Director of Food Safety at CREATIVE WERKS LLC – Elk Grove Village, Illinois

Job Summary:

Responsible for the leadership and development, implementation and management of all Quality Assurance and Sanitation programs and activities in CW manufacturing and co-packing locations. Provides technical expertise and support to ensure compliance to SQF, regulatory requirements, product quality, and food safety. Includes oversight in developing and reviewing quality and sanitation policies and manage audits by third-party inspectors. Supervise QA and Sanitation personnel and oversee manufacturing and production processes.

Responsibilities of the Position:

• Adaptable to fast paced environments with changing circumstances, direction and strategy and has the desire to thrive in a dynamically growing environment.
• Strong communicator in both written and verbal with excellent presentation skills and the ability to communicate and work at all levels in the organization and customers.
• Work cross-functionally as part of the Management Team on manufacturing process reviews and new products.
• Promote and lead continuous improvement mentality / projects for Quality and Sanitation. Participate in identifying opportunities / improved processes in our operations to drive further improvements for cw.
• Analytical and process driven thinker and problem solver.
• Flexibility in operational style to meet the requirements of multi-cultural workplace.
• Meet deadlines and demonstrates effective time management skills.
• Development of Quality and Sanitation Management staff through soliciting feedback from department Customers, goals and regular feedback sessions.
• Develop and maintain quality and sanitation programs/systems to ensure all products are co-manufactured at the highest quality/food safety standards and within customer specification.
• Ultimate responsibility in assuring that all Work Instructions (WIs), and FDA regulatory and client requirements are being met i.e., HACCP, SSOP, GMP's, MAV's etc.
• Coordinate annual HACCP/FST activities and reviews (Pest Control, Business Continuity, Mock Recalls, etc.).
• Coordinate fulfillment of various client requests (customer complaints, change controls, hold trending, etc.).
• Manage the HACCP/FST team and drive continuous improvement as it relates to Food Safety.
• Provide on the job, in class and formal training to Technicians, Leads, and Quality/Sanitation Management.
• Work with Project Managers and support all quality and sanitation requirements of existing and upcoming programs.
• Regularly interface with clients to ensure that their requirements and expectations are regularly met through robust process design and flawless business execution.
• Participate in safety meetings, provide safety findings and suggestions for improvement.
• Enforce company rules regarding safety, discipline, cooperation and teamwork.
• Attend necessary training sessions internally and externally to stay up to date on regulatory and client requirements.
• Attend selected meetings.
• Perform other duties as assigned by Management.

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:

• English and Spanish a plus.

Education and Experience:

• Bachelor of Science food science or related degree.
• 8 years or more in production/operations management position in a food manufacturing environment and shall include food safety and quality control management experience.

Food Safety Responsibilities:

• Attend all food safety training sessions (GMP, SQF, HACCP, Allergen, Food Facility Security, Preventing Foodborne Illness)
• Participate in company GMP walks
• Enforce company rules regarding food safety and monitoring

Working Conditions:

• Ability to work between an office setting and warehouse environment with temperature range of 55 – 80 degrees.

Physical Requirements:

• Operate standard office equipment.
• Reach with hands and arms.
• Lift up to 25 pounds