Dairy Farmers of America-posted 3 months ago
$100,000 - $115,000/Yr
Full-time • Mid Level
Wilbraham, MA
5,001-10,000 employees
Food Manufacturing

The Quality Assurance Manager will manage and lead a quality department, ensuring effective quality execution, continuous improvement, and regulatory compliance. The role involves maintaining a culture of food safety and quality within the facility, developing processes to ensure finished products are food safe and meet specifications, and functioning as an organized communicator to lead solution-based decision making in the plant.

  • Ensure daily plant quality and food safety operations are compliant with DFA policies and procedures and local, state, and federal regulations
  • Maintain audit readiness
  • Maintain a robust food safety program and subsequent quality program
  • Escalate non-conformance events to the quality director and plant manager
  • Oversee plant sanitation to drive a robust sanitation program
  • Ensure the plant pest control programs are current, followed, and utilized to enable proactive maintenance
  • Manage the facility's change control program to enable robust risk assessment and decisions
  • Ensure compliance to specification, manufacturing instructions, and preventive maintenance programs
  • Collaboratively lead investigations relating to non-conforming events driving to root cause(s) and effective resolution
  • Manage hold and release programs
  • Review records daily to ensure all records are completed as required
  • Track and report on plant quality key performance indicators (KPIs)
  • Participate in the annual plant budgeting process
  • Partner with the plant manager on identifying key capital projects that support food safety and quality initiatives
  • Provide training to the plant personnel concerning food safety, FSMA, and regulatory compliance
  • Provide quality leadership during unplanned events or emergencies
  • Provide visible leadership by participating in facility walk throughs and internal audits
  • Engage and interact with all personnel on a regular basis assisting them with their challenges and questions concerning food safety
  • Collaborate with R&D during new/reformulated product introduction to ensure compliance with specifications and regulatory requirements
  • Serve as the point of contact for customer related issues, complaints, or inquiries
  • Manage plant complaint investigations ensuring a thorough, effective, timely and customer facing response
  • Monitor compliance to customer expectation and specifications; communicate any issues/concerns
  • Maintain plant preparedness for customer and regulatory visits
  • Manage all analytical and micro activities performed at the facility
  • Oversee the development of laboratory practices to ensure accurate and precise quality control (QC) results
  • Perform data analysis to identify critical trends or find leading indicators to enable proactive decisions
  • Coordinate the collection and evaluation of raw materials and finished products
  • Ensure the Environmental Monitoring Program (EMP) is robust and risk based
  • Escalate nonconformances to quality director and plant manager in a timely fashion
  • Coordinate and supervise factory and external lab testing of samples; generate Certificate of Analysis (COA's)
  • Maintain the quality management system and ensure documents are up to date and comply with FSQ policies and standards
  • Prepare plant specific work instructions as needed
  • Ensure SSOP documents are robust and adhere to the sanitation standard
  • Perform management activities such as administering employee promotions and transfers; conducting ongoing performance conversations; mentoring, training, and coaching employees
  • Follow all DFA good manufacturing practices (GMP) and work in a manner consistent with all corporate regulatory, food safety, quality, and sanitation requirements
  • Undergraduate degree in food science, biological sciences, or related curriculum (or equivalent combination of education and experience)
  • 5 to 8 years of quality assurance or related experience in a food, beverage, or similar facility
  • Demonstrated leadership attributes, team leadership, or supervisory experience; 1+ year of manager experience preferred
  • Certification and/or License - PCQI, HACCP, SQF Practitioner certifications preferred; may be required during course of employment
  • Strong knowledge of both laboratory and plant current good manufacturing practices (cGMPs)
  • Knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite and company computer systems
  • Knowledge of principles and practices of supervision, training, and personnel management
  • Skill in leadership and coaching
  • Critical thinking, analysis, mathematical calculations, and statistical evaluations
  • Able to organize and prioritize resources to achieve goals
  • Able to multi-task; able to keep organized records; able to work with accuracy and attention to detail
  • Able to translate accounting, financial, and KPI data into plant performance and determine steps to correct and improve
  • Able to communicate clearly and effectively, both verbally and in writing, for a diverse range of internal and external audiences
  • Able to work in collaboration effectively and foster good teamwork
  • Able to take appropriate steps to find solutions to complex problems
  • Able to present options and ideas to current processes or procedures
  • Able to handle challenging or conflict situations with tact and professionalism
  • Able to respond courteously and efficiently to inquiries, complaints, and requests
  • Able to interpret and apply company policies
  • Able to adapt and manage to change effectively
  • Must be able to read, write and speak English
  • $100,000 - $115,000 salary
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