Total Quality & Food Safety Manager - Red Lobster

JOB OVERVIEW:

The Total Quality and Food Safety Manager will be responsible for championing operational food safety by managing food safety policies and procedures and working with both internal and external stakeholders to ensure the safety of Red Lobster’s restaurant operations processes. This position requires functional knowledge and skills to provide food safety technical expertise, leadership of cross-functional initiatives, and will be recognized as a valued partner for the Sourcing, Culinary, and Operations teams.

This position also requires the ability to leverage continuous improvement tools and processes, develop strong relationships with the Operations team, and embrace and lead change across the restaurants. The Total Quality and Food Safety Manager role requires strong communication and influencing skills, that will have high exposure to restaurant operation environments and culinary innovation projects.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES:

• Provide food safety leadership and direction to the Operations team and Restaurant Support Center (RSC) cross-functional teams through technical expertise in the areas of regulatory compliance and food safety management systems including HACCP, pest control, sanitation, health & hygiene, food temperature controls, foodservice equipment, basic facility management, and food safety auditing.
• Provide Operations support for food safety program management and training including partnering with pest and chemical management companies to help maintain compliance across all restaurants.
• Champion food safety and regulatory risk mitigation and improvement projects across Operations.
• Build alignment and strategy with cross functional partners, lead risk assessments and root cause analysis activities requiring issue resolution.  
• Lead data analysis through statistical process control, system capability analysis, and problem-solving principles.  Collect, analyze, and interpret process and analytical data to make food safety evaluations and recommendations for improvement.
• Develop action plans with cross-functional teams using analytical tools to ensure food safety and regulatory compliance.
• Provide leadership for sanitation excellence.
• Review plans for new and changing systems and buildings and ensure effective food safety and sanitation design.
• Assist in the development of new food safety programs and train accordingly.
• Up to 25% travel to restaurants and suppliers’ locations.

REQUIRED TECHNICAL SKILLS:

• Proficiency in usage and implementation of information systems software used for operational data management.
• Proficiency in MS Office suite with expertise in Excel
• Bachelor’s degree in Food, Chemical or Industrial Engineering, Food Science, Microbiology, or related field
• 3+ years of relevant food safety experience in public health or corporate quality assurance setting
• Ability to manage cross-functional projects and be comfortable with ambiguity
• Demonstrated critical thinking skills and ability to troubleshoot
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with results orientation
• Ability to manage multiple tasks and adjust priorities based on risk assessment
• Self-starter who has the ability to prioritize workload while meeting commitments
• Demonstrated ability to navigate complex organizations with initiative and strong leadership

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Certified Professional - Food Safety (CP-FS) credential
• Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) certification
• Preventive Controls Qualified Individual (PCQI) certification
• SQF/BRC or other GFSI similar internal auditor certification