Sr. Manager of FSQ Programs

Schwan’s Company, a U.S. affiliate of the global lifestyle company CJ CheilJedang Corporation, is a leading U.S. manufacturer and marketer of quality foods offered through retail-grocery and food-service channels. Its many popular brands include Red Baron®, Tony’s®, Big Daddy’s®, Villa Prima™ and Freschetta® pizza; Mrs. Smith’s® and Edwards® desserts; and Pagoda® Asian-style snacks. To learn more about Schwan’s, visit www.schwanscompany.com.
What we are looking for:

This position is responsible for developing, implementing, maintaining and continuously improving the corporate Food Safety and Quality (FSQ) management system, to ensure food safety, quality and regulatory compliance.

Responsibilities:

• Lead upgrades to the FSQ management system, through standardization and industry benchmarking, to drive a food safety and quality culture throughout the organization, and in line with business needs.
• Lead teams to deliver on the FSQ strategy, providing expertise to appropriate functions and locations. Manage, coach and develop a team of quality experts to improve corporate quality programs, ensuring compliance with Schwan’s policies and procedures and adherence to external food safety/regulatory requirements.
• In depth analysis and report of FSQ performance and system effectiveness. Understand internal and external food safety & quality processes, identify FSQ issues, trends, and opportunities with the purpose of driving continuous improvement.
• Develop and report quality KPIs, applying understanding of the impact of KPIs to the business.
• Utilize and critically evaluate data from a variety of sources to identify root cause and lead teams towards resolution.
• Partner with technical groups e.g. Sanitation, FSQ systems, IT, integrated work systems to ensure processes and systems enable the execution of FSQ programs.
• Create an environment of learning, provide hands-on support and guidance to the organization during the implementation of FSQ initiatives to drive a culture of consistency and continuous improvement. Facilitate communities of practice on FSQ related topics.
• Coordinate annual employee training programs for Good Manufacturing Practices, Internal Audits, and other food safety quality topics as necessary.
• Lead corporate internal audit program, review corrective actions, and follow up actions.
• Serves as key contact for third party audit certification. Supports preparation of corrective action plans for third party audits.
• Partner with key stakeholders on prioritized list of projects on food safety & regulatory compliance, product quality improvements, with regular updates on progress. Effectively leads projects to completion in timely manner with demonstrated results.
• Apply continuous improvement tools (SPC, Lean Six Sigma, etc.) in problem solving, data analysis, and implementation of process improvements to drive product consistency and reduce product defects (consumer complaints, foreign material, amount of held product, etc.).
• Supervise, coach and aid in employee development.

Travel Requirements: 50-60%

Preferred Qualifications:

Education: Bachelor of Science degree in Microbiology, Chemistry, Food Science, Food Safety and Technology or a closely related field OR Masters Degree in Microbiology, Chemistry, Food Science, Food Safety and Technology or a closely related field.

Years of Related Experience: 5+ years of experience as FSQ Manager for a facility manufacturing food subject to USDA or FDA inspection or similar FSQ management role (assuming you have a 4-year degree)

With a qualifying Masters Degree, 3+ years of experience as an FSQ Manager for a facility manufacturing food subject to USDA or FDA inspection, or similar FSQ management role.

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:

• Proficient in project management and quality management systems.
• Strong understanding of food safety, HACCP, and food regulatory requirements.
• Strong skills in planning, leading and conducting internal audits. Proficient in SQF standard or other GFSI Certification.
• Ability to read, analyze, and interpret complex documents, including professional and technical standards.
• Strong skills on RCA, CAPA and problem-solving techniques.
• Good knowledge of statistics and interpretation of experimental data. Basic knowledge of Statistical Process Control (SPC) applications.
• Strong people management and coaching skills.
• Ability to effectively communicate both verbally and in writing and leading cross-functional teams.
• Strong presentation and training skills.
• Ability to positively influence others to take action and/or change perspective.
• Comfortable in small group and large group settings.
• Detail-oriented, take initiative, and ability to work with a sense of urgency in a fast-paced environment. Ability to travel to other facilities as necessary.
• Strong computer skills and ability to learn technical software. Proficient in Microsoft Office suite of programs with strong Excel skills.
• 5S, six sigma, TPM experience/ knowledge is an advantage.
• Certifications: Lean Six Sigma Black Belt or certifications in Quality Management (e.g., ASQ Certified Quality Engineer) are highly desirable.

This job description is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications associated with the job. An individual must be able to perform all of the duties and responsibilities listed in a fully competent manner to be considered successful in the job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential duties and responsibilities.