Quality Supervisor

Job Title: Quality Supervisor

MUSH: Founded in 2015, we manufacture, distribute, and market health food products that meet the needs of modern-day consumers. Our first product line of ready-to-eat overnight oats pioneers a new category for the breakfast occasion, offering a healthy, satiating, and convenient alternative to traditional morning meals. 

Our mission is to make healthy food more convenient so that humankind can feel, think, and do better. 

Role Description 

The QA Supervisor plays a key leadership role in our manufacturing facility, overseeing day-to-day food safety and quality operations to help ensure the food safety, quality and compliance of our ready-to-eat overnight oats.  This role is essential for protecting consumers, upholding brand reputation, and ensuring operational excellence in food manufacturing.

The QA Supervisor will help ensure food safety, quality and sanitation expectations are consistently understood and executed, issues are escalated quickly and appropriately, and Quality Technicians and Sanitation teammates have the direction, coaching, training and support needed to be successful and grow in their roles.

Because this role works closely with and supervises both English and Spanish speaking teammates, fluency in English and significant proficiency in Spanish is required.

This position leads a large team of Quality Assurance Technicians and Sanitation Teammates and reports to the Director of Quality.  

This position offers a clear and accelerated path for advancement; a high-performer in this role has strong potential for promotion to Quality Assurance Manager.  

Quality Leadership Responsibilities:

• Supervise and schedule a large team of Quality Assurance Technicians in a 24/7, fast-paced manufacturing environment.  Conduct performance evaluations, provide feedback, coach and develop all direct reports to strengthen technical capability, consistency and confidence.
• Assign priorities and ensure appropriate quality coverage across production and sanitation activities.
• Foster a culture of accountability, empowerment and continuous improvement within the QA Department and across all departments in our manufacturing plant. 
• Reinforce accountability for food safety, quality, documentation, and GMP expectations throughout the plant.
• Build strong communication and trust across shifts and teams using a collaborative and partnership approach.
• Escalate significant food safety, quality, or people concerns to the Director of Quality.

Specific Responsibilities: 

• Investigate food safety, quality and sanitation deviations, using the MUSH CAPA Program, to identify opportunities for continuous improvement in processes, procedures, sanitation practices and quality systems.  Take the lead in implementation of corrective and preventive actions when deviations occur.  
• Audit production processes for conformance to Regulatory, BRC and Company requirements.  
• Monitor production processes, raw materials, in process materials and finished goods for compliance to specifications and food safety, quality and regulatory requirements.
• Oversee and direct activities supporting the positive release program, such as product inspection and testing, allergen swabbing, ATP swabbing, sensory, pre-op inspection and record review.  Partner with the Director of Quality to continuously improve this critical prerequisite program.
• Prepare and present quality reports, track and report out on KPI’s and trend analysis to help Management make data-driven decisions.
• Collaborate closely and build strong working relationships with the Production, Maintenance, Sanitation, and Warehouse teams to resolve and address issues in real-time.
• Serve as a present, visible and approachable Quality presence and first point of contact resource on the production floor for all departments.
• Support the Director of Quality in implementing quality initiatives and continuous improvement efforts.  
• Oversee and continuously improve a number of prerequisite programs, such as environmental monitoring, allergen management, non-conforming product, traceability, positive release and training.
• Ensure the maintenance of accurate and organized quality and production documentation.  
• Support onboarding and training of new teammates in accordance to requirements in the MUSH Training Prerequisite Program.
• In the future, there is a potential to oversee both Operational Quality Assurance Technicians and QA Laboratory personnel in an analytical and microbiological laboratory.  
• Lead internal facility audits and support external inspections (FDA, BRC, Customer, etc).

Required Skills

• Proven leadership and team-building abilities
• Excellent communication (written and verbal) skills
• Excellent problem-solving and organizational skills
• Significant proficiency in Microsoft Office, quality software and data analysis.

Qualifications and Technical Knowledge:

Required:

• Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Microbiology, Biology, Chemistry, or a related scientific field.
• Fluent in English with significant proficiency in Spanish
• At least 3-5 years of progressive experience in food manufacturing facilities, with no less than 2 years of Supervisory experience in a food plant.
• Strong understanding of HACCP, HARPC, IA Rule, GMP’s, GFSI schemes (BRC strongly preferred), FSMA and food safety regulations
• Experience with root cause analysis, statistical process control and quality management systems
• Strong understanding of food microbiology and its application to food safety and quality.
• Ability to work effectively in both an office and on the production floor in a fast-paced 24/7 manufacturing environment
• Strong attention to detail and comfort working with documentation and data
• Experience with and ability to create and implement processes and procedures
• Standing and walking for long periods of time; bending and lifting up to 50 pounds.
• Ability to handle allergens, including milk, peanuts and treenuts 
• Ability to work flexible hours, including off-shifts and weekends, as needed.  While the standard schedule for this position is Monday through Friday during the 1st shift, the Quality Supervisor serves as the primary point of contact for all quality and food safety issues.  This role also supervises Quality Assurance teammates across all shifts and days of the week.  Consequently, this role requires frequent off-shift / weekend work and the flexibility to field after-hours calls and text messages as business needs arise.  

Strongly Preferred:

• Experience in Dairy or USDA manufacturing facilities strongly preferred
• PCQI certification
• Internal Audit training

This job description is intended to convey essential information and is not exhaustive.  Duties and responsibilities may evolve based on business needs.