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Salary: CAD 70,000 - 85,000 / annual
Riverside Natural Foods Ltd., a Canadian family-owned B-Corp certified company and manufacturer of nutritious snacks (MadeGood, GOOD TO GO), seeks a Quality Improvement Leader to drive continuous improvement of the company's Food Safety and Quality Assurance System. The role reports directly to the plant FSQA Leader with no direct reports.
You will lead food safety and quality incident management, including investigations, root cause analysis (RCA), risk assessment, and corrective and preventive action (CAPA) programs. Key responsibilities include:
• Manage food safety and quality incidents (consumer/customer complaints, product holds, internal non-conformances) to ensure product safety and quality
• Lead cross-functional investigations and RCA to identify issues affecting food safety and quality; place necessary holds in SAP systems
• Review and analyze food safety records and quality verification data to identify trends and implement corrective actions
• Lead cross-functional teams in identifying improvement opportunities and developing comprehensive action plans to prevent future issues
• Collaborate closely with Production, Sanitation, Maintenance, Engineering, Facility, R&D, and other departments on food safety and quality improvement initiatives
• Ensure consistent execution of Food Safety and Quality Management Programs, internal procedures, and BRC compliance
• Establish, develop, implement, and monitor food safety and quality improvement strategies, plans, and KPIs aligned with organizational goals
• Use statistical methods, data analysis, and sampling plans to track product and process performance; build and monitor control charts and run charts for critical-to-quality (CTQ) and critical-to-process (CTP) parameters
• Develop, update, and implement improvement policies, procedures, and food safety and quality plans
• Identify training opportunities and ensure employees are trained in food safety and quality improvement methodologies (RCA, hazard analysis, risk assessment, CAPA development)
• Promote a culture of excellence and continuous improvement awareness across the organization
• Develop innovative solutions to food safety and quality issues and provide improvement reports to senior leadership
Key performance targets include: 20% annual reduction in recurring customer complaints, ≥90% CAPA closure rate with <5% recurrence, 15% reduction in held cases vs. year-end 2025, and development of process maps for one production line per year.
Riverside is a rapidly growing, values-driven organization (teamwork, humility, respect, ownership, adaptability, grit, fun) on a mission to double business by 2030. The company offers a flat organizational structure with direct access to leadership, comprehensive benefits, RRSP matching, profit-sharing eligibility, employee resource groups, tuition reimbursement, and professional development through Riverside University.
REQUIREMENTS:
• Diploma or degree in Engineering, Food Science and Technology, Chemistry, Microbiology, Pharmaceutical, or related discipline
• Minimum 3 years of FSQA experience in food manufacturing with relevant food safety and quality programs (quality improvement, continuous improvement, process improvement)
• Experience with highly automated food manufacturing lines for continuous and batch processes
• Strong understanding of hazard analysis, HACCP, GMPs, foreign material (FM) prevention, microbiology, pest control, and other food safety programs
• Minimum Lean Six Sigma Green Belt certification AND demonstrated experience in quality improvement (QI) focused environments with application on actual production site projects
• Strong understanding of statistics, product sampling standards/programs, and statistical process control (SPC); experience with SPC technologies such as Minitab
• Understanding and knowledge of commercialization processes, food safety and quality attributes, and their impact
• Experience in investigation processes, root cause analysis methodologies, and corrective action plans (CAPA)
• Ability to be persuasive, assertive, and collaborative with diverse teams
• Exceptional time management, organizational, and implementation skills
• Self-starter with high initiative and adaptability
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills with follow-through
• Analytical, detail-oriented problem-identification and problem-solving capabilities
• Passionate, curious, with positive attitude and desire to learn
• Ability to exhibit respect and protect Riverside's core values in a rapidly changing environment
