At Danone, Manufacturing the best products and supplying them to meet demand is a key driver for our plant teams.   We are currently looking to hire a Quality Engineer based in our Mt Crawford, Virginia beverage manufacturing facility.   

POSITION DESCRIPTION: 
In this role, you will support the implementation of the Danone North America Quality Assurance standards through technical guidance, analysis, and leadership to continuously improve quality performance.  The Quality Engineer is accountable for capability assessment and improvement in the areas of food safety controls, product specification performance, as well as cleaning and sanitation validation.

Responsibilities:

• Provide Quality and Food Safety technical guidance, analysis, and leadership driving improvements in manufacturing processes, sanitation processes/systems, and quality systems.
• Represent Quality and Food Safety as a leader of the plant’s Quality Pillar within the company’s IWS program for assigned business unit(s).
• Ensure compliance to Danone Food Safety & Quality standards, ODA, FDA, and FSSC 22000 standards, and adherence to specifications.  Support internal and external audit requirements.  Perform necessary audit tasks and support closure of action items.  
• Participate as a member of the Food Safety Team and assist in the development, revisions, and implementation of the Food Safety Plan.
• Support the Quality Management System and participate in development & review of quality and sanitation SOPs.  Assist & potentially lead implementation of QFS programs.
• Develop, design, and conduct training and mentoring about food safety and quality topics to develop a strong quality culture.
• Assess and work to improve process capability across key product platforms.
• Compile and analyze KPIs indicative of production line health (quality performance, microbiological quality, preventive maintenance, sanitation effectiveness, etc.) and drive improvement actions.
• Investigate, analyze, and assess consumer and customer complaints.  Develop, train, and launch the process to engage the entire manufacturing team on the process to investigate and improve on complaint processes.  Ensure product non-conformances and process non-conformances are tracked and logged for corrective action into the Quality system.
• Develop expertise working within the various Danone ERP (SAP), WMS, LIMS, and Quality computer systems (Veeva).
• Support the analysis of customer and consumer feedback to identify improvement opportunities.  Drive improvement by implementing corrective actions.
• Provide training and mentoring to operations teams on food safety and quality related topics to develop a strong quality culture.
• Support the validation of cleaning effectiveness via the sanitation (“Neptune”) program.
• Support the development of quality and sanitation SOPs.
• Manage and troubleshoot non-conformances (raw materials, packaging, product, environmental monitoring, etc.) and drive root cause analysis.  Assign corrective action, collaborate with supply-quality and other functions, and follow-up on completion.
• Support change management processes related to new products, packaging, equipment, and processes.

Danone North America additionally offers a performance-based bonus and has a strong benefits package including Medical, Dental, Vision, Prescription Drug Coverage, 401k Plan, Wellness Program, Life Insurance, Tuition Reimbursement, Flexible Time Off, and Paid Parental Bonding Leave, among other benefit plan options.    

Education and Experience (Requirements):

• Bachelor’s Degree in a science or engineering related field (Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Engineering, or similar) or other technical discipline.
• 5-8 years of experience in the dairy/food/beverage manufacturing industry, including supervisory experience.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Proven ability to establish, optimize and maintain world-class quality system and team.
• Prior experience using structured and data driven problem-solving techniques (RCPS, DMAIC, Six-sigma, LEAN, etc.).
• Excellent communication, leadership and interpersonal skills.
• The ability to influence others and be a team player.
• The ability to develop/implement core work practices and standards that ensure excellence in quality.
• The ability to rapidly assess, analyze, and quickly resolve complicated quality problems with little initial information or direction and with varying degrees of ambiguity.
• The ability to multitask and manage priorities while allocating time to long-term, quality continuous improvement projects.
• Strong “self-management” skills and be comfortable working with minimal supervision.
• Established project management skills.
• Must bring leadership, interpersonal and communication skills required to interact with various levels of plant and corporate personnel and influence others.
• Willingness to work flexible schedules as needed to support 7-day per week, 24-hour per day production facilities. Work schedules could include off-shift or weekend work.

Danone U.S. is part of Danone North America, a purpose-driven company and an industry leader in the food and beverage category. You’ll work with some of the best-known food and beverage brands in the world. Our strong portfolio of brands includes: Activia®, DanActive®, Danimals®, Dannon®, evian®, Follow Your Heart®, Happy Family® Organics, International Delight®, Light + Fit®, Nutricia ®, Oikos®, Silk®, So Delicious® Dairy Free,  STōK® Cold Brew Coffee ®, Too Good & Co™, and YoCrunch®. 

With approximately 5,000 employees and 13 production locations across the U.S., Danone North America's mission is to bring health through food to as many people as possible. 

You’ll be part of one of the largest Certified B Corps™ in the world, working to make sure our company creates real value for people and the planet. Come join our movement for a healthier world: One Planet. One Health BY YOU.

Danone North America is proud to be an Equal Opportunity employer. It is our policy to give equal employment opportunities to all qualified persons without regard to legally protected characteristics, or any other consideration made unlawful by applicable federal, state/provincial and/or local law. For our EEO policy statement and your EEO rights under law click here.

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