FSQ Manager

Link Snacks; Mankato (MN); On-site; USD 85,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental and vision benefits

Life and disability insurance

401(k) plan

Paid holidays

Paid time off

Job summary

Link Snacks is seeking an FSQ Manager to lead the Food Safety and Quality (FSQ) team at our USDA-inspected meat snacks facility. The role focuses on HACCP-based safety systems and compliance with regulatory, customer, and internal quality standards.

The successful candidate will drive continuous improvement, provide training, and ensure all team members have the resources and awareness to meet our quality expectations. Join a team focused on real meat protein and real results.

Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years leadership experience in food safety and quality in meat/poultry.
• Demonstrated knowledge of SQF quality code and HACCP plans.

Responsibilities

• Lead FSQ team and maintain SQF Quality System.
• Develop, implement and review HACCP plans and prerequisite programs.
• Train and coach team members to uphold food safety culture.
• Monitor performance against benchmarks and lead continuous improvement.
• Report to Senior Site Management on compliance and improvements.

Skills

Leadership

HACCP

SQF

English proficiency

Spanish preferred

Training

MS Office

Education

Associate degree or higher

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

HACCP Software

Job description

At Link Snacks, we show up hungry, roll up our sleeves, plaid or otherwise, and dive straight into the hard work. We don’t hide from challenges; we hunt them down. We push harder, move faster, and take the kinds of big swings that built this business in the North Woods of Wisconsin four decades ago.

We’re everyday people who deliver extraordinary results. Innovation, creativity, and urgency aren’t buzzwords, they’re expectations. And just like the real protein snacks we make across our global house of brands—Jack Link’s®, Lorissa’s Kitchen®, Golden Island®, BiFi®, and Peperami® and KOOEE!® to name a few—there’s nothing artificial about us. What you see is exactly what you get: humble, gritty, passionate people who show up every day ready to not just be a participate in the meat snack industry that the Link Family created, but to move faster, innovate harder and keep raising the bar so high, the rest of the world needs a ladder just to see it.

Dominating this space across the world takes a team. A team that runs together, succeeds together, and celebrates together. A team that’s full of relentless energy and spirit that can only be fueled by one thing: a fist full of our delicious meat snacks.

Real Meat Protein. Real People. Real Results. THAT is Link Snacks.

Job Description

The FSQ Manager leads the Food Safety and Quality (FSQ Team) and oversees the development, implementation, review, and maintenance of the SQF Quality System at our USDA-inspected meat snacks manufacturing facility as an SQF Practitioner. This role has primary responsibilities for our site’s HACCP-based food safety system and compliance with regulatory, customer, and company quality requirements. A member of the Senior Site Leadership team; this role drives food safety culture, continuous improvement activities, and ensures that all Team Members have the training, resources, and awareness needed to meet our food safety and quality standards.

DIRECT REPORTS

HACCP Coordinator, FSQ Supervisor(s)

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The duties and responsibilities of this position shall consist of, but not be limited to, the following:

• Training, coaching, and direct observation of all Team Members to build the behaviors, actions, and awareness needed to meet the high standards of our food safety and quality system; performance management and supervision of FSQ Team
• Strategic direction and management of the site SQF Quality System including program development, implementation, review, and maintenance of HACCP plans, sanitation procedures, prerequisite programs, and other procedures and policies
• Lead appropriate resolution of food safety and quality issues by serving as onsite subject matter expert in regulatory, customer, and company requirements
• Establish and maintain processes to trend progress in food safety and quality performance against benchmarks; develop and lead plan for continuous improvement
• Serve as a member of the Senior Site Management Team to drive food safety culture in site initiatives and across departments; regularly report on specification compliance, process and product variation, customer requirements, continuous improvement activities, and matters impacting the implementation and maintenance of the SQF Quality System

Manage on-site relationships and compliance with USDA FSIS and other regulatory and certification organizations

Qualifications

REQUIRED EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

REQUIRED EDUCATION: Associate Degree or Higher Education

REQUIRED EXPERIENCE: 5 Years of Leadership Experience in Food Safety and Quality Assurance in the Meat and Poultry Industry

Preferred Education

Bachelor’s Degree and More than 5 Years of Leadership Experience in Food Safety and Quality Assurance in the Meat and Poultry Industry; Education Focused in Food Science, Microbiology, Meat Science, or Animal Science

REQUIRED SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE AND ABILITIES

• Must work effectively, respectfully, and collaboratively with all levels of management and Team Members
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English; bilingual with the ability to read, write, and speak Spanish preferred
• Proficient in Internet navigation; Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook
• Certified in HACCP and competent in implementing and maintaining food quality plans using risk-based methodology
• Understand Safe Quality Foods (SQF) Quality Code and the requirements to implement and maintain a quality management system as an SQF Practitioner or similar
• Be competent, through training or experience, in process control and/or other quality tools to reduce process variation impacting quality and achieve regulatory, customer, and consumer requirements
• Demonstrated leadership, team management, and training skills in a food manufacturing environment
• Demonstrated knowledge of continuous improvement methodologies and tools

Additional Information

The pay range for this role is $85,000 – $110,000 (Annual). Actual wage will vary based on several factors, including but not limited to external market data, internal equity, location, and candidate skill set and experience. Base pay is just one component of Jack Link’s Total Rewards package for Team Members. Other rewards may include annual incentive and program-specific awards. Jack Link’s provides a variety of benefits to eligible Team Members, including medical, dental and vision benefits, life and disability insurance, 401k participation, paid holidays, and paid time off.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to be successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job the employee is regularly required to sit, use hands to finger, handle, or feel and talk or hear. The employee is occasionally required to stand, walk and reach with hands and arms. The employee must occasionally lift and/or more up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. The work environment is a plant/office setting with varying degrees of temperatures and noise levels. Exposure to manufacturing equipment movement and wet/slippery floors. However, the vast amount of work is conducted in a climate-controlled office. Travel may be required.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER:

Jack Link’s provides equal employment opportunity (EEO) to all persons regardless of age, color, national origin, citizenship status, physical or mental disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, genetic information, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, veteran status, or any other characteristic that is protected by federal, state or local law.

E-VERIFY:

Jack Link’s is participant in the federal E-Verify program to confirm the identity and employment authorization of all newly hired employees. For information about the E-Verify program, please visit: http://www.uscis.gov/e-verify/employees

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.