Quality Assurance Manager

DSJ Global; Wilmington (DE); On-site; USD 110,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

DSJ Global is recruiting a Quality Assurance Manager for a high-volume food manufacturing facility in the Newark/Wilmington area. You will lead quality, food safety, and sanitation programs, ensuring regulatory compliance and audit readiness while driving continuous improvement across site operations.

The role reports to the Plant Manager and involves cross-functional collaboration with Production, Maintenance, Supply Chain, and Finance, along with coaching and developing the quality team to

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Microbiology, Quality, Engineering or related field, or equivalent experience.
• 5+ years of Quality Assurance experience in a food manufacturing environment.

Responsibilities

• Lead all quality assurance, food safety and sanitation functions for the facility to uphold product quality.
• Ensure GMP, HACCP, SQF, Food Safety and related quality standards compliance across operations.
• Monitor product quality and drive corrective actions; review quality documentation and reporting.
• Serve as primary contact for product recalls and quality-related issues; manage hold/release decisions.

Skills

Quality Assurance

GMPs

HACCP

SQF

PCQI

Root cause analysis

Regulatory audits

Statistical analysis

Education

Food Science degree

Job description

Leading Food Manufacturing Company
Seabrook, NJ Area

About the Opportunity

A leading food manufacturing organization is seeking an experienced Quality Assurance Manager to lead all quality, food safety, and sanitation programs at a high-volume production facility. Reporting directly to the Plant Manager, this individual will be responsible for ensuring product quality, regulatory compliance, audit readiness, and continuous improvement across the site.

This is a highly visible leadership role with responsibility for quality systems, food safety programs, sanitation oversight, customer and regulatory audits, and team development.

Key Responsibilities

Quality & Food Safety Leadership

• Lead all quality assurance, food safety, and sanitation functions for the facility.
• Ensure compliance with GMP, HACCP, SQF, Food Safety, Food Security, and company quality standards.
• Monitor product quality throughout the manufacturing process and drive corrective actions when necessary.
• Review and oversee all Food Safety & Quality documentation and reporting.
• Serve as the primary contact for product recalls and quality-related issues.
• Manage product hold and release decisions.

Audit & Regulatory Compliance

• Lead customer, FDA, USDA, SQF, Organic, and third-party audits.
• Coordinate audit preparation, execution, and corrective action plans.
• Maintain audit readiness and ensure ongoing compliance with regulatory requirements.
• Partner with corporate quality leadership on consumer complaints, root cause investigations, and trend analysis.

Sanitation Oversight

• Manage sanitation programs and personnel to maintain world-class plant cleanliness standards.
• Monitor and improve the Master Sanitation Schedule.
• Identify process gaps and implement corrective actions to strengthen sanitation performance.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner closely with Production, Maintenance, Supply Chain, Warehouse, and Finance teams.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives related to quality, food safety, and operational excellence.
• Support employee training programs, including SQF verification and validation activities.

Leadership & Team Development

• Lead a team of direct and indirect reports within the Quality and Sanitation functions.
• Recruit, coach, mentor, and develop employees.
• Conduct performance evaluations and provide ongoing feedback and development opportunities.
• Foster a culture of accountability, safety, and continuous improvement.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Microbiology, Quality, Engineering, or a related field; equivalent experience will also be considered.
• 5+ years of Quality Assurance experience within a food manufacturing environment.
• Strong knowledge of:
• HACCP
• GMPs
• Food Safety Systems
• Manufacturing Quality Programs
• SQF, HACCP, and PCQI certifications.
• Experience leading customer and regulatory audits.
• Ability to perform root cause analysis and apply statistical problem-solving techniques.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and communication skills.
• Proficiency with spreadsheets and quality data analysis.

Preferred

• Experience within food and/or beverage manufacturing.
• Knowledge of microbiology and product formulation.
• ASQ or other professional quality certifications.
• Experience managing FDA, USDA, Organic, SQF, and customer audits.
• Experience with technical report writing and quality documentation.
• Strong coaching, training, and team development capabilities.