Director of Food Safety and Quality Assurance

Director of Food Safety and Quality Assurance

Ready Foods is a Denver-based, family-owned food manufacturer on a transformation journey. While rooted in more than five decades of manufacturing excellence, we are building the next generation of food manufacturing by combining Lean principles, Industry 4.0 technologies, digital transformation and systems thinking. Across our four Denver facilities, we are creating a connected enterprise that leverages data, automation, continuous improvement and employee expertise to drive better decisions and better outcomes. Our culture is built on respect for people, operational excellence, learning, collaboration and a relentless pursuit of improvement. We are looking for individuals who want to help shape the future of manufacturing while making a meaningful impact on our customers, employees and community.

This is not a traditional QA role. We are seeking a leader who builds quality into systems and processesnot one who relies on inspection to catch issues after the fact. This role is responsible for leading and evolving our Food Safety & Quality Management System (FSQMS) while partnering across the organization to design processes that prevent defects, reduce variation, and ensure consistent product quality at scale. The Director of FSQA is an on-site role in Denver, CO and reports directly to the COO.

Key responsibilities include:

• Leading and continuously improving our Food Safety & Quality Management System (FSQMS) aligned with FSMA, HACCP and GFSI standards
• Partnering cross-functionally to embed quality into daily operations, process design, and new product development
• Driving audit readiness and leading all regulatory, customer, and third-party audits
• Using data, root cause analysis, and Lean tools to reduce variation and improve process capability
• Building and developing a high-performing FSQA team while strengthening a company-wide culture of food safety and quality
• Owning and maintaining the site food safety plans and prerequisite programs (HACCP), ensuring effective hazard analysis, validations, verifications, and recordkeeping
• Leading sanitation, environmental monitoring, allergen control, and GMP programs to proactively prevent contamination and ensure quality at the source
• Establishing and managing supplier approval, incoming material controls, specifications, and risk-based monitoring to protect product integrity from farm-to-fork
• Owning the management of quality incidents, customer complaints, holds, and product disposition; leading traceability, mock recalls, and recall readiness as needed
• Leading food defense and food fraud vulnerability assessments and mitigation plans, strengthening facility security and ingredient authenticity controls
• Defining and reviewing FSQA KPIs and management review routines; communicating trends, risks, and priorities to plant and executive leadership with clear countermeasures
• Strengthening document control, product specifications, label/claim compliance, and training systems so teams have clear standards and the capability to execute them

Qualifications required include:

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Microbiology, Engineering, or related field required; Master's degree preferred
• 8+ years of leadership experience in food manufacturing, FSQA, or quality systems
• Proven capability to influence cross-functional leaders and drive change without relying on authority alone
• Ability to translate strategy into practical, sustainable systems that improve execution at the front line
• Track record of developing leaders and building organizational capabilitynot just managing a function
• Deep knowledge of regulatory and food safety requirements (FDA, USDA, FSMA, GFSI)
• Proven ability to build and improve quality systemsnot just maintain compliance
• Strong systems thinking and cross-functional leadership skills
• Experience in Lean or continuous improvement environments preferred

At Ready Foods, we are committed to continuous improvement, operational excellence, and building systems that make great work easier. You'll be part of a leadership team focused on long-term capabilitynot short-term fixesand a culture where food safety and quality are owned by everyone.

Equal Opportunity Employer This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.