Technical Lead

In The News; Ireland; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

In The News is seeking an experienced Food Safety & Quality leader to take strategic ownership across a substantial manufacturing operation in Ireland. You will report to the Food Safety & Quality Director and work with senior leaders to strengthen standards, drive improvement and cultivate a robust culture of FSQ.

You will lead the FSQ agenda, manage a small team, and collaborate with Operations, NPD and senior stakeholders to embed food safety and quality throughout the business.

Qualifications

• Senior FSQ experience in food manufacturing.
• Strong knowledge of HACCP, BRC/GFSI, GMP and legislation.
• Experience with retail customers and audits.
• Proven FSQ team leadership and CI drive.
• Strong RCA and corrective action experience; confident with senior stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Lead the FSQ strategy across the operation.
• Ensure HACCP/BRC/GFSI and GMP compliance.
• Lead audits with customers and regulators.
• Drive continuous improvement and risk management.
• Coach FSQ team and build capability.
• Embed FSQ requirements with Operations and NPD.
• Develop FSQ performance measures and drive accountability.
• Support business continuity and operational risk.
• Occasional travel.

Skills

FSQ Leadership

HACCP

BRC/GFSI

GMP

Audits

Root Cause Analysis

Stakeholder influence

Team development

Education

Food Science/Technology degree

Lead Auditor qualification

Quality/Continuous Improvement qualification

Job description

Location: Republic of Ireland

The opportunity: An excellent opportunity for an experienced technical leader to take strategic ownership of food safety, quality and compliance across a substantial food manufacturing operation.

Reporting to the Food Safety & Quality Director, you'll work closely with senior leadership and site teams to strengthen standards, drive continuous improvement and develop a strong culture of food safety and quality.This is a role where you can genuinely influence the operation rather than simply maintain existing systems.

The role

You'll lead the Food Safety & Quality agenda across the retail operation, managing and developing a small FSQ team and working closely with Operations, NPD, Engineering and other senior stakeholders.

Key responsibilities include:

• Leading the food safety and quality strategy across the operation.
• Ensuring compliance with HACCP, BRC/GFSI, GMP, legislation and customer standards.
• Leading audits and relationships with customers, regulators and other external stakeholders.
• Driving continuous improvement, risk management and effective root cause analysis.
• Developing and coaching the FSQ team and building future capability.
• Working with Operations and NPD to ensure food safety and quality requirements are embedded across the business.
• Developing food safety performance measures and driving accountability across the site.
• Supporting business continuity and operational risk management.
• Occasional travel will be required.

What we're looking for (Essential)

• Senior Food Safety & Quality experience within food manufacturing.
• Strong knowledge of HACCP, BRC/GFSI, GMP and food safety legislation.
• Experience working with retail customers and managing customer/audit requirements.
• Proven experience leading FSQ teams and driving continuous improvement.
• Strong risk management, RCA and corrective action experience.Confident working with senior stakeholders and influencing operational teams.

Desirable

• Lead Auditor qualification.
• Food Science, Food Technology or related qualification.
• Quality or Continuous Improvement qualification.

What's in it for you?

• A genuine senior leadership position with significant influence.
• Opportunity to shape the Food Safety & Quality strategy.
• Direct exposure to senior leadership and key customers.
• Scope to develop and coach an FSQ team.
• The opportunity to make meaningful improvements across a substantial food manufacturing operation.

We are only able to consider candidates who have the legal right to work in the UK. The company cannot offer sponsorship.