Quality Manager

Smurfit Westrock • Joplin, MO

6d • Onsite

About The Position

The Quality Manager is responsible for fostering quality excellence by driving compliance, customer satisfaction, and continuous improvement to reduce quality costs and align with industry best practices. The role ensures products consistently meet or exceed customer expectations and protects business integrity through compliance with internal and external quality standards. Working with production and cross-functional support teams, the Quality Manager maintains and improves quality systems, promotes operational best practices, and ensures compliance with customer, regulatory, and accredited certification requirements. The position leads improvement projects supporting quality and financial performance, addresses evolving customer needs and changes to legislation and accredited standards, and drafts, reviews, and implements revisions to quality systems, standard operating procedures, and policies to maintain compliance and audit readiness.

The position supports the Regional Quality Manager and site leadership, advises and trains employees, and manages the site's QA/QC team. It oversees customer complaints, investigations, corrective and preventive actions, customer-facing activities, and internal, customer, and external audits. The Quality Manager leads quality initiatives, develops an integrated management system covering quality, food safety, environment, health, and safety, supports new equipment validation, and reports quality and business performance information to site, customer, and corporate stakeholders.

Requirements

• At least 5 years of experience in a quality role at a senior or management level.
• Working and audit knowledge relevant to accredited standards.
• Experience in a manufacturing or production environment.
• Demonstrable experience leading change and implementing continuous improvement processes.
• Demonstrable experience validating new equipment and processes.
• Knowledge of Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP).
• Project management and problem-solving skills, such as Six Sigma or another recognized business improvement technique.
• Knowledge of root-cause analysis and problem-solving techniques.
• Customer relations skills.
• Ability to handle, analyze, and present information.
• Competence using Microsoft Office packages.
• Leadership, coaching, employee development, and performance management abilities.
• Communication, determination, influence, and persuasiveness.
• Ability to assess situations accurately, make sound operational decisions, and organize work to deliver results on time.

Nice To Haves

• Experience and knowledge of industry standards and guidelines.
• Experience with Six Sigma or another recognized business improvement technique.

Responsibilities

• Support the Regional Quality Manager and site leadership team in quality governance.
• Lead and support meetings, and provide information and analysis to support KPI understanding and business decision-making.
• Review and maintain the quality system to ensure compliance with customer and company guidelines and applicable accreditation standards, and support consistent operational performance.
• Provide quality guidance and advice to site management and employees; train and coach employees in quality improvement.
• Recruit, develop, motivate, and manage the QA/QC team to meet current and future business needs.
• Build professional relationships with customers and provide technical support as needed.
• Manage customer complaints, lead investigations into quality issues and non-conformances, and implement corrective and preventive actions to prevent recurrence.
• Coordinate customer-facing activities and communications, including customer visits and responses, and prepare relevant information.
• Lead site audits, including external-body, internal, and customer audits.
• Lead quality initiatives and focus groups to improve employee understanding of quality standards and foster right-first-time performance and continuous improvement.
• Develop an integrated Quality Management System covering quality, food safety, environment, health, and safety.
• Lead continuous improvement initiatives to enhance quality systems, optimize processes, improve quality and safety performance, and meet customer specifications, site objectives, and corporate requirements.
• Review amendments to standards and ensure compliance with accreditation bodies.
• Support the introduction of new site equipment and validation processes to meet safety and customer expectations.
• Contribute to business improvement initiatives that reduce operating costs, improve margins, and inform site strategy and operations.
• Produce data and present reports for site, customers, and corporate stakeholders as required.
• Support senior leadership in introducing systems and procedures that improve operating effectiveness and efficiency.
• Deliver GMP, quality, food safety, and FSC training to employees as required.
• Lead, coach, develop, and manage employee performance within the Quality team.
• Communicate quality ideas and decisions to internal and external customers and influence others to act.
• Make sound operational decisions, organize work to deliver results on time, and continually review practices and use of resources to improve organizational results.

Benefits

• Competitive salary.
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage options starting on the first day.
• Health Savings Account (HSA) with company contributions and flexible spending account (FSA) options.
• 401(k) retirement plan with company match and automatic contributions.
• Company-paid life insurance and disability coverage.
• Mental health support and wellness programs.
• Paid time off, including company holidays, vacation, and paid parental leave.
• Tuition reimbursement.
• Training, learning, and development opportunities.
• Voluntary benefits including legal services, identity protection, and pet insurance.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager
• Education Level: No Education Listed