Director of Quality Assurance & Food Safety

Job Title: Director of Quality Assurance & Food Safety

Location: Phoenix, AZ

Employment Type: Full Time

Reports To: SVP of Operations (Dotted Line to GM Main Event)

Travel: 50%

Work Schedule: Mon-Fri (8AM-5PM)

Pay Range: ,800k per year

Incentive Pay: Quarterly performance bonus

Benefits

Summary:

Medical, Dental, Vision, 401(k) profit sharing, Vacation, Holidays, Floating Holidays, Company-paid LTD and life insurance, and Sick leave

POSITION SUMMARY

The Director, Quality Assurance & Food Safety builds and owns the quality and food safety program for Main Event, Food Story Brands’ new protein bar brand, and serves as the final quality authority on product release, co-manufacturer qualification, and label and claims approval. This position designs and implements the quality management system; qualifies, audits, and oversees co-manufacturers and suppliers; sets testing, specification, and shelf‑life strategy;

governs claims and labeling; and leads recall readiness, traceability, and consumer complaint programs. The Director sets the quality strategy, budget, and KPIs; represents quality to executives, regulators, retailers, and our licensing partner; and partners closely with R&D, Marketing, Operations, and Sales to keep the brand moving fast without ever outrunning the data. This is a hands‑on individual contributor role: the Director owns the quality function end to end, using contract laboratories, auditors, and consultants rather than an internal team.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The following duties are essential to successful performance in this position. Other duties may be assigned.

Quality Strategy and Leadership

• Set the multi‑year quality and food safety strategy for Main Event, aligned to the brand’s growth, launch, and co‑manufacturing plans
• Build and manage the quality budget, including laboratory testing, third‑party audits, certifications, and quality systems
• Define quality KPIs (e.g., complaints per million units, hold‑and‑release cycle time, co‑manufacturer scorecard results, audit findings, and first‑pass label approvals), and report performance, risks, and resource needs to the executive team monthly
• Maintain a quality and food safety risk register, and allocate resources based on risk
• Decide which quality work to handle directly and which to outsource to laboratories, auditors, and consultants, and build the documentation and systems that let a one‑person function scale
• Own quality gates in the product development and launch process; no SKU launches or ships without QA sign‑off
• Serve as the company’s quality representative to regulators (including FDA inspections and inquiries), retailers, co‑manufacturers, and the licensing partner
• Lead crisis response for food safety incidents, recalls, and regulatory actions, including executive briefings and coordination with Legal, insurance, and communications
• Select and manage contract laboratories, auditors, and consultants, including scope, cost, and service levels
• Build a food safety culture across Food Story Brands and its co‑manufacturers, and keep leadership informed of regulatory changes that affect the brand

Quality Management System

• Design and implement the quality management system (QMS), including document control, retention, training, and audit‑readiness standards
• Author and approve the SOP library, covering sampling plans, hold/release, deviations and CAPA, label approval, claims review, complaint handling, change control, and recall
• Hold final authority on product hold, release, and disposition, and build quality requirements into launch plans early so they protect timelines rather than delay them
• Set co‑manufacturer quality and food safety requirements, including specifications, in‑process checks, release criteria, and…