Quality Assurance Business Arm Manager

Description

Job Summary

The QA Business Arm Manager owns food safety, quality assurance, and regulatory compliance for an assigned GBC Food Services business arm across franchise, retail, warehouse, supplier, and field operations. The Manager converts corporate QA standards into practical programs, partners with Operations, Training, Merchandising, R&D, Supply Chain, franchisees, and retailers, and ensures effective execution of HACCP, sanitation, labeling, traceability, cold-chain, and customer requirements. Success is measured through audit readiness, timely risk escalation and corrective-action closure, safe openings and launches, effective incident response, reliable reporting, and continuous improvement.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• Supervise assigned QA specialists, auditors, inspectors, or coordinators; set priorities, coverage plans, performance standards, and development goals.
• Provide functional QA direction and accountability to field leaders, National Training Specialists, Regional Managers, and other business-arm partners who execute food safety programs.
• Recruit, onboard, coach, and evaluate direct reports; build technical capability, consistent decision-making, and succession readiness.
• Partner with Human Resources and leadership on recognition, performance improvement, discipline, and separation decisions in accordance with company policy.

Primary Duties & Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain business-arm QA and food safety programs aligned with corporate policies, customer requirements, HACCP, FSMA, FDA, USDA/FSIS, seafood requirements, and state and local regulations, as applicable.
• Own assigned HACCP plans, preventive controls, SOPs, franchise manuals, sanitation, allergen controls, labeling, traceability, product specifications, shelf-life, and cold-chain requirements; review at least annually and whenever requirements change.
• Maintain a risk-based audit and field-assessment plan; lead internal audits, regulatory inspections, customer reviews, third-party audits, and timely written responses.
• Monitor SafetyCulture, Steritech, customer systems, and internal dashboards for critical findings, repeat violations, corrective-action aging, permits, training, temperature compliance, complaints, and approved KPIs.
• Contain and escalate critical food safety risks immediately; lead root-cause analysis, corrective and preventive actions, owner and due-date assignment, and verification of sustained closure.
• Own QA readiness for new openings, transfers, conversions, pilots, and launches by confirming permits, calibration, documentation, training, sanitation, and operating controls before go-live.
• Partner with Training and Operations to deliver practical food safety training and verify competency, certification, and field execution for franchisees, managers, trainers, and associates.
• Lead response to product complaints, illness allegations, allergen events, foreign material, regulatory actions, withdrawals, and recalls; maintain crisis procedures and support traceability and mock-recall exercises.
• Review and approve, from a QA perspective, labels, specifications, recipes, packaging, process changes, substitutions, shelf-life studies, and written programs before implementation.
• Partner with Supply Chain and Procurement to qualify and monitor suppliers, warehouses, and distribution practices through evaluations, documentation, cold-chain controls, risk assessments, and audits.
• Analyze audit, complaint, incident, and operating data to prioritize risk, prevent repeat nonconformities, and recommend scalable improvements without compromising quality or compliance.
• Maintain audit-ready records and compliance calendars for permits, licenses, certifications, training, audits, corrective actions, supplier documents, and regulatory commitments.
• Provide concise weekly and monthly updates, escalate material risks promptly, manage assigned resources and vendors, and maintain effective relationships with internal and external partners.

Travel & Schedule

• Travel: Up to 60-70% domestic travel by air and ground is required for stores, kiosks, warehouses, suppliers, audits, openings, and business reviews. Occasional international and short-notice travel may be required.
• Schedule: Full-time, Monday-Friday, on-site when not traveling, with flexibility for early mornings, evenings, weekends, holidays, and urgent food safety or recall response.

Qualifications:

•  Food Safety & Regulatory Expertise: Strong knowledge of HACCP, FSMA, FDA, USDA/FSIS, Seafood HACCP, local health codes, sanitation, allergens, labeling, traceability, cold-chain, and recall requirements.
•  Quality Systems & Auditing: Ability to build, audit, and improve multi-site QA programs using risk assessment, root-cause analysis, CAPA, document control, and inspection-readiness practices. SafetyCulture, Steritech, NSF, or GFSI-aligned experience preferred.
•  Multi-Unit Leadership: Success supporting franchise, retail foodservice, prepared-food, distribution, or manufacturing operations across multiple locations and influencing partners without direct authority.
•  Analytical & Business Skills: Strong KPI, data analysis, project management, and prioritization skills; proficiency in Excel, PowerPoint, and quality systems; able to connect QA actions to business outcomes.
•  Communication & Crisis Management: Clear written, verbal, training, and presentation skills; calm, credible communication with leaders, regulators, customers, franchisees, and employees during sensitive incidents.
•  Leadership & Execution: Sound judgment, attention to detail, accountability, and follow-through; able to manage competing priorities, make timely risk-based decisions, and develop people in fast-changing environments.

Education and Experience:

•  Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Microbiology, Biology, Chemistry, Quality Management, or a related field required; master's degree preferred.
•  Five to eight years of progressive food safety or quality assurance experience, including two to three years in a supervisory or managerial role; multi-unit prepared-food experience strongly preferred.
•  Current HACCP and ServSafe Food Protection Manager certifications required; Seafood HACCP and PCQI credentials required when applicable to the assigned program.
•  Relevant auditor, SQF, food defense, allergen, or sanitation credentials preferred; valid driver's license and ability to meet travel requirements required.

Physical Requirements:

•  Ability to work at a desk and computer and travel frequently by air and ground, including extended travel days and short-notice trips.
•  Ability to stand, walk, bend, reach, and navigate food-preparation, warehouse, supplier, refrigerated, and frozen environments.
•  Ability to lift up to 25 pounds and safely work around allergens, raw products, wet surfaces, equipment, and sanitation chemicals while wearing required PPE. 

Equal Opportunity Statement:

We are an equal opportunity employer, deeply valuing diversity. Our commitment is to foster an inclusive environment for all employees, basing employment decisions on merit, qualifications, and business needs.

Other Duties:

Please note this job description is not exhaustive. Duties and responsibilities may change, or new ones may be assigned at any time with or without notice.