Sr. Manager, Quality Assurance

Come make your difference in communities across Canada, where authenticity, trust and making connections is valued – as we shape the future of Canadian retail, together. Our unique position as one of the country's largest employers, coupled with our commitment to positively impact the lives of all Canadians, provides our colleagues a range of opportunities and experiences to help Canadians Live Life Well®.

At Loblaw Companies Limited, we succeed through collaboration and commitment and set a high bar for ourselves and those around us. Whether you are just starting your career, re-entering the workforce, or looking for a new job, this is where you belong. 

Role Mandate:  This role is responsible for participating in the development and driving the Loblaw Quality Strategy; ensuring that quality milestones and measures are reported and achieved. The Senior Manager of Quality leads the management of the vendor portfolio to drive continuous improvements in product food safety and quality.  This role provides management, leadership, coaching and mentoring to the Quality Assurance team regarding the achievement of talent management, team and direct report’s objectives, strategic planning, and risk management while supporting the product development team, working closely with the Product Quality Assurance team.

Accountabilities:                    

• Promotes our vision of being a world leader in innovative product development as well as delivering consistent product quality

• Has a thorough knowledge of and supports the investigation of the food safety and quality risks associated with products, through risk assessment, product evaluation, specification review and development, testing results evaluation and packaging assessment          

• Shares technical knowledge of products and vendors within the team and category – processing, raw materials, formulations and specifications, and packaging formats

• Supports the PD process ensuring new products meet food safety and quality requirements by leading and participating in risk assessment/technical review sessions of vendors and their program management.

• Reviews project concepts and ensures products meet requirements based on quality and safety parameters, company policies, functionality, store, and customer shelf life

• Investigates and ensures resolution of customer complaints and quality issues and participates in situations involving crisis management

• Supports the Loblaw Brands business by supporting the successful launch of all innovation initiatives including identifying improvement opportunities

• Generates QA reports and engages vendors to resolve issues within appropriate timelines

• Recognizes and escalates as needed, risk issues to improve vendor performance

• Drives continuous vendor improvements and conducts vendor risk assessments making recommendations for Performance Improvement Action planning where required

• Supports the talent management process and ensures the engagement of quality team members

• Provides leadership, coaching and mentoring to achieve objectives and shared values

• Identifies, supports and leads training opportunties

• Manages assigned vendors, completing or coordinating audits and structured vendor visits through our approved 3rd party provider

• Supports the planning and implementation of the SQMS initiatives

• Has knowledge of distribution and handling of products within Supply Chain; understands retail environment and makes recommendations where applicable

• Makes decisions while demonstrating understanding of risk and business impact

• In conjunction with the LBL team and BU, supports the development of vendor strategies based upon current vendor strengths & weaknesses and long-term development requirements

• Builds and promotes effective collaborative relationships with other members of the business and vendor community

Role Requirements:

• University education or equivalent in a Food Science, Biological Science, Chemical Science, Engineering or equivalent discipline

• Minimum 7 years’ related work experience (preferably in the food or consumer packaged goods industry)

• Excellent knowledge of Quality Management, Prerequisite & HACCP Programs, Audit Management, GFSI recognized standards, and their application in the food industry

• Strong ability to establish a strategic plan and lead team members to deliver against the goals and OKR’s

• Work effectively as an individual with minimal supervision or as a team member as required

• Lead collaborative working groups with internal and external business partners

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills; Influential and working knowledge in continuous improvement concepts engaging

• Highly organized with a strong focus on detail and accuracy, able to quickly prioritize needs

• Strong judgement and decision making skillls with a sstrategic decision-making approach to business interests

• Able to handle multiple priorities and to focus on business bottom line

• Passionate about our control brand products

• Understanding of Canadian regulatory landscape including basic knowledge of Health Canada and Canadian Food Inspection Agency regulations

• Shows leadership in all situations and role models best practices every day

• Strong coaching, teaching and mentoring skills

• Forward thinking, always looking for new ways to meet business objectives and improve processes

• SAP Quality Module, Audit Module, Quality Issue Management and Business Intelligence Reporting experience would be an asset

• Travel is required for the role and varies in accordance with work tasks, travel may include local, national and international travel and use of personal vehicle may be required.

Our commitment to Sustainability and Social Impact is an essential part of the way we do business, and we focus our attention on areas where we can have the greatest impact. Our approach to sustainability and social impact is based on three pillars – Environment, Sourcing and Community – and we are constantly looking for ways to demonstrate leadership in these important areas. Our CORE Values – Care, Ownership, Respect and Excellence – guide all our decision-making and come to life through our Blue Culture. We offer our colleagues progressive careers, comprehensive training, flexibility, and other competitive benefits – these are some of the many reasons why we are one of Canada’s Top Employers, Canada’s Best Diversity Employers, Canada’s Greenest Employers & Canada’s Top Employers for Young People.

If you are unsure whether your experience matches every requirement above, we encourage you to apply anyway. We are looking for varied perspectives which include diverse experiences that we can add to our team.

We have a long-standing focus on diversity, equity and inclusion because we know it will make our company a better place to work and shop. We are committed to creating accessible environments for our colleagues, candidates and customers. Requests for accommodation due to a disability (which may be visible or invisible, temporary or permanent) can be made at any stage of application and employment. We encourage candidates to make their accommodation needs known so that we can provide equitable opportunities.  
 
Please Note:
Candidates who are 18 years or older are required to complete a criminal background check. Details will be provided through the application process.

#EN