QA Specialist

About Kerry

Kerry is the world's leading taste and nutrition company for the food, beverage and pharmaceutical industries. Every day we partner with customers to create healthier, tastier and more sustainable products that are consumed by billions of people across the world. Our vision is to be our customers' most valued partner, creating a world of sustainable nutrition. A career with Kerry offers you an opportunity to shape the future of food while providing you opportunities to explore and grow in a truly global environment.

About the role

As a Quality Assurance Specialist, you will play a pivotal role in ensuring that our products/services meet the highest standards of quality and compliance. Your main field of activity will be quality systems and coordinating hygiene and sanitation projects.

Key responsibilities

• Responsible for supporting site food safety and quality initiatives
• Ensure compliance with all food safety and quality policies, standards, procedures & work instructions
• Develop and maintain Quality Management Systems (QMS) to the requirements of GFSI certification, local/regulatory compliance and Kosher/Halal/QS accreditations
• Implement Quality objectives together with the Quality Manager, in line with company objectives and goals
• Monitor, trend and report KPIs
• Provide site quality information to internal and external stakeholders on quality queries, including technical documents, supplier questionnaires and Salesforce requests
• Manage customer complaints, investigation across a multi-disciplinary team, root cause analysis and CAPA, customer communication, validation of corrective/preventative actions
• Support and investigate any internal food safety or quality issues on site
• Assist customer/external audits including traceability, and coordinate associated CAPA
• Manage Pest Control Program (PCP), visits, actions, documentation, improvements
• Manage internal audits, including hygiene audits, ensuring corrective actions are complete effectively
• Manage Environmental Monitoring Procedure, swabbing, risk assessment, trending and CAPA
• Support production sanitation (internal or external) and making sure that standards are achieved
• Assist laboratory testing, NPI tasks and other general quality tasks when required as per business needs
• Provide food safety and quality related training to employees, including OPL/annual training/induction training with support from QM

Qualifications and skills

Communication:

•  The ability to work and communicate with all functions and levels within the business, conversing knowledgably to positively influence the change culture.

•  Ability to identify and communicate effectively with key delivery stakeholder across the business.

Challenging Mindset:

•  Have a natural ability to ask challenging questions.

•  Be able to support and challenge where appropriate at all levels.

Business Acumen:

•  Ability to get to know a business quickly – Get to know plant specific characteristics and key stakeholders

•  Be rigorous, action and results oriented as well as open-minded and imaginative for change.

Technical:

•  Applicable food processing technology expertise

•  Qualified background in food technology or other scientific discipline, or equivalent experience

•  Ability to drive continuous improvement and support quality function

•  Problem solving and complaint resolution

•  Strong Interpersonal, communication, customer relations skills

•  Knowledge of FSSC22000/BRC/Halal/Kosher/Animal Feed requirements

•  HACCP understanding

•  SAP QM knowledge

•  IT skills

What will I get in return?

At Kerry, we believe in giving talented, curious people the opportunity to make a difference.

We work as a team, searching for the best ways to inspire food and nourish life.

We are a community of innovators, working across disciplines to solve global food challenges with a fresh approach. We want you to achieve whatever you put your mind to.

We also offer:

• 25 days annual leave (excluding bank holidays)
• Pension scheme
• 8% holiday's allowance
• community allowance