Quality Assurance Manager

The Quality Assurance Manager leads the site’s Quality Assurance department and ensures products meet company, customer, regulatory, and certification requirements. This position supervises QA personnel, manages the site’s food safety and quality systems, and serves as the designated SQF Practitioner. The manager partners with plant departments to maintain audit readiness, improve product quality, and promote a strong food safety culture.

Core Responsibilities

Quality Assurance Leadership

• Supervise, schedule, train, and develop QA personnel.
• Ensure required CCP, CPC, processing, blending, cooking, packaging, and bar-line checks are completed accurately.
• Review quality and production records for accuracy, completeness, and compliance.
• Investigate deviations, nonconforming products, process issues, and customer complaints.
• Lead corrective and preventive actions, including root cause analysis and effectiveness verification.
• Analyze quality data and drive improvements that reduce defects, waste, rework, and complaints.
• Maintain a visible presence on the production floor and coach employees on quality expectations.

Food Safety and SQF Systems

• Serve as the site’s designated SQF Practitioner.
• Maintain and continuously improve the SQF, HACCP, Food Safety, Quality, GMP, Preventive Controls, and prerequisite programs.
• Oversee applicable allergen, sanitation, supplier approval, traceability, recall, and food defense programs.
• Lead or participate in HACCP and Food Safety Team activities.
• Coordinate certification activities, audit preparation, audit responses, and corrective actions.
• Lead internal audits and support customer, regulatory, and third-party audits.
• Ensure food safety and quality training is completed and documented.
• Escalate significant food safety, quality, regulatory, or compliance concerns to plant leadership.
• Promote food safety culture through leadership, communication, training, and accountability.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Working knowledge of SQF, HACCP, GMPs, SSOPs, sanitation, preventive controls, internal auditing, and quality management systems.
• Understanding of food manufacturing regulations, customer requirements, and audit standards.
• Ability to lead investigations, root cause analysis, corrective actions, and effectiveness reviews.
• Experience managing quality, production, sanitation, testing, and compliance records.
• Strong leadership, communication, organization, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to analyze and trend data using computerized systems.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and digital quality or compliance systems.
• Basic knowledge of wastewater monitoring and compliance preferred.

Preferred Qualifications

• Three to five years of quality assurance or food safety experience in food manufacturing.
• One to three years of supervisory or leadership experience.
• HACCP certification, or ability to obtain certification within the required period after hire.
• SQF Practitioner experience preferred.
• PCQI and internal auditor training preferred.
• Experience with sanitation verification, environmental monitoring, product hold and release, customer complaints, and third-party audits preferred.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to walk frequently throughout a manufacturing facility.
• Ability to climb stairs and ladders, use catwalks, and work around operating equipment.
• Ability to regularly lift up to 25 pounds and occasionally lift up to 50 pounds.
• Ability to work in warm, cold, humid, wet, noisy, and changing plant conditions.
• Ability to understand and communicate instructions in written and verbal English.
• Must be at least 18 years old.

Work Schedule

This position supports a 24/7 manufacturing operation. Typical hours are Monday through Friday during standard business hours, with flexibility required for audits, investigations, training, sanitation verification, off-shift production issues, and other operational requirements.

Work Location

Top Tier Ingredients is located at 941 3rd Avenue Hancock, WI 54943 in Adams County near the border of Waushara County.

The facility is approximately:

•              Less than 20 minutes from Bancroft, Coloma, or Plainfield.

•              About 30 minutes from Adams, Almond, Necedah, Nekoosa, Wautoma, Westfield, or Wild Rose

•              About 35-40 minutes from Red Granite, Stevens Point, or Wisconsin Rapids.

With Top-Tier Ingredients, LLC., you will work as part of a high-performing food manufacturing organization where team members collaborate to get the job done and challenge the status quo to find a better way. We highly value hard work, achievement, and reliability and reward people accordingly.

Top Tier Ingredients LLC provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.