Position Summary:
The associate in the Regional Quality leader position shall have executive powers and authority equivalent to a Plant Manager. The Regional Quality Leader is generally responsible for directing plants in the region on developing, implementing, and complying with the quality system to ensure the organization's production operations, from raw materials to finished products, meet the quality, integrity and efficiency standards set by the organization. This includes ensuring that each plant in the region is maintaining required certifications such as ISO 9001, SQF and any customer related audits.
Responsibilities and Duties:
This job description and performance standard document has been prepared as a guide to ensure better communication and understanding. All responsibilities, however, have not been included, nor could they be. Your Supervisor/Manager may from time to time ask you to perform other related duties not specifically included in this description. Likewise, this description will be revised when required to meet current business needs.
- Evaluate quality systems from a strategic level to ensure that products meet quality, integrity, functionality, and other specifications and requirements.
- Ensure that each plant in the region is in compliance with the agreed upon standard business processes as outlined by the VP Corporate Quality
- Report on, and own, the actions from the daily, weekly and monthly quality KPI's/COPQ
- Complete Root Cause Corrective Action (8D format) for any identified issues within the region and work with sales, operations and the customer as necessary to present, support and execute.
- For customer quality issues that are in excess of a set level (i.e. $100k) or that bridge multiple business regions, the Regional Quality Leader is to notify the VP Corporate Quality and participate in the RCCA process.
- Set the day-to-day priorities for the plant QA personnel
- Own the preparation for, outcome and activities related to all audits such as ISO9001, SQF and others including customer specific
- Hold a leadership position within the Quality Center of Excellence team to share best practices, leverage learnings and collaborate cross region for continuous improvement
- Collaborates with plant management and senior staff across the plants in the region to ensure we have acceptable quality standards.
- Develops and implements quality standard testing and evaluation across the plants in the region.
- Facilitates communication among plants in the region regarding quality systems.
- Assess test results and make sure they are consistent across all the plants in the region.
- Review quality control documentation such as checklists, logs, and reports for effectiveness, accuracy and relevance. Work to standardize the checklist, logs, and reports across the region.
- Provide monthly reporting from a regional quality standpoint and the focus areas to address quality performance in the region.
- Work with the facilities in the region to create effective and sustainable corrective and preventive actions towards priority quality issues.
- Standardize the Cost of Poor Quality(COPQ) non-conformance guidelines and the reporting of COPQ across the region as well as any additional quality related metrics.
- Ensure that all responsibilities and functions performed are in accordance with company procedures and meet quality standards in place. Facilitate quality programs.
- Owns the compliance program for the region and assume reporting of the Compliance Coordinator.
- Standardize compliance activities across the region.
- Act as a backup for direct reports, when required, for critical activities required to serve the business.
- Other duties may be assigned and are required as part of the position's essential functions.
- Generates improvement ideas and embraces improvement projects to better the business.
Skills and Qualifications:
- Self-starter, highly motivated, follows directions well and can work with little or no supervision.
- Well-developed emotional quotient, able to relate well to people at all levels inside and outside the organization such as operators, executives, suppliers, customers, etc.
- Four-year college degree, preferably in a Quality related field, Engineering or Chemistry. Computer literate with good organizational skills.
- 3+ years' experience in manufacturing, preferably in a food manufacturing industry.
- Detail-orientation required for auditing completion of required paperwork and information system's inputs with a high degree of accuracy.
- Good verbal and written communication skills.
