Vice President of Technical Services & Quality

• Position: VP of Technical Services & Quality
• Location: Rochelle Park, NJ – Hybrid, 3 days per week in the office
• Scope: Enterprise leadership of Quality, Food Safety & Regulatory
• Focus: Approximately 70% Quality/Food Safety and 30% Regulatory
• Travel: Regular travel to manufacturing facilities, co-manufacturers, suppliers, and customers

The Opportunity

This is the company's senior enterprise Quality and Food Safety leadership role, with responsibility across company-owned manufacturing facilities and an external network of co-manufacturers/co-packers.

The mandate goes beyond traditional QA. This leader will set the technical strategy, strengthen systems and accountability, develop Quality talent, and build a consistent approach to Food Safety and Quality across the organization.

Key responsibilities include:

• Lead enterprise Quality, Food Safety, Technical Services, and Regulatory strategy.
• Oversee Quality across internal manufacturing and co-manufacturing/co-packing partners.
• Strengthen supplier and co-manufacturer qualification, auditing, risk assessment, performance management, and CAPA.
• Ensure compliance with FDA, USDA, FSMA, HACCP, GMP, Organic, and GFSI/SQF/BRCGS requirements.
• Lead significant investigations, product holds, complaints, withdrawals/recalls, root cause analysis, and CAPA.
• Establish Quality KPIs and drive improved audit performance, complaint trends, CAPA effectiveness, and reduction of repeat Quality events.
• Partner closely with Operations, R&D, Supply Chain, Procurement, Commercial, and executive leadership.

Ideal Background

• 12+ years of progressive Quality/Food Safety leadership in food manufacturing, including significant multi-site responsibility.
• Experience with both company-owned manufacturing and co-manufacturers/co-packers.
• Strong FDA/USDA, FSMA, HACCP, GMP, sanitation, allergen, traceability/recall, and GFSI knowledge.
• Experience in complex food manufacturing—perishable, refrigerated, protein, shelf-stable, specialty food, or multiple product categories.
• Proven success with investigations, CAPA, audit readiness, complaint reduction, and Food Safety risk management.
• An executive-level leader who can make sound risk-based decisions while remaining practical and connected to manufacturing operations.

About the Company

Our client is a growing branded food company with a diverse portfolio of specialty food brands and products. The organization operates through a combination of company-owned manufacturing facilities and an established network of co-manufacturers and co-packers, creating a complex, multi-category operating environment.