Senior Quality & Food Safety Leader

Shearer's Foods; Perham (ME); On-site; USD 80,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Shearer's Foods in Massillon, OH is seeking a Sr. Manager of Quality & Food Safety to lead and continuously improve the site's QA/FS programs, including SQF, GMPs, and SOPs.

You will oversee the SQF Practitioner role, PCQI duties, and cross-functional collaboration with operations. The ideal candidate has at least 10 years in quality assurance and food safety, 5+ years in a management role in a similar plant, and strong knowledge of FSMA, FDA standards, and data-driven improvement.

Qualifications

• Minimum degree: Bachelor in Food Science, Animal Science, Microbiology, Biology, or related science.
• Minimum of 10 years in Quality Assurance, Food Safety, and Sanitation.
• Minimum of 5 years in a supervisory/management role in a similar plant.
• Certifications: PCQI, SQF Practitioner (or other GFSI), HACCP.
• Strong knowledge of FSMA, FDA, and global food safety standards.
• Experience with customers and suppliers in a quality capacity.
• Experience using data and statistics to drive improvement.
• Demonstrated ability to lead change and coach teams.
• Broad quality and food safety management experience in a plant environment.
• Ability to train associates and plan, monitor, and schedule work.

Responsibilities

• Lead and continuously improve the site's Quality and Food Safety Management Systems, including SQF, Food Safety Plan, GMPs, and SOPs.
• Maintain understanding of all products, raw materials, packaging, and operations, including quality specs.
• Monitor and enforce all food safety processes per AIB, SQF, and customer standards.
• Serve as SQF Practitioner and PCQI; participate in weekly Food Safety Inspections.
• Act as key member of the Food Safety Team to identify, assess, and mitigate risks.
• Investigate and respond to customer complaints and trace trends to resolve issues.
• Ensure programs protect consumers and audit readiness at all times.
• Oversee sanitation and prerequisite programs across the facility.
• Develop data-driven insights (SPC, trend analysis, defect tracking) to improve performance.
• Establish quality objectives aligned with plant and corporate goals.
• Drive structured problem-solving and continuous improvement for defect reduction and customer satisfaction.
• Foster ownership mindset; partner with operations to embed quality at the source.
• Deliver training linking frontline work to customer impact and brand reputation.

Skills

Quality management

Food safety

GFSI knowledge

FSMA / FDA knowledge

Data-driven improvement

Leadership & coaching

Process improvement

Education

Bachelor in Food Science / Animal Science / Microbiology / Biology

Job description

Shearer's Foods in Massillon, OH is seeking a Sr. Manager of Quality & Food Safety to lead and continuously improve the site's QA/FS programs, including SQF, GMPs, and SOPs.

You will oversee the SQF Practitioner role, PCQI duties, and cross-functional collaboration with operations. The ideal candidate has at least 10 years in quality assurance and food safety, 5+ years in a management role in a similar plant, and strong knowledge of FSMA, FDA standards, and data-driven improvement.