1St Shift Quality Assurance Specialist

Job Location: Robinson, IL

Summary:

The Hershey Company Robinson plant is a non-union plant producing products such as PayDay, Heath, Skor, Milk Duds, Whoppers & Reese’s Pieces in a high-speed complex environment.

The Quality Assurance Specialist’s primary role is to serve as a liaison between Quality Assurance (QA) and Manufacturing. In this role the QA Specialist provides support to the manufacturing operations and depending on the shift may be the sole QA representative. This includes responsibility for compliance to all company and regulatory policies/procedures pertaining to product safety/quality and may include environmental duties.

The incumbent is the technical resource for Manufacturing and Engineering, providing some leadership and guidance in the areas of weight control, incident investigation and resolution, troubleshooting and other related matters.

The incumbent also provides support to employee training and product and process audits. The QA Specialist must have a sound working knowledge of Hershey’s quality system requirements. Some laboratory duties may be required.

Responsibilities:

Compliance:

• Facilitates production activities to meet quality & food safety specifications and regulatory standards by providing training, auditing, troubleshooting and incident management.

Training:

• Assists in efforts to educate and train the workforce on food quality & food safety issues. Conducts training specifically for plant employees and regularly follows up with employees to ensure that they understand the requirements of their jobs.

Auditing:

• Conducts audits in accordance with Product Excellence Program (PEP)/ Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) / Environmental compliance procedures.

Incident Management:

• Investigates and analyzes incidents to identify trends in product quality & food safety information. Initiates corrective actions and communicates findings as appropriate. Uses various computer support systems (ex. SAP product tracking, Line Production Reporting (LPR), Cost of Non-Conformance (CONC), etc.) to help isolate / solve problems.

Continuous Improvement:

• Implements continuous improvement through utilization of PEP program elements such as System Control Plans, Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures (SSOP), HACCP, ACCP, Weight Control and Consumer Complaint Reduction. Participates in or Leads improvement teams and prepares reports as necessary.

Project / New Product Support:

• Under direct or moderate supervision, acts as QA representative on multi-functional project teams or non-routine assignments. May support new product efforts from initial test runs to full-scale production to assure integrity of systems.

Minimum knowledge, skills and abilities required to successfully perform major duties/responsibilities:

• Strong auditing / assessment skills
• Strong leadership skills and ability to influence management enabling the direction of activities of teams of employees that do not have direct reporting to this role
• Understanding of sanitation and pest control practices
• Ability to work flexible hours to support other shifts when needed
• Ability to effectively communicate in verbal and written form
• Strong computer, document management skills and attention to details
• Proficiency in computer programs / software such as Microsoft Word, Outlook, Excel, Access, Power Point, SAP (Recipe Management), Net Weight and QA Trends
• Strong problem solving/trouble shooting skills
• Working knowledge of regulatory and quality system requirements – Hershey’s Product Excellence Program (PEP), HACCP, Good Manufacturing Process (GMP), etc.
• Familiarity with Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) standards
• Solid understanding of a production / manufacturing environment
• Knowledge of federal and state food industry regulations.

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Microbiology, or related field preferred
• 1-2 years related experience preferred
• QA related experience in a high-speed automated Consumer Goods manufacturing environment preferred (e.g., production of food, beverages, tobacco, pharmaceuticals, household goods, and/or tobacco)

Other Requirements:

• Successful candidates must be flexible to work any shift as needed
• Successful candidates must be able to be “on call” (rotational schedule) to cover weekends as needed

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The Hershey Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The policy of The Hershey Company is to extend opportunities to qualified applicants and employees on an equal basis regardless of an individual's race, color, gender, age, national origin, religion, citizenship status, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, transgender status, physical or mental disability, protected veteran status, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other categories protected by applicable federal, state or local laws.

The Hershey Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer - Minority/Female/Disabled/Protected Veterans

If you require a reasonable accommodation as part of the application process, please contact the HR Service Center ([email protected]).