Regional Auditor

Want to help us bring happiness to the world? Join an ambitious and fast-growing global biscuits and confectionery business investing heavily in iconic global brands, infrastructure, and people. As proud bakers, chocolatiers, and custodians of iconic global brands, we don’t compromise on the quality of ingredients in our products or on the people we hire. We are looking for entrepreneurial spirits who share our passion for bringing happiness to consumers and who embody our Winning Traits. To succeed at pladis, you need to be purpose-led, resilient, and positive, as we expect pace, agility, collaboration, and accountability.

About the role

This role is critical in evaluating suppliers and/or manufacturing sites to ensure they supply pladis with materials or products that are food-safe, legal, of the right quality, and produced on sites meeting pladis’ Safety, Quality, Security, and Environment (SQSE) standards. The role holder identifies and advises on compliance and actions required to maintain SQSE standards within the supply chain and alerts the business to any risks. The role also supports the implementation of regional policies, procedures, standards, and systems.

This is a home-based role with 75% travel required (UK, EU, and global as necessary). A clean driving license is essential.

Responsibilities

• Supports the implementation of the regional Quality & Food Safety strategic plan.
• Conducts audits and assessments of suppliers, service providers, and internal sites to a prescribed schedule and in line with business requirements.
• Works towards integration, standardization, and alignment to deliver consistent standards of quality and food safety across pladis.
• Audits the effective implementation of regional procedures and standards.
• Evaluates relevant materials and supplier risks, highlighting areas of concern where pladis may be implicated or affected.
• Governance and verification of the effectiveness of SQSE Management Systems.
• Reviews completion and closeout of issues raised, ensuring commitment to maintaining beneficial business relationships.
• Communicates and drives action relating to poor audit performance with other functions, including procurement, R&D, and site teams.
• Maintains a high level of industry knowledge and awareness through external benchmarking, networking, and horizon scanning.
• Develops and maintains expertise in raw materials (ingredients & packaging) and shares this with colleagues and other functions as appropriate.
• Provides Crisis Incident Management (CIM) and supplier performance issues support, including vendor non-conformance governance and reporting.
• Performs any other relevant duties as required by the business.

Requirements

• 5+ years of experience in a technical role in the Food Manufacturing sector.
• Formal auditing qualification (GFSI Lead Auditor).
• HACCP (Level 4) and Food Safety (Level 4) certifications.
• Scientific degree or equivalent.
• Internationally recognized Health & Safety qualification (such as IOSH/NEBOSH).
• Detailed knowledge in quality and food safety disciplines, specifically:
  • Q&FS Management Systems (including HACCP).
  • Material functionality.
  • Q&FS 3rd party certification standards.
• Auditing experience.
• Fluent written and spoken English.
• Confident with the use of IT systems and software.

Skills

• Challenging and inquisitive.
• Determined and tenacious.
• Strong team player.
• Approachable and trustworthy.
• Flexible, self-motivated, and driven.
• Effective communication skills.
• Ability to respond and interact with both internal and external stakeholders at all levels.