[Global] Vice President, Food Safety & Quality

Global  Vice President, Food Safety & Quality Assurance

The Vice President of Food Safety and Quality Assurance (FSQA), Global, is a senior leadership role responsible for the comprehensive oversight of our FSQA programs. This position drives the operations strategy, optimization, and execution across all aspects of food safety, quality control, regulatory compliance, and risk management. The scope includes our meal kit and ready-to-eat (RTE) operations across multiple national sites, requiring multi-site ownership. The Global VP will be a key contributor, defining and implementing the processes by which we deliver our products to customers. The ideal candidate must possess extensive experience in food manufacturing, proven strong leadership capabilities, and deep expertise in food safety regulations and quality management systems.

You will...

• Develop and implement comprehensive food safety and quality strategies aligned with Company objectives
• Manage cross-functional teams to ensure integration of quality and safety standards throughout all operations    
• Lead global food safety teams and manage relationships with National, Regional, and Municipal regulatory agencies, industry organizations, and key stakeholders.  
• Direct continuous improvement initiatives to enhance food safety culture and operational excellence, while embracing and guiding others through change, aligning the team to both short- and long-term priorities. This includes allocating resources and mobilizing people to achieve targets with consistently monitoring progress and measuring success.
• Drive safety, quality, cost, and delivery, while growing and expanding capabilities of each site

Additionally You will… 

• Ensure full compliance with USDA & FDA, CFIA, GFSI, and other relevant food safety regulations and standards, including inspections, audits and certifications
• Monitor development and maintenance of HACCP plans, prerequisite programs, and food safety management systems
• Conduct risk assessments and implement appropriate control measures
• Stay current with evolving regulations and industry best practices
• Oversee laboratory operations, testing protocols, and analytical methods
• Establish and monitor quality specifications, standards, and performance metrics
• Lead supplier qualification and monitoring programs
• Implement corrective and preventive action (CAPA) systems
• Manage product recalls and crisis response procedures when necessary
• Build, lead, and mentor high-performing food safety and quality assurance teamsLead and mentor high-performing food safety and quality assurance teams. Effectively manage the requirements of a fast-paced, high-growth environment and guide employees through organizational change.
• Develop talent through training, coaching, and professional development programs
• Foster a culture of food safety awareness and accountability across the organization
• Collaborate with production, logistics, product and many other departments
• Champion implementation of new technologies and digital solutions for quality management
• Optimize process initiatives to improve efficiency while maintaining safety standards
• Oversee documentation control and record-keeping systems
• Establish key performance indicators and reporting mechanisms
• Instill a customer-focused mindset committed to delivering the highest quality product    

You Are… 

• Trusted Partner & Adviser: you're able to cultivate collaborative partnerships with others inside or outside the organization who can provide information, assistance, and support
• Bold: you are a true entrepreneurial spirit and not afraid to take calculated risks to disrupt the status quo; you're a visionary leader that listens to your team and values their ideas
• Action Oriented: you’re able to prioritize organizational objectives, problem solve and quickly action solutions that improve the quality of our products 
• Strategic: you’re a critical thinker who uses logic and data to identify alternatives, evaluate, and present approaches to solve complex problems while thinking in terms of contingency plans
• Customer-obsessed: you understand the importance of customer experience and are able to achieve excellence in delivering the planned customer outcomes with the highest level of quality and customer experience
• Teamwork Driven: you have a track record of leading cross-functional teams and cultivating collaborative partnerships at all levels and departments of an organization
• Results-oriented: recognizes and resolves situations that are ambiguous or challenging, focus effort on meeting or exceeding goals, and pave the way for efficiency

   You have...

• Bachelor’s Degree (Masters preferred) in Food Science, Microbiology, Supply Chain, or related
• 15+ years of experience in Food Safety, Quality, Supply Chain, or Food Manufacturing
• Well-versed in quality systems, food safety regulations, HACCP, GFSI, GMPs
• Strong understanding of food microbiology, chemistry, and processing technologies
• Experience leading multifunctional teams, managing organizational change and strong people development skills
• Enforces metrics to drive efficiency, measure performance, and reduce costs. Demonstrated ability to be both a strong strategic thinker and a hands-on, tactical leader.
• Superior analytical skills and operational modeling capabilities
• Demonstrated ability and hunger to deliver impact
• Ability to internationally travel up to 50% of the time

Illinois Pay Range$300,000—$325,000 USD