What are the responsibilities and job description for the Quality Manager position at Buff City Soap?
About The Role
The Quality Manager (QA & QC) leads and strengthens Buff City Soap’s quality systems across internal operations, Support Center commissaries, contract manufacturers, and suppliers. This role ensures products meet defined standards through effective controls, inspections, and quality release processes.
Partnering closely with R&D and Supply Chain, the Quality Manager supports product commercialization and reliable supply by driving strong vendor relationships, GMP alignment, audit readiness, and continuous improvement.
Key responsibilities:
- Contract Manufacturing Vendor Management
- Own the QMS, quality standards (SOPs/specs), and quality agreements across internal operations and external partners, with a generalist lens supporting R&D and commercialization.
- Update and maintain contract manufacturing agreements.
- Support value engineering and cost-saving initiatives through R&D efforts (waste reduction, rework prevention, yield improvement)
- Partnering with R&D and Supply Chain through tech transfer, vendor set-up, and vendor agreements.
- QA Support
- Contract Manufacturer
- Leads on site scale up and production support at contract manufacturers during pilot trials, final production, and critical process changes
- Own finished goods release decisions for internal and CM production, supporting timely and compliant product commercialization
- Conduct on-site audits and QC verifications; review and approve quality-impacting changes (SOPs, control plans)
- Drive investigations and CAPA
- Partnering with Supply Chain and vendor to determine necessary steps for mitigation.
- Root cause investigation of product issues with contract manufacturer and mitigation deployment.
- Support and coach junior Quality Associate, facilitate issue resolution with FZs, and partner with Franchise Business Coaches to reinforce quality expectations in the field
- Contract Manufacturer
- Vendor Audit & Regulatory Readiness
- Assess GMP controls (sanitation, environmental monitoring, water, traceability, documentation) and ensure timely closure of actions
- Support MoCRA inspection readiness and facility preparedness in collaboration with R&D, Operations, and Supply Chain
- Further refine robust spec process for key raw materials and create critical dual sourcing parameters.
Qualifications:
- Proven product development & self-starter with 5 years’ experience across contract manufacturing and quality.
- Experience in partnering with contract manufacturers and vendors.
- Bachelor’s degree required
- Exemplary verbal and written communication skills
- Comfort with dynamic, high growth entrepreneurial company and culture