Reporting to the Head of Quality, this is an excellent well-rewarded opportunity.
Purpose of role:
This role within the global QA team is crucial in assessing product arriving at our UK depot to ensure that the product our Client’s customers receive is of a leading quality in the value retailer and brand marketplace.
Partnering with the head office QA team, Offshore QA teams, the Client’s 3PL and UK depot colleagues, the UK Depot QA Manager will be a pivotal link between head office, offshore and depot to ensure that the processes and inspections add value and feedback to our wider global quality strategy.
It is expected that the successful candidate will be hands in day to day operations and establish QA processes for inbound product inspections. The role will also be responsible for managing a team of Product Inspectors.
Being responsible for the team based at our last Quality touch point, it is anticipated that the role will also link into the Customer Returns process and team.
It is also foreseen that as the role evolves, there will be a need to establish the right links with reprocessing companies around the depot network to enable a fast and cost-efficient rework processes.
Responsibility:
• Create and establish the right quality processes to operate efficiently, effectively and smoothly within the depot on inbound product, to ensure customers receive the right quality, legal and safe product.
• Build training programmes for new starters within the UK Depot QA team for the different roles and levels. Ensure that all members of the team are trained to the correct standards.
• Manage daily work/shift plan, performance and KPIs of the UK Depot QA team
• Form an integral link between the QA teams/ head office stakeholders, and the inbound product receipted into the business
• Build and maintain strong relationships with all key stakeholders.
• Understand, support and deliver the Client’s Quality strategy working closely with all stakeholders
• Provide input into the Client’s factory supply base in terms pro-active performance feedback via periodic reporting that will be established by the successful candidate
• Participate and provide technical input into quality meetings (as and when required).
• Through regular, timely and robust communication, promote and represent the quality department both internally and externally for continuous improvement
• Escalate any non-compliances to the head office and in country quality teams, or appropriate internal stakeholder partners
• Drive and deliver ad hoc QA projects to support the end to end quality and continuous improvement feedback loop.
Requirements:
Essential
• Sound experience operating within or managing a QA warehouse/depot team in a fast-paced retail business
• Manufacturing or quality assurance experience in an apparel or textile consumer product field.
• Experience of working in consumer product supply chains in depot/head office and with other head office functions.
• Understands the manufacturing construction of a product category group within the consumer products sector (textiles and apparel are preferred)
• Proven experience of inspecting consumer products and setting up new quality processes within depots/warehouses
• Good working knowledge of factory inspections
• Must demonstrate strong professional skills for communication, attention to detail, organisational skills, time management etc.
• Develop own capability by using resources available and development plans (global partners and 3rd parties)
• Good computer skills
• Good analytical skills and be able to resolve challenges as they arise and proactively problem solve
• Works effectively with others to deliver common goals; readily offers support.
• Maintain regular communication with peer group to ensure consistent ways of working
• Passionate about quality and the ability to be part of the creation of a small new team within a fast-paced retail business.
• Conducts open discussions with direct reports about their strengths and development areas, facilitating an understanding of performance expectation and the creation and delivery of formal development plans
• Be highly resilient and adaptable to change, within a fast pace environment
• Proven ability to develop and maintain effective working relationships across all levels of the company.
• Build strong relationships across the quality, buying and sourcing teams to enable more informed decision making.
• Understands business need for flexibility and modifies behaviour accordingly; exhibits a positive, determined and results driven attitude.
Desirable to have:
• Knowledge of international testing requirements for EU and US markets
• Non-Apparel consumer product manufacturing knowledge such as toys or similar.
• Customer return handling
• Product re-processing ways of working.