Request Foods, Inc.
Director of Quality-Food Safety
Request Foods, Inc., Holland, Missouri, us, 63853
Job Summary: The Director of Quality-Food Safety is responsible for strategic leadership and direction setting of the quality assurance, quality control and compliance functions within Request Foods frozen food manufacturing and cold storage businesses. This role ensures that all products meet the highest standards of quality, safety, and regulatory compliance, from raw material sourcing to final product distribution. The Director will lead a team of quality professionals, collaborate cross-functionally with other departments, and develop processes, technology, tools, and key metrics to ensure product quality while enhancing overall operational efficiency. This position will report to the Senior Director of Operations.
Essential Responsibilities:
Instill a relationship-based leadership mindset throughout the entire quality services team with a passion-driven leadership style involving critical thinking and strong business acumen.
Foster a center of excellence culture and critical thinking mindset within quality control, food safety, regulatory, and compliance functions through leading, coaching, and developing high-performance action-oriented teams.
Inspire and empower the quality teams to achieve business success, leading to a high-profit efficient organization (2X top line by 2030).
Develop and implement a comprehensive quality assurance strategy aligned with the company’s goals and regulatory requirements.
Provide leadership and direction to the Quality Assurance (QA), Quality Control (QC), and Compliance Systems (CS) teams, fostering a culture of zero defects and continuous improvement.
Define Request Foods quality food safety vision and strategies while collaborating with manufacturing and procurement leadership.
Set quality assurance objectives and key performance indicators (KPIs) for the organization and monitor progress toward achieving them.
Drive continuous improvement initiatives across the manufacturing process to enhance product quality, reduce defects, lower costs, and increase operational efficiency.
Utilize data-driven approaches such as six sigma, lean manufacturing, kaizen, and other quality management systems to optimize processes and ensure repeatability.
Partner with other functional areas (finance, DT, operations, human resources) to enhance overall business success.
Develop and maintain a robust supplier quality management program for ingredients and equipment, including the qualification and quality assurance of supplier partners.
Leverage, advance, and integrate technology; become a leading-edge technology function.
Enhance and grow the quality and food safety processes and tools utilizing formal problem-solving solutions (8D) to address performance challenges.
Be a student of continually evolving USDA and FDA regulations. As governmental standards and customer expectations change, advance Request Foods processes to ensure quality and food safety standards are achieved.
Assist and coordinate launch readiness activities between suppliers and Request Foods project teams, assuring quality objectives and overall timing are achieved.
Key Qualifications:
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty effectively. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.
A bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Biology, Chemistry, or a related field accompanied by a proven track record in quality assurance and quality control preferably in the food manufacturing industry. A master’s degree and/or relevant certifications (e.g., Six Sigma, HACCP, PCQI, SQF) are preferred.
A minimum of 10 years of experience in quality assurance/quality control within the food manufacturing industry with 5+ active years in an influential leadership role with demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional and cross-cultural teams.
Strong analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills with a keen attention to detail, ability to prioritize, follow instructions, and follow through on projects to achieve wanted results.
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to lead cross-functional teams and interface with customers and governmental agencies.
Proven track record of driving continuous improvement and leading successful audits.
Experience with quality management systems (e.g., ISO 9001, BRC, SQF) and statistical process control (SPC).
Experience in strategic objective goal setting to drive increased operational performance.
Strong time management skills with the ability to balance multiple tasks with tight timeframes along with a high level of personal initiative and motivation.
Knowledge of current USDA/FDA regulations and can research resources to best understand regulatory changes.
Experienced in managing external audits with GFSI, customers, vendors, and regulatory agencies.
Proven track record of developing and managing financial budgets supporting overall company objectives.
Working Conditions:
Office environment with regular visits to production facilities.
May require occasional travel to supplier sites or other company locations.
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Essential Responsibilities:
Instill a relationship-based leadership mindset throughout the entire quality services team with a passion-driven leadership style involving critical thinking and strong business acumen.
Foster a center of excellence culture and critical thinking mindset within quality control, food safety, regulatory, and compliance functions through leading, coaching, and developing high-performance action-oriented teams.
Inspire and empower the quality teams to achieve business success, leading to a high-profit efficient organization (2X top line by 2030).
Develop and implement a comprehensive quality assurance strategy aligned with the company’s goals and regulatory requirements.
Provide leadership and direction to the Quality Assurance (QA), Quality Control (QC), and Compliance Systems (CS) teams, fostering a culture of zero defects and continuous improvement.
Define Request Foods quality food safety vision and strategies while collaborating with manufacturing and procurement leadership.
Set quality assurance objectives and key performance indicators (KPIs) for the organization and monitor progress toward achieving them.
Drive continuous improvement initiatives across the manufacturing process to enhance product quality, reduce defects, lower costs, and increase operational efficiency.
Utilize data-driven approaches such as six sigma, lean manufacturing, kaizen, and other quality management systems to optimize processes and ensure repeatability.
Partner with other functional areas (finance, DT, operations, human resources) to enhance overall business success.
Develop and maintain a robust supplier quality management program for ingredients and equipment, including the qualification and quality assurance of supplier partners.
Leverage, advance, and integrate technology; become a leading-edge technology function.
Enhance and grow the quality and food safety processes and tools utilizing formal problem-solving solutions (8D) to address performance challenges.
Be a student of continually evolving USDA and FDA regulations. As governmental standards and customer expectations change, advance Request Foods processes to ensure quality and food safety standards are achieved.
Assist and coordinate launch readiness activities between suppliers and Request Foods project teams, assuring quality objectives and overall timing are achieved.
Key Qualifications:
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty effectively. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.
A bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Biology, Chemistry, or a related field accompanied by a proven track record in quality assurance and quality control preferably in the food manufacturing industry. A master’s degree and/or relevant certifications (e.g., Six Sigma, HACCP, PCQI, SQF) are preferred.
A minimum of 10 years of experience in quality assurance/quality control within the food manufacturing industry with 5+ active years in an influential leadership role with demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional and cross-cultural teams.
Strong analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills with a keen attention to detail, ability to prioritize, follow instructions, and follow through on projects to achieve wanted results.
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to lead cross-functional teams and interface with customers and governmental agencies.
Proven track record of driving continuous improvement and leading successful audits.
Experience with quality management systems (e.g., ISO 9001, BRC, SQF) and statistical process control (SPC).
Experience in strategic objective goal setting to drive increased operational performance.
Strong time management skills with the ability to balance multiple tasks with tight timeframes along with a high level of personal initiative and motivation.
Knowledge of current USDA/FDA regulations and can research resources to best understand regulatory changes.
Experienced in managing external audits with GFSI, customers, vendors, and regulatory agencies.
Proven track record of developing and managing financial budgets supporting overall company objectives.
Working Conditions:
Office environment with regular visits to production facilities.
May require occasional travel to supplier sites or other company locations.
#J-18808-Ljbffr