The Governance Manager (Maternity Cover) is responsible for providing leadership, governance, and strategic oversight of the site's Quality Management System (QMS), ensuring Nutricia Liverpool maintains a robust, compliant, and audit-ready quality framework that consistently meets regulatory, customer, and Danone Specialised Nutrition standards.

This role safeguards product quality, legality, and consumer safety by providing clear direction, effective decision-making, and oversight across quality systems, compliance programmes, and governance processes, while leading a team of subject matter experts responsible for areas including product disposition, complaints management, internal auditing, food defence, food fraud prevention, material assessment, and product registrations.

The role is critical in ensuring continuity of leadership during a period of transition, maintaining stability across governance activities while driving key site priorities and mitigating compliance risks. Success in this position means delivering a resilient QMS, strengthening the site's Culture of Quality, providing effective governance of change management and risk management processes, ensuring quality programmes are delivered effectively through the team, and maintaining a continual state of audit, inspection, and regulatory readiness.

Key focus areas within department include:

• Audit readiness & regulatory compliance

• Ensure sustained readiness for major audits (e.g. FDA, FSSC, ISO, customer and regulatory inspections)
• Maintain effective oversight of audit preparation, hosting, and closure of non-conformances
• Proactively identify and mitigate compliance risks across the site with relevant departments

• QMS ownership & governance

• Lead and continuously improve the site QMS, ensuring it remains effective, compliant and embedded in daily operations.
• Ensure robust document control, governance processes and management review systems.
• Maintain oversight of internal audit

• Change Management Governance
  • • Provide governance and oversight of site change management processes.
    • Ensure quality and food safety risks associated with changes are appropriately assessed and controlled.
    • Drive continuous improvement of change management effectiveness and compliance

• Food Defence & Food Fraud
  • • Department to maintain effective oversight of the site's food defence and food fraud prevention programmes.
    • Ensure risk assessments remain current, and mitigation plans are effective.
    • Support site readiness for internal, external and regulatory review of programme effectiveness.

• Complaints & Consumer Quality
  • • Oversee complaint management processes to ensure timely investigation, root cause identification and corrective action implementation.
    • Monitor complaint trends and ensure appropriate escalation of emerging risks.
    • Drive continuous improvement initiatives based on consumer feedback and complaint data.

• Registration & Market Compliance
  • • Maintain oversight of product registration activities to support market access and regulatory compliance.
    • Ensure registration requirements are understood and delivered in collaboration with relevant functions.
    • Monitor changes in regulatory requirements that may impact market compliance.

• Raw Material Approval & Supplier Governance
  • • Ensure robust approval and ongoing compliance of raw materials through risk assessment and material governance processes.
    • Maintain oversight of incoming material assessments and supplier quality requirements.
    • Ensure only approved and compliant materials are accepted for use.

• Culture of Quality & Continuous Improvement
  • • Lead the development and deployment of the site's Culture of Quality programme.
    • Embed quality ownership and accountability at all levels of the organisation.
    • Drive continuous improvement and sustainable problem-solving across governance systems.

• Leadership & Team Capability
  • • Provide leadership and direction to the Governance team.
    • Ensure effective delivery of governance processes including audits, complaints, registrations, release, materials, certification, food defence, food fraud and change management.
    • Develop capability, succession planning and cross-functional resilience within the team.

• Risk Management & Business Continuity
  • • Act as the escalation point for governance-related risks impacting product quality, food safety, legality or compliance.
    • Ensure effective incident preparedness and business continuity within governance processes.
    • Maintain operational stability and compliance during periods of organisational change.

• Raw material, Semi finished and finished product dispositioning
  • • Review analytical, microbiological, production and quality data against relevant specifications/release criteria
    • Assess relevant actions in place from relevant departments for any deviations, holds, incidents, complaints, non-conformances or CAPAs that may impact product release.
    • Determine disposition decision in accordance with QFS procedures.

Key accountabilities, deliverables & KPIs, impact on business results

Provide leadership, governance and strategic oversight of the site's Quality Management System (QMS) and Governance function, ensuring effective delivery of audit readiness, regulatory compliance, change management, food defence, food fraud, complaints management, product registrations, material approvals and product disposition.

Accountable for maintaining a robust, compliant and audit-ready quality framework, driving a strong Culture of Quality, mitigating quality and compliance risks, and developing a high-performing Governance team.

Success is measured through positive audit and inspection outcomes, effective quality system performance, timely product disposition and market registrations, robust risk management, continual improvement of governance processes, and sustained protection of consumer safety, product quality, regulatory compliance, business continuity and brand reputation.

Candidate profile (leadership & functional competencies)

A strong people leader with proven experience in Quality, Food Safety, Regulatory or Governance functions within a regulated manufacturing environment who is accountable, resilient, influential and quality-driven. Able to provide strategic oversight, influence stakeholders at all levels, and lead high-performing teams through change while driving a strong Culture of Quality and continuous improvement mindset. Possesses strong knowledge of Quality Management Systems, regulatory compliance, audit readiness, risk management, change management, food defence, food fraud, complaints management, product registration and product disposition.

Demonstrates sound risk-based decision making, excellent communication and problem-solving skills, and the ability to balance compliance, consumer safety and business priorities in a fast-paced environment. Relevant degree and experience within food, pharmaceutical or similarly regulated industries preferred.

Critical experience required

• Proven leadership experience within a Quality, Food Safety, Compliance or Governance function in a highly regulated manufacturing environment.
• Strong knowledge and practical application of Quality Management Systems (QMS) and regulatory compliance requirements.
• Experience managing regulatory, certification and customer audits, including FDA, FSSC, EHO, Trading Standards and ISO standards.
• Demonstrated experience in governance of change management, risk management, and internal audit programmes.
• Experience leading cross-functional teams and influencing stakeholders at all organisational levels.
• Experience of food defence, food fraud, complaints management, product registrations and material approval processes.
• Track record of driving continuous improvement and embedding a strong Culture of Quality.
• Experience managing compliance risks, business continuity and regulatory readiness.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving and decision-making skills within a highly regulated environment.

Selling points of the role

• Opportunity to lead the Governance function for a highly regulated specialised nutrition manufacturing site with significant impact on product quality, consumer safety and compliance.
• Broad leadership role with accountability across QMS, audit readiness, regulatory compliance, change management, food defence, food fraud, complaints, registrations and product disposition.
• High visibility role with regular interaction with senior leadership, regulatory authorities, certification bodies and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Ability to shape and strengthen the site's Culture of Quality and governance strategy during a key period of transition.
• Opportunity to influence major business decisions through risk-based governance and quality leadership.
• Exposure to global Danone standards, regulatory requirements and best practice quality management systems.
• Leadership of an experienced Governance team with the ability to develop capability, succession planning and continuous improvement.
• Opportunity to drive meaningful improvements in compliance, audit readiness, operational efficiency and business continuity.
• Key role in protecting brand reputation, maintaining licence to operate and ensuring products consistently meet consumer, customer and regulatory expectations.
• Excellent development opportunity for an experienced Quality, Food Safety or Compliance leader seeking broader strategic and people leadership responsibility.

What does future career progression look like?

• Progression into QFS / Quality leadership roles
• Development of deep expertise in audits, QMS, or governance
• Opportunities across site, operations, and global Danone roles