QA Manager

Bold Coast Seafood; Gouldsboro (ME); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Paid time off

Bonus program

Growth opportunities

Job summary

Bold Coast Seafood seeks a QA Manager to own food safety and quality across a growing processing operation. This hands-on leadership role will be on the floor daily, building the QA program, leading a four-person team plus a QA lead, and coaching staff to uphold high standards from receiving to shipping.

You will partner with production and maintenance, drive audits, and lead corrective actions while sustaining a culture of proactive problem-solving and continuous improvement.

Qualifications

• USDC certification is required.
• FSMA or BRC certification (one of the two) required.
• 3–4 years of management experience preferred in seafood QA.
• Strong on-floor communication and problem-solving.
• Experience hiring, training, and coaching a QA team.
• Knowledge of HACCP, sanitation, traceability, and QA documentation.
• Comfortable in cold, wet environments around seafood.
• Willingness to work Monday–Saturday with peak-season flexibility.
• Seafood industry experience is a strong plus.

Responsibilities

• Own the food safety and quality program from receiving through shipping.
• Build and lead a QA team across receiving, butchering, frozen, and shipping.
• Hire, train, and coach QA staff; set clear expectations.
• Work on the floor daily to address non-conformities in real time.
• Inspect receiving goods and make holds/releases.
• Develop and audit procedures, specs, sanitation, and records.
• Lead corrective actions and root-cause investigations.
• Prepare for regulatory inspections and third-party audits.
• Collaborate with Production, Maintenance, Dock, and Shipping.
• Support a culture of frontline problem-solving and reporting.

Skills

Leadership

On-floor coaching

Communication

Team building

Education

USDC certification

FSMA or BRC certification

Job description

Quality Assurance Manager

About Bold Coast Seafood

Bold Coast Seafood operates a 100,000 square foot facility on the working waterfront of Prospect Harbor, Maine, built around a deepwater dock, a buying station, refrigerated tanks capable of holding over 200,000 pounds of lobster and crab, a state of the art processing floor, office space, and a research lab. We supply customers with high quality seafood harvested from the cold, clean waters of Maine, and we are currently expanding into a new business line: crab processing.

We built this company on the belief that people do their best work when they feel good about where they work. We address problems directly, we expect people to bring solutions rather than just complaints, and we support each other, even on hard days. As we grow, we are looking for people who want to grow with us.

About the Role

Bold Coast Seafood is hiring a QA Manager to own food safety and quality across our growing processing operation, from receiving through butchering, frozen, and shipping. This is a hands-on leadership role. You will build the quality program and the team behind it, and you will be on the floor every day, not just behind a desk.

We are looking for a leader who is comfortable speaking up in the moment, coaching people on the line, and holding the standard with clear, respectful communication. Documentation matters, but quality is protected by what happens on the floor.

What You Will Do

• Own the food safety and quality program for the facility, including HACCP, FSMA compliance, and any customer or third-party audit requirements.

• Build and lead the QA team: four QA staff covering receiving, butchering, frozen, and shipping, plus a QA lead.

• Hire, train, schedule, and coach QA team members, and set clear expectations and standards for each area.

• Spend time on the production floor daily, speaking up in real time when something is out of spec and coaching people toward the right fix.

• Inspect and verify incoming product at receiving, and make quality holds and release decisions.

• Develop, maintain, and audit written procedures, specifications, sanitation standards, and quality records.

• Lead corrective and preventive actions, root cause investigations, and follow-up on quality issues or customer complaints.

• Host and prepare for regulatory inspections and customer audits, and keep the facility audit-ready.

• Partner with the Production Manager, Maintenance, Dock, and Shipping and Receiving on a shared approach to safety and quality.

• Serve on the safety committee and support a culture where front-line staff are encouraged to solve problems and report back.

• Track and report quality metrics to the General Manager, and recommend improvements as the operation scales.

What We’re Looking For

• USDC certification (required).

• FSMA or BRC certification (required, one of the two).

• 3 to 4 years of management experience preferred, ideally in food or seafood quality assurance.

• Strong communication skills and the confidence to speak up on the floor, not just document problems.

• Experience building or leading a team, including hiring, training, and coaching.

• Working knowledge of HACCP, sanitation, traceability, and food safety documentation.

• Comfortable working in cold, wet environments and around live and processed seafood.

• A positive, solution-oriented attitude that fits our culture of bringing ideas forward instead of just flagging problems.

• Ability to work Monday through Saturday, with flexibility during peak seasons.

• Seafood industry experience is a strong plus.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to stand and walk for extended periods on a production floor.

• Comfortable working in cold, wet, and fast-paced conditions, including around refrigerated and frozen areas.

• Ability to lift and move product samples, totes, and equipment as needed.

• Ability to wear required PPE, including boots, gloves, hairnets, and outerwear, for the full shift.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance.

• Paid time off.

• Performance-based bonus program tied to defined milestones.

• A growing company where you can build a department from the ground up and see the direct impact of your work.

Bold Coast Seafood is an equal opportunity employer.