BRCGS/QMS Specialist

About the Role…

As a BRCGS & QMS Practitioner you will be responsible for implementing, maintaining and improving the BRC Global Standards for Food Safety within our organization. This role ensures compliance by preparing, training, auditing and reporting to the larger quality team and organization. This role helps promote a culture of food safety throughout the organization and is required to work collaboratively across all departments and functions that could affect food safety. This role will also maintain our Quality Management System and will require the writing of technical documents, review, auditing and training of others so we are compliant to all food safety and regulatory requirements. 

 About the Team…

The Quality Assurance Team is diverse in knowledge and experience and is responsible for ensuring that Beech-Nut’s products meet the highest standards for food safety and quality. This team takes pride in and responsibility in partnering with all departments such as Operations, Sourcing, Logistics, Technical Services to ensure that we are compliant with our internal Food Safety Plans and all regulatory requirements. This is a hands-on, collaborative team that is energetic and passionate about making sure we continue to do what we do best - making high quality, safe, and nutritious foods for babies and toddlers!

Our Commitment to Safety…

At Beech-Nut we are committed to a strong safety program that protects its staff, its property, and the public from accidents. Associates at every level, including management, are responsible and accountable for the company’s overall safety initiatives. Complete and active participation by everyone, every day, in every job is necessary for the safety among all workers on the job site. Management supports participation in the program by all Associates and provides proper equipment, training and procedures. Associates are responsible for following all procedures, working safely, and, wherever possible, improving safety measures. An injury and accident-free workplace is our goal. Through continuous safety and loss control, we can accomplish this.

About the Work Environment…

The position is located at the Amsterdam, New York LEED® certified production facility. This position will be required to work in an environment that requires hairnet, beard cover, safety glasses, hearing protection and lab coat part-time. Restrictions include wearing of jewelry, nail polish and acrylic nails. Other personal protection equipment may be required for certain tasks.

What You’ll Do…

• Implement the most current BRCGS standards for the Beech-Nut Amsterdam facility and ensure compliance by all Third-Party Manufacturers.
• Conduct training and develop training materials as necessary to ensure staff are properly trained to meet BRCGS standards.
• Audit current BRCGS standards compliance and report gaps to senior quality management.
• Prepare facility for external BRCGS audits by addressing gaps and non-conformities from prior external audits or internal audits.
• Maintain and update all documentation related to BRCGS compliance including policies, procedures, training and reports.
• Conduct or help conduct risk assessments as necessary
• Identify areas of improvement for food safety and QMS systems.
• Work collaboratively with all internal teams that use QMS or have roles as outlined by the BRC standards to ensure they are necessarily informed and trained.
• Develop QMS documentation such as standard operating procedures (SOPs), training materials, work instructions and updates to existing documentation. 
• Maintain QMS system by regularly auditing for gaps, format issues and compliance to internal standards.
• Work with Hero’s global Quality Assurance team to ensure compliance to any global QMS requirements. 
• As a quality team member, must be flexible and willing to cover other responsibilities as assigned. 

Who You Are…

• Deciding and Initiating Action: You are able to make timely decisions while weighing risks. You act without being prompted and take responsibility for projects, people and mistakes. You demonstrate transparency, credibility and sincerity.
• Analyzing: You are able to analyze all types of information using a wide range of sources. You draw well-reasoned conclusions and pinpoint key information from large data sets. You are able to identify themes and produce effective solutions.
• Learning & Researching: You rapidly learn new tasks and quickly commit information to memory. You ask key questions and use all relevant information to make decisions. You use mistakes as a learning opportunity and encourage others to learn from one another.
• Planning & Organizing: You are able to set clearly defined objectives, establish priorities, plan activities and projects, and manage time effectively. You monitor progress against deadlines and milestones.

What You’ll Need…

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field (Biology, Chemistry, Engineering, Food Science etc.)
• 3-5 years’ experience and/or relevant experience if less than minimum
• Certifications in BRCGS Auditor, HACCP and PCQI
• Knowledge of food safety, regulations, GMP’s, and Thermal processing preferred