TITLE

Quality Assurance Manager

LOCATION

Buffalo, NY

REPORTS TO

Plant Manager

POSITION SUMMARY

This position is responsible for the supervision and development of salaried direct reports and all Quality Assurance laboratory and Food Safety personnel. This position will assure compliance to all affiliate quality policies, procedures, and specifications, and all Federal, State, and local regulatory requirements pertaining to the manufacture of safe and wholesome pet food products. The position has the authority to stop production systems when quality standards or food safety is jeopardized, and to hold ingredient, in process materials, and finish product goods, and render dispositions within corporate Quality Assurance guidelines. This position provides technical support to the manufacturing plant aimed at producing quality and food safe products at a least cost. This activity includes quality systems development and maintenance, work instruction development, training, formula deployment, audits, project support, new product commissioning, and employee and organizational development. This position drives continual improvement in both quality systems and food safety and sanitation as measured by internal and external audits, and factory goal achievement.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

•  Assure compliance to affiliate quality and food safety policies and standards, and all Federal, State, and local regulatory requirements pertaining to the manufacture of safe and wholesome food product; this includes the affiliate’s quality policies manual, ingredient specifications, process control specifications, and finish product specifications
• Monitor and assure conformance of ingredients to affiliate standards and plant expectations including supplier auditing, supplier approval, and analytical and sensory testing
• Drive continual quality improvement as measured by key indicators including internal and external audits, and achievement of factory goals such as RFT and consumer complaint reduction
• Drive continual improvement in food safety and sanitation as measured by key indicators including AIB audit performance, and other internal and external audits; manage and maintain effective food safety and sanitation systems such as HACCP, pest control, and good housekeeping
• Support and contribute to the achievement of factory goals
• Coordinate and support all commissioning of new products and processes and issue final sign off for the factory
• Provide technical support to factory operations including trouble shooting and solution generation, Plant Run Request, and plant projects
• Perform annual performance appraisals for all direct reports and develop key personnel through coaching, training, and employee and organizational development means
• Manage the Quality Assurance budgets

SELECTION CRITERIA

Education 

• A Bachelor's Degree is required (Food science, biology, chemistry, business management or related field is preferred)
• Continuing education within quality is preferred

Experience

• 5 years of quality experience is required
• Demonstrated experience leading, managing, and / or supervising a team is required
• Experience using Total Productive Maintenance (TPM), continuous improvement, and / or High Performance Organization (HPO) tools to deliver business results is preferred

Other

• Working knowledge of Good Manufacturing Practices, FDA and USDA regulations, food plant production and best practices, environmental regulations, food safety and sanitation methods and best practices, HACCP, and SPC
• Ability to manage, coach, and develop salaried and hourly personnel
• Good oral and written communication skills
• Computer skills including data entry, word processing, spreadsheet, presentation and data base applications