renovations, and capital projects, ensuring regulatory compliance, safe design, and effective risk mitigation from design through execution.
Required:
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Bachelor’s Degree
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Minimum 10 years of progressive HSE experience with demonstrated multi-site leadership responsibility
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Minimum 5 years of direct or indirect people leadership experience
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Experience in manufacturing or industrial environments with strong understanding of operational and environmental risks
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Experience operating in regulated industries (e.g., FDA, EPA, ISO-driven environments).
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Demonstrated experience leading HSE through integrations, acquisitions, or significant business transformations.
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Proven ability to integrate HSE into business operations and influence senior leadership decision-making
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Demonstrated success in influencing without authority across complex organizations
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Proven ability to drive change and alignment across multiple sites or business units
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Experience owning HSE performance outcomes, including KPIs, compliance, and risk reduction
Preferred:
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Bachelor’s degree in Occupational Health and Safety, healthcare, Engineering/Science, or related field
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Strongly prefer advanced degree and relevant professional certification (CSP, CIH or equivalent)
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Global leadership experience
Other:
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Advanced knowledge of environmental regulations (EPA, air permitting, wastewater, hazardous waste, etc.)
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Strong expertise in Environmental Management Systems (ISO 14001)
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Deep understanding of manufacturing processes and associated environmental and safety risks
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Experience managing environmental compliance in complex, multi-site operations
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Knowledge of industrial hygiene, chemical safety, and exposure controls
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Strong leadership, managerial, facilitation, training, and mentoring skills
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Strong project/problem resolution skills
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Strong people management skills
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Strong interpersonal and influencing skills with ability to manage site-level, regional operational and senior management relationships
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Highly effective communication skills; written and oral
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Confident with the use of IT systems, e-learning platforms, and software
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Understanding of applicable computer systems, such as Microsoft Office, SharePoint, databases, and function specific software
We value our employees and are committed to providing a comprehensive benefits package that supports your health, well-being, and financial future.
Here is a brief overview of what we offer:
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Market competitive pay
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Extensive paid time off and (9) added holidays
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Excellent healthcare, dental, and vision benefits
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Long/short term disability coverage
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401(K) with company match
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Maternity and parental leave
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Additional add on benefits/discounts for programs such as pet insurance
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Tuition reimbursement and continued educational programs
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Excellent opportunities for advancement in a stable long-term career
#LI-HT
Pay range for this opportunity is $144,500.00 - $187,000.00. This position is eligible for bonus participation.
Minimum pay rates offered will comply with county/city minimums, if higher than range listed. Pay rates are based on a number of factors, including but not limited to local labor market costs, years of relevant experience, education, professional certifications, foreign language fluency, etc.
STERIS offers a comprehensive and competitive benefits portfolio. Click here for a complete list of benefits: STERIS Benefits
Open until position is filled.
STERIS is a leading global provider of products and services that support patient care with an emphasis on infection prevention. WE HELP OUR CUSTOMERS CREATE A HEALTHIER AND SAFER WORLD by providing innovative healthcare and life sciences products and services around the globe. For more information, visit www.steris.com.
If you need assistance completing the application process, please call 1 (440) 392.7047. This contact information is for accommodation inquiries only and cannot be used to check application status.
STERIS is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity to ensure that persons are recruited, hired, trained, transferred and promoted in all job groups regardless of race, color, religion, age, disability, national origin, citizenship status, military or veteran status, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, and any other category protected by federal, state or local law. We are not only committed to this policy by our status as a federal government contractor, but also we are strongly bound by the principle of equal employment opportunity.
The full affirmative action program, absent the data metrics required by § 60-741.44(k), shall be available to all employees and applicants for employment for inspection upon request. The program may be obtained at your location’s HR Office during normal business hours.
