Supplier Quality Improvement Lead - Packaging

Job description

A mutually rewarding experience.

Work. Realize your ambitions. And realize there's more to being in business than just making a profit. That's the Mars philosophy. And the opportunity we offer every one of our Associates. An opportunity to take what you do and make it mean more for you, for those around you and for the planet. What you get here is challenging, interesting work. You get the tools you need to do a great job and you get to have the best possible people on your side to help you do it. And at the same time as getting to find ways to do business better today than we did it yesterday and driving a great career, you also get to build a more enlightened business and drive sustainability.

Because it's never just about a single person, a single project or a single brand. It's about how you can grab everything that's within your reach here and use it to pursue mutual, long-term gain. It's about having ideas. And ideals. Being prepared to risk failure because the promise of success means we'll all be a little better off. It's that mix of integrity and ambition that makes Mars such a special place to work. And why working here is always about more than just a job.

About Mars, Incorporated

Mars is a family-owned business with more than a century of history making diverse products and offering services for people and the pets people love. With almost $35 billion in sales, the company is a global business that produces some of the world's best-loved brands: M&M's®, SNICKERS®, TWIX®, MILKY WAY®, DOVE®, PEDIGREE®, ROYAL CANIN®, WHISKAS®, EXTRA®, ORBIT®, 5™, SKITTLES®, UNCLE BEN'S®, MARS DRINKS and COCOAVIA®. Mars also provides veterinary health services that include BANFIELD® Pet Hospitals, Blue Pearl®, VCA® and Pet Partners™. Headquartered in McLean, VA, Mars operates in more than 80 countries. The Mars Five Principles – Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality, Efficiency and Freedom – inspire its more than 100,000 Associates to create value for all its partners and deliver growth they are proud of every day.

Purpose of Role

The primary role of the Supplier Quality Improvement Lead is to address packaging non-conformances of in-bound materials at the assigned Mars sites. This person will execute continuous improvement for Packaging used in the Mars Petcare Business. This individual will drive a lean culture through problem solving and Continuous Improvement for $1B in ingredients for the North America Petcare business. The objective is to improve material quality, food safety and reliability to enable the sourcing strategy, mitigate recall risk, and most importantly ensure that we are providing the best Quality of products to our consumers. This individual will be a key interface between supply and our suppliers from a quality standpoint. This position acts as the strategic technical resource and partner to Commercial Sourcing for developing new suppliers. This role will work cross functionally with key business stakeholders and will provide quality support to industry suppliers. This role will engage with multiple functions such as Commercial, Research & Development, and Manufacturing to assure all new suppliers are capable of meeting Mars Standards and providing high quality materials to the business. This role will travel to supplier manufacturing sites to perform supplier audits and assist with creating continuous improvement plans. This position is responsible for supporting the unlocking a new supplier pipeline in partnership with Sourcing and R&D along with developing existing suppliers to drive cost savings and innovation.

This individual is responsible for delivering exceptional business results in the following key areas:

·  Drive a lean culture based on root cause analysis and problem solving
·  Supplier Development and Quality Improvement

The role operates in a pet friendly, open office environment supporting natural pet nutrition and making the world a better place for Pets.

Principal Accountabilities

·  Address and close in-bound non-conformances for the assigned Mars sites.
·  Drive a lean culture in commercial by demonstrating expertise in problem solving and continuous improvement.
·  Drive robust problem solving that will lead to sustainable improvements in the supply chain materials.
·  Execute strategies that improve the reliability and consistency of the quality in the packaging material for Mars Petcare.
·  Work with strategic suppliers to ensure the delivery of continuous improvement ideas and technology which ultimately leads to a competitive advantage.
·  Measure and drive improvements to supplier Total Conformance Index (TCI) through data analysis, and root cause corrective actions.
·  Work with the supplier to investigate & resolve material non-conformances to prevent reoccurrence and drive TCI improvements.
·  Functional expert of Mars standards PQM and Premia
·  Provide quality inputs to the New Supplier Qualification cross functional team.
·  Undertake Supplier Development activities to build technical & operational capability to meet the future requirements of the supply strategy.
·  Interface with cross functional teams to prioritize supplier development needs by materials to improve cost competitiveness or supply constraints
·  Support Sourcing Team initiatives by identifying opportunities for consistent and/or improved quality
·  Provide pre-qualification metrics for potential new suppliers
·  Identify supplier gaps to Mars Quality standards and create a plan for closing gaps in a timely manner.
·  The role serves as the functional expert for Mars quality standards as it relates to the supplier quality qualification process.
·  Drive supplier selection through a robust qualification process
·  Support Sustainability Initiatives

Key Functional Skills/Knowledge

·  Supply Chain Management
·  Expertise in Lean
·  Demonstrates a logical approach to analytical challenges. Applies appropriate analytical tools and techniques to problem solving. Statistics for sampling and process control
·  Demonstrated ability to identify “root cause” of issues and determine course of action to meet short and long term business needs.
·  Verbal and written skills - including the ability to communicate effectively with all levels of the organization.
·  Ability to influence sourcing managers, supply team and suppliers.
·  Excellent team working and interpersonal skills.
·  Analytical skills for capability assessments and issue identification
·  A basic knowledge of food packaging
·  Excellent leadership, communication, presentation, collaboration, and relationship-building skills
·  Broad technical expertise with in-depth knowledge of food industry and food safety management.
·  Working knowledge of regulatory requirements including USDA/FSIS, FDA
·  Ability to establish and maintain excellent business relationships
·  Manufacturing experience
·  Audit experience
·  Ability to drive positive change at supplier locations

Minimum Qualifications:

·  Bachelor degree in Supply Chain Management, or related technical field is required.
·  Advance training in lean and problem solving.
·  3+ years of experience in Quality and/or manufacturing in the Food Industry
·  The physical capability of working in a manufacturing environment is essential.
·  Advanced computer skills to use data input and retrieval systems, spreadsheets, word processors and formulation applications are required.
·  Ability to travel up to 50% of the time

Preferred Qualifications

·  Advanced experience in problem solving

Mars is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. If you need assistance or an accommodation during the application process because of a disability, it is available upon request. The company is pleased to provide such assistance, and no applicant will be penalized as a result of such a request.

Nearest Major Market: Nashville
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