Quality Assurance Manager Chico, CA | Full Time | Reports to: Senior Director of Quality
Hours: M-F, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Salary Range: [$95,000-$110,000] + 10% Bonus Eligibility
In this role, you'll lead the plant's quality team, including a Quality Supervisor (with two direct reports). You'll partner closely with our Senior Director of Quality and serve as the site's go-to expert on food safety, compliance, and continuous improvement.
If you want to move beyond maintaining a system and start building one, this is your opportunity.
What You'll Do
- Lead the team. Manage, coach, and develop the Quality team, including supervisor and direct reports.
- Own product release. Serve as the site's primary authority for finished product release and manage the hold and release program, including risk assessments and disposition of nonconforming materials.
- Run the QMS. Own day-to-day administration and improvement of the site's Quality and Food Safety Management System, keeping documentation audit-ready and compliant with BRCGS, FDA, Juice HACCP, Organic, Kosher, customer, and corporate requirements.
- Drive food safety across the plant. Lead cross-functional Food Safety, Food Defense, HACCP, and Change Management meetings, and provide technical leadership to Operations, Warehouse, Maintenance, and Production. Verify GMPs, process controls, and sanitation effectiveness through routine plant assessments.
- Solve problems at the root. Lead investigations into complaints, deviations, environmental findings, and nonconforming products, and drive CAPAs.
- Keep us audit-ready. Maintain continuous audit readiness, lead internal audits, traceability exercises, and mock recalls, and play a key role during FDA, customer, BRCGS, Organic, and Kosher audits.
What You Bring
- Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Microbiology, Chemistry, Biology, or a related field.
- 5+ years of progressive QA experience in food or beverage manufacturing.
- 3+ years of people leadership experience, ideally including managing supervisors or leads.
- PCQI and Juice HACCP certifications (required). Better Process Control School preferred, or ability to obtain within one year.
- Strong knowledge of 21 CFR Parts 117 and 120, cGMPs, GFSI standards (BRCGS preferred), Organic, Kosher, sanitation, environmental monitoring, and food defense.
- Experience in a GFSI-certified facility preferred.
What Success Looks Like
You make sound, timely, risk-based decisions grounded in facts, even under pressure. You're steady when things get urgent and confident enough to push back when food safety or quality is on the line. You build trust through transparency and consistency, and you thrive in a fast-paced environment where your work visibly moves the business forward.
Working Conditions
Regular presence in manufacturing, warehouse, lab, and sanitation areas. Ability to stand and walk for extended periods, lift up to 30 pounds, and wear required PPE. Minimal travel that consists of one trip a year to our Maryland facility.
