Quality Assurance Manager

The Quality Assurance Manager is responsible for leading and overseeing all food safety, quality assurance, regulatory compliance, and continuous improvement initiatives within the organization. This role ensures products meet company, customer, and regulatory requirements while maintaining compliance with SQF Level 2 certification standards. The Quality Assurance Manager partners closely with Operations, Production, Sanitation, Maintenance, Procurement, and leadership teams to promote a culture of food safety, quality excellence, and continuous improvement.

• Develop, implement, and maintain quality assurance and food safety programs in accordance with SQF Level 2 requirements.
• Ensure compliance with FDA, USDA, GMP, HACCP, FSMA, and customer-specific food safety standards.
• Manage the company's food safety and quality management systems, ensuring documentation remains accurate and audit‑ready.
• Lead root cause investigations and corrective action plans for product non‑conformances, customer complaints, and food safety incidents.
• Monitor quality metrics and trends, identifying opportunities for process improvements and risk reduction.
• Oversee product testing, environmental monitoring, sanitation verification, and quality inspections.

• Maintain SQF Level 2 certification and ensure all policies, procedures, and practices align with certification requirements.
• Serve as the SQF Practitioner and primary point of contact for certification audits.
• Prepare for and coordinate all external, internal, customer, regulatory, and third‑party audits.
• Ensure timely completion of corrective actions resulting from audit findings.
• Stay current on changing food safety regulations and industry best practices, implementing necessary program updates.

• Lead internal audit programs to verify compliance with food safety, quality, and operational standards.
• Coordinate and support customer audits, supplier audits, and regulatory inspections.
• Identify audit risks and develop action plans to address deficiencies before external assessments.
• Prepare audit reports, communicate findings to leadership, and track corrective actions through closure.
• Drive continuous audit readiness across all departments.

• Partner with Production, Operations, Maintenance, Sanitation, Supply Chain, and Warehouse teams to ensure quality standards are consistently met.
• Collaborate with R&D and Product Development teams during new product launches and process changes.
• Work closely with Procurement and suppliers to establish and maintain raw material quality standards.
• Support training initiatives to enhance employee knowledge of food safety, quality systems, and regulatory compliance.
• Participate in cross‑functional problem‑solving efforts to improve product consistency, operational efficiency, and customer satisfaction.

• Lead, mentor, and develop the Quality Assurance team.
• Establish departmental goals, performance metrics, and development plans.
• Foster a culture of accountability, food safety awareness, and continuous improvement throughout the organization.
• Conduct performance evaluations and provide coaching to team members.

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Microbiology, Chemistry, Biology, Quality Assurance, or a related field preferred.

• 5+ years of quality assurance or food safety experience within the food and beverage manufacturing industry.
• 3+ years of leadership or management experience.
• Extensive knowledge of SQF Level 2 certification requirements and quality management systems.
• Experience leading internal, external, customer, and regulatory audits.

Highspring LLC (d/b/a Vaco by Highspring) and…