Quality Assurance Manager

Position Summary: Responsible for building food safety and quality capability on the production floor through hands-on training and coaching of QA leads, technicians, production, maintenance, and warehouse teams. Owns product adherence to specifications, food safety plans, customer requirements, and certification standards, and maintains a consistent, visible QA presence on the floor to verify that programs are followed as written.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

Training & Coaching

·         Develop the QA team: Train, coach, and develop QA leads and technicians so they can independently verify, document, and escalate food safety and quality issues.

·         Train the floor: Deliver and maintain floor-level training for QA, production, maintenance, and warehouse employees on GMPs, allergen control, food safety plans, and product specifications — at hire, annually, and whenever a process, product, or line changes.

·         Real-time coaching: Coach in the moment on the floor: correct gaps as they are observed, explain the “why,” and follow up to confirm the correct practice sticks.

·         Training tools: Develop and maintain floor-accessible training tools (OPLs, job aids, visual standards) and verify training effectiveness through observation and record review.

·         Accountability: Set clear expectations for the QA team and hold them accountable through regular one-on-ones, performance reviews, and performance management. Responsible for hiring and terminations within the QA department.

Product Adherence

·         Specification ownership: Own product adherence to finished product specifications, formulations, labeling, customer requirements, and consumer certification standards (SQF, Organic, Gluten-Free).

·         Verification: Verify that critical controls, preventive controls, line checks, and pre-op/start-up checks are performed and documented correctly; review records for completeness, accuracy, and trends.

·         Nonconforming product: Lead hold, evaluation, and disposition of nonconforming product, and drive root cause analysis and corrective action (CAPA) to prevent recurrence.

·         Customer complaints: Own investigation of customer and consumer complaints, including root cause, corrective action, and timely response to the customer; share findings with the floor so the same issue does not repeat.

·         Trending: Trend quality data (line checks, holds, complaints, self-inspections) and share results with QA and production leadership to target coaching and improvement.

Floor Visibility

·         Daily floor presence: Maintain a consistent daily presence on the production floor across shifts, including routine GMP walks, line audits, and start-up verification.

·         Go-to resource: Serve as a visible, approachable resource for operators, leads, and supervisors on food safety and quality questions.

·         Partnership: Partner with production and plant management to resolve food safety, quality, and regulatory issues on the floor in a timely manner.

·         Escalation: Report non-compliant food safety, food quality, and employee safety issues immediately to upper management.

Program Support & Compliance

·         Assist the Director of Quality in the development, implementation, and maintenance of food safety plans, GMPs, and quality programs for the food storage and manufacturing facility.

·         Responsible for knowledge, maintenance, and adherence to Safe Quality Food (SQF) compliance standards.

·         Gap assessments: Conduct gap assessments against SQF Edition 10, customer requirements, and regulatory changes; build action plans and track gaps through to closure.

·         Trained and certified as a Preventive Controls Qualified Individual (PCQI).

·         Back up to the Director of Quality to ensure the plant operates in compliance with SQF requirements, customer specifications, consumer certifications, and government regulations (USDA, FDA, OSHA, State, County).

·         Assist in preparation for, and participate in, external food safety and consumer-based certification audits, customer audits, and regulatory inspections.

·         Expected to work the hours required to execute the duties of the position and set an exemplary example for all employees.

·         Other duties as assigned.