Vice President of Quality
About The Position
The Vice President of Quality is a senior executive role with enterprise-wide accountability for quality, food safety, regulatory compliance, and laboratory operations across Cayuga Milk Ingredients. As a member of the Executive Leadership Team, this role partners directly with the CEO to protect and enhance the company’s reputation, enable growth, support innovation, and ensure regulatory and customer confidence in a highly regulated dairy manufacturing environment. This leader sets and executes the organization’s long-term quality and food safety strategy while maintaining a visible, hands-on presence within operations. The Vice President of Quality balances governance, risk management, and strategic planning with real-time decision-making on the plant floor—ensuring quality is embedded in how the business operates, not managed in isolation. The Vice President of Quality is expected to operate at the same leadership standard as other ELT members and demonstrate core competencies in Enterprise & Strategic Leadership, CEO Partnership & Executive Judgment, Governance, Risk & Accountability, Cross-Functional Influence & Collaboration, and Culture & Talent Leadership.
Requirements
- 10+ years of progressive leadership in quality and food safety within food manufacturing; dairy experience strongly preferred.
- Aseptic and ESL experience required.
- Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Dairy Science, or related field; advanced degree preferred.
- Demonstrated success operating at an enterprise leadership level, influencing peers, and leading through complexity.
- Strong regulatory, food safety, labeling, and quality systems knowledge; laboratory and analytical experience a plus.
- Executive-level written and verbal communication skills with the ability to influence diverse stakeholders.
- Minimum 10 years of experience in quality assurance within food manufacturing of dairy products.
- Previous experience in Aseptic and ELS processes is highly valued.
- Bachelor’s degree in food technology, Dairy Science, or a related field preferred.
- Strong expertise in regulatory compliance, food safety, labeling, and quality standards for dairy production.
- Familiarity with Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography (UPLC) and mass spectrometry is a plus.
- Proven leadership and supervisory experience.
- Exceptional verbal and written communication abilities.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.
Nice To Haves
- Advanced degree preferred.
- Laboratory and analytical experience a plus.
- Familiarity with Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography (UPLC) and mass spectrometry is a plus.
Responsibilities
- Develop and lead a comprehensive, enterprise-wide quality and food safety strategy aligned with company goals, customer expectations, and regulatory requirements.
- Establish governance structures, metrics, and performance indicators that drive accountability and continuous improvement.
- Integrate quality considerations into capital planning, product innovation, and operational decision-making.
- Ensure full compliance with all applicable federal, state, and local regulations through robust programs, audits, and inspections.
- Serve as the executive point of contact with regulatory agencies (FDA, NY Agriculture & Markets, USDA, OSHA), customers, and third-party auditors.
- Lead responses to inspections and audits with credibility, confidence, and transparency.
- Provide executive oversight of HACCP, SQF, sanitation, allergen control, pest management, and pathogen monitoring programs.
- Lead root cause analysis and corrective action for quality incidents, ensuring sustainable, system-level solutions.
- Partner with Operations and Engineering to embed quality into process design and continuous improvement initiatives.
- Oversee the Certified Laboratory, ensuring compliance with federal, state, and USPH testing standards.
- Direct comprehensive product testing and shelf-life programs.
- Maintain oversight of product formulations, manufacturing protocols, and technical documentation.
- Lead, develop, and inspire QA, food safety, and laboratory teams.
- Maintain a strong, visible leadership presence on the production floor to reinforce standards and support real-time issue resolution.
- Drive training and competency development across the organization.
- Develop and manage the quality budget, ensuring resources are aligned with risk mitigation and strategic priorities.
- Define and monitor KPIs related to cost of poor quality, compliance performance, and operational effectiveness.
- Identify opportunities to improve efficiency while maintaining uncompromising safety and quality standards.
- Provide clear, data-driven quality performance updates to the CEO, ELT, and Cayuga Farms.
- Represent the organization with customers, regulators, and industry partners as a credible executive leader.
Benefits
- 20% incentive for financial and personal goals
Stand Out From the Crowd
Upload your resume and get instant feedback on how well it matches this job.
What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Executive
