Lead, Quality Assurance

Quality Assurance Lead Department:
Quality

Reports To:

Quality Assurance Manager FLSA Status:
Non-Exempt

Shift: Must be able to work any shift Position Summary The Quality Assurance Lead is a key member of the plant Quality team and serves as a frontline leader in protecting product quality, food safety, regulatory compliance, and customer satisfaction. This position provides day-to-day leadership and technical support for Quality Technicians while ensuring that water processing, microbiological testing, finished-product inspection, sanitation, Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs), and quality-system requirements are consistently executed across the facility.

The Quality Assurance Lead has the authority and responsibility to identify potential food safety or quality concerns, place questionable product on hold, escalate nonconformances, and partner with Operations and plant leadership to ensure issues are appropriately investigated and resolved before affected product is released. The ideal candidate is highly visible on the production floor, technically strong, detail-oriented, comfortable challenging unacceptable conditions, and committed to building a culture where quality and food safety are everyone’s responsibility.

Key Responsibilities Quality & Food Safety Leadership Serve as the frontline Quality resource for assigned production operations and shifts. Provide leadership, direction, coaching, and technical support to Quality Technicians. Ensure products meet established company, customer, regulatory, and product specifications from startup through completion of the production run. Monitor water processing systems, tanks, treatment areas, laboratories, production lines, and finished-product quality. Verify that required quality checks are completed accurately, consistently, and at the required frequency.

Identify and escalate food safety, product quality, regulatory, or GMP concerns immediately. Initiate product holds when conditions warrant and assist with disposition and release activities in accordance with established procedures. Partner with Production, Maintenance, Warehouse, and Sanitation teams to resolve quality concerns. Promote a proactive quality culture by identifying risks before they become customer or product issues. Water Processing & Laboratory Testing Monitor water-processing operations to ensure established specifications are consistently achieved.

Perform and/or oversee required chemical, physical, and microbiological testing. Conduct routine microbiological testing, including applicable:
Coliform testing Heterotrophic Plate Count (HPC) Yeast and mold testing Other microbiological or analytical testing required by company procedures Review test results for accuracy, trends, abnormalities, and compliance with specifications. Collect and prepare samples for outside laboratory testing. Ensure testing equipment is properly maintained, calibrated, verified, and documented. Escalate out-of-specification or questionable results immediately. Food Safety, GMP & Regulatory Compliance Ensure compliance with all applicable: SQF requirements HACCP/HARPC programs Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) Sanitation requirements Company food safety and quality policies Customer requirements Applicable regulatory requirements Monitor GMP compliance throughout production and warehouse areas.

Coach employees and leaders when food safety or GMP deficiencies are identified. Verify appropriate use of required Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Support food defense, allergen, sanitation, traceability, and other applicable food safety programs. Audits & Regulatory Readiness Assist in preparing the facility for internal, customer, regulatory, certification, and third-party audits. Participate in SQF and other plant audits. Help maintain the facility in an ongoing state of audit readiness, rather than preparing only immediately before an audit.

Conduct or support GMP inspections and internal quality-system audits. Assist with mock recalls and traceability exercises. Ensure assigned corrective actions from audits are documented and completed within established time frames. Nonconformance & Corrective Action Assist with identification, documentation, investigation, and resolution of nonconforming materials and finished products. Ensure nonconforming product is properly identified, segregated, and controlled. Participate in root-cause investigations. Assist with development and implementation of corrective and preventive…