Quality & Continuous Improvement Manager

BLACK DIAMOND COATINGS INC•Brooksville, FL

4d•Onsite

About The Position

At Black Diamond Coatings (BDC), we don’t settle for “good enough.” We are a family- and veteran-owned manufacturer driven by innovation, integrity, and a relentless pursuit of excellence. Our mission is to create premium, environmentally responsible products that improve lives — and we live our Core Values every day, from safety and teamwork to change leadership and competitive spirit. Quality at BDC is not just a department — it’s a competitive advantage. As Quality & Continuous Improvement Manager, you will play a critical leadership role in protecting our brand, strengthening customer trust, and driving continuous improvement across the organization. This role is ideal for a hands-on leader who thrives in fast-paced environments, takes ownership, leads change, and understands that quality directly impacts customer experience and business performance. Position Summary: The Quality & Continuous Improvement Manager owns and leads Black Diamond Coatings’ Quality Management System (QMS) in accordance with ISO 9001. This role is responsible for embedding quality at every stage of operations — from supplier selection through final product delivery — while maintaining audit readiness and driving measurable, continuous improvement. This is a hands-on leadership role that requires sound judgment, the ability to influence cross-functionally while managing a team, and a willingness to learn and perform laboratory tasks. The Quality & Continuous Improvement Manager has full authority to make independent quality decisions, including placing materials, batches, or processes on hold and escalating quality risks to leadership when standards are not met. Serve as a proactive problem solver and idea generator, developing innovative quality checks to enhance production efficiency and shipping accuracy while minimizing risks. Spend time actively observing manufacturing processes on the plant floor to identify and escalate quality risks in real-time (e.g., pulling non-conforming products off the line), support NCR/RCA, recommend process improvements, and ensure ISO-compliant vendor integration. Lead efforts to achieve and maintain ISO 9001 certification across the organization.

Requirements

3+ years of quality management experience in a manufacturing or chemical environment
Proven hands-on experience with NCR/RCA in manufacturing; proven ability to coordinate vendors for ISO standards; comfort spending time in plant environments for observation and problem-solving
Demonstrated people leadership, including mentoring, training, and accountability for quality outcomes
Strong working knowledge of GMP, SOPs, and quality documentation systems
Ability to lead cross-functional quality initiatives and drive corrective actions beyond the lab
Intermediate Excel skills and comfort with digital recordkeeping systems

Nice To Haves

Experience with wet chemistry or related laboratory testing, preferred, but willingness to learn hands-on lab skills is essential

Responsibilities

Lead, train, and develop QC Technicians to meet BDC’s quality, safety, and documentation standards
Hold team members accountable for accuracy, timeliness, and compliance
Own final quality disposition of all raw materials, in-process production, and finished goods
Maintain laboratory calibration logs, equipment maintenance records, and testing integrity
Serve as backup for QC Technicians during peak periods or absences, performing hands-on lab testing as needed
Ensure proper traceability, retention, and organization of batch records, QC documentation, and retain samples
Issue and manage Nonconformance Reports (NCRs) for materials, processes, and finished products
LEAD ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS (RCA) USING TOOLS LIKE 5 WHYS OR FISHBONE DIAGRAMS FOR QUALITY ISSUES, COLLABORATING WITH PRODUCTION AND SHIPPING TEAMS TO IMPLEMENT CORRECTIVE/PREVENTIVE ACTIONS (CAPAS)
ANALYZE QUALITY DATA AND TRENDS TO IDENTIFY SYSTEMIC RISKS AND PREVENT RECURRENCE
IDENTIFY AND PROPOSE ADDITIONAL QUALITY CHECKS, SUCH AS IN-LINE SENSORS FOR PRODUCTION MONITORING OR RANDOMIZED AUDITS FOR SHIPPING, TO ADDRESS BOTTLENECKS AND ERRORS
Implement and enforce quality controls across Supply Chain, Production, Warehousing, Shipping, and Customer Service
Ensure quality standards are upheld in receiving inspections, warehouse storage, production checkpoints, packaging, labeling, and order fulfillment
Partner with Customer Service to support consistent, high-quality customer experiences
Perform regular plant floor observations to monitor production and shipping quality, proposing real-time improvements and escalating risks
Develop and maintain the standards for our approved vendor program for ISO compliance
Create and manage supplier scorecards based on quality performance, NCRs, certifications, and delivery performance
Lead supplier quality investigations and participate in supplier audits as needed
Lead customer quality investigations and corrective action efforts
Analyze customer complaints and quality feedback to identify improvement opportunities
Communicate findings to leadership and propose process or system improvements
LEAD ISO 9001 IMPLEMENTATION AND ONGOING MAINTENANCE, GUIDING THE ORGANIZATION TOWARD CERTIFICATION THROUGH GAP ASSESSMENTS, PROCESS DOCUMENTATION, AND TRAINING
MAINTAIN ISO 9001 CERTIFICATION VIA REGULAR INTERNAL AUDITS, MANAGEMENT REVIEWS, AND CONTINUOUS SYSTEM UPDATES
ENSURE ALL SOPS AND WORK INSTRUCTIONS ARE CONTROLLED, CURRENT, AND AUDIT-READY
PREPARE INTERNAL AUDIT CHECKLISTS, TRACEABILITY LOGS, AND CAPA DOCUMENTATION
ENSURE ISO SYSTEMS ARE PRACTICAL, SCALABLE, AND EMBEDDED INTO DAILY OPERATIONS
OVERSEE CHANGE CONTROL FOR SOPS, PROCESSES, RAW MATERIALS, VENDORS, LABELS, AND SPECIFICATIONS
TRACK NCR TRENDS, CUSTOMER COMPLAINTS, SUPPLIER PERFORMANCE, AND CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT INITIATIVES
MANAGE AND SUPPORT THE CREATION AND EXECUTION OF PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE SCHEDULES
LEAD BRAINSTORMING SESSIONS FOR CROSS-FUNCTIONAL TEAMS TO GENERATE IDEAS FOR PREVENTIVE MEASURES, LIKE INTEGRATING REAL-TIME DATA ANALYTICS INTO QUALITY PROCESSES
Participate in the BDC Safety Committee and promote a strong safety culture
Oversee and verify completion of monthly safety audits (eyewash stations, fire extinguishers, PPE compliance)
Ensure quality and safety expectations are consistently reinforced across departments