Supplier Quality Assurance

Job Description

Job Description:

Your goal as a Supplier Quality Assurance is to represent Mars forward Supplier on Quality & Food safety compliance. The role will be key to strategically shape and execute the Mars Supplier Quality Management program for one of the biggest categories in Food. You will play a significant role in the onboarding of new Suppliers, performs audits, leads Supplier quality programs, is involved in non-conformance investigations and leads the Global SQA community for the category, with who the strategy for all regions is defined. The position is collaborating closely with Quality, Procurement & Product Development and Supply.

The Supplier Quality Assurance will have support from the wider Commercial team as well as several functions in R&D. You will work closely with peers from the Q&FS and Supply. You will be involved in short term assessing, approving, verifying & developing supplier’s capability to meet specification of incoming materials.

• Being an active part of an highly engaged, highly transparent & highly enthusiastic local and European team
• Opportunity to work with team of professionals.
• Opportunity to learn new functionality and business processes.
• Flexible schedule.
• Work remotely across multiple countries

What will be your key responsibilities?

Lead the global SQA community & build the strategy for Global SQA Category

• Lead the Global SQA Category community.
• Build a strategy driving improvement globally for the Category
• Assess Standard compliance & be involve in the corporate standard revamp.

Assess confidence in suppliers capability to meet specification and quality requirements

• To lead supplier audits, representing Mars in a professional way, motivating suppliers and building technical partnerships to deliver against the SQA quality performance measures.
• Verifying the quality and effectiveness of the controls by auditing the suppliers’ production facilities and implement & follow up corrective actions where needed.

Strategic Supplier Performance Management

• Manage the Supplier relationship with the Key Supplier of the particular Category
• Define ambitious quality targets for the suppliers, and deliver year on year reduction in supplier non-conformance to support factory efficiency. Ensure regular reviews of supplier quality performance with suppliers.
• Create a strategy supporting the Category performance in the region
• Lead the strategic projects of the category in the region

Continuous Improvement

• Manage ad-hoc quality supplier related issues
• Initiate, drive and follow up on corrective actions related to materials &suppliers and inform internal stakeholders
• Contribute Q&FS insights and Material quality management standards to the supply strategy.

Non Conformances Management

• Support critical non-conformance investigation of the Category
• Initiate, drive and follow-up on corrective actions related to materials & suppliers and inform internal stakeholders.

Quality & food safety risk assessment of Low, medium Risk suppliers or high risk commodities suppliers

• Assessing the risks of existing and new materials and ensuring these risks are transferred into specifications (microbiological, chemical and physical).
• Understanding the controls that suppliers have in place for controlling these risks
• Partner with buyer to ensure material risk assessment & specifications are reviewed, understood and agreed by the supplier

What are we looking for?

• Higher Education (Science / Food Science Technology or related area).
• Minimum of 3 years practical working experience in Quality & Food Safety / Technical function or close related technical area.
• Good understanding of Quality & Food Safety and Material Quality management standards & legislation.
• Cover multiple food industry technologies.
• Understanding of HACCP / Quality Management Systems and preferable certified Lead auditor FSC 22000 (LRQA lead auditor course is a pre).
• Proactive, problem solving & cooperative attitude.
• Stakeholder management.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English
• Prepared to travel (25% of time) to suppliers mainly across Europe
• Fluent in written & spoken English

What can you expect from Mars?

• Work with over 130,000 diverse and talented Associates, all guided by the Five Principles.
• Join a purpose driven company, where we’re striving to build the world we want tomorrow, today.
• Best-in-class learning and development support from day one, including access to our in-house Mars University.
• An industry competitive salary and benefits package, including company bonus.

Mars is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. If you need assistance or an accommodation during the application process because of a disability, it is available upon request. The company is pleased to provide such assistance, and no applicant will be penalized as a result of such a request.