Key Responsibilities:

1. Independent Audit & Field Validation:

- Conduct planned and unannounced audits of field inspection activities across sourcing and loading locations

- Validate adherence to sampling protocols, inspection procedures, and reporting accuracy

- Perform random re-inspections to assess deviation between reported and actual quality

2. Inspection Report Validation:

Independently review and validate:

- Field inspection reports

- Laboratory test results

- Pre-shipment documentation

- Establish correlation checks between inspection data, lab outcomes, and shipment quality

3. Data Integrity & Digital Audit:

Audit inspection data for:

- Accuracy, completeness, and timeliness

- Geo-tagging, time stamps, and supporting evidence

- Identify risks related to data manipulation, duplication, or inconsistencies

- Strengthen digital audit trails and reporting reliability

4. Fraud Detection & Investigation:

Identify and investigate potential risks, including:

- Potential supplier collusion

- Sampling manipulation

- Misreporting of quality parameters

- Develop and implement red-flag indicators and preventive controls

- Lead structured investigations and recommend corrective and disciplinary actions

5. Shipment Risk Control:

Exercise authority to:

- Recommend or enforce shipment hold/rejection in case of non-compliance

- Escalate critical quality risks to COO

- Ensure no shipment proceeds where quality deviation may impact:

- Client commitments

- Regulatory compliance

- Company reputation

6. Cross-Functional Collaboration

Work closely with:

- QA leadership

- Operations and Procurement teams

- Commercial and client servicing teams

Facilitate resolution of quality-related conflicts through data-driven insights.

Support alignment between quality standards and business objectives.

7. Audit Systems, Digitization and Continuous Improvement:

Develop, Digitize and implement a structured audit framework across:

- Field inspections

- Laboratory operations

- Documentation systems

- Monitor trends in deviations and drive root cause analysis

- Recommend and track corrective and preventive actions (CAPA)

8. Quality Risk Ownership:

Monitor and drive improvement in:

- Customer complaints related to quality

- Shipment rejections and claims

- Inspection accuracy and consistency

- Ensure timely closure of audit observations and compliance gaps

Key Performance Indicators (KPI's):

- Zero Defect Rate

- Coverage and effectiveness of surprise audits

- Reduction in quality deviations and customer complaints

- Accuracy and reliability of inspection and lab data

- Timely closure of audit findings

- Improvement in inspector and supplier performance metrics

Qualifications & Experience:

Educational Qualifications:

Mandatory - Bachelor's in Food Technology, Microbiology, Biotechnology, Biochemistry, or related field.

Preferred - Master's degree in the aforementioned fields or in Business / Operations Management.

Experience:

- 12-18 years of relevant experience in QA, audit, or food inspection environments

- Experience in export-oriented food, pharma or commodity-based industries preferred

Technical Competencies:

Strong working knowledge of:

- ISO 22000 / FSSC 22000

- ISO 9001

- NABL / ISO 17025 laboratory systems

- Expertise in audit methodologies, inspection processes, and sampling techniques

- Certified Lead Auditor (ISO/FSSC) preferred

- Milling Operations and Inspections

Professional Competencies:

- High integrity and ethical standards

- Strong analytical and problem-solving capability

- Ability to make independent, data-driven decisions

- Effective stakeholder management and communication skills

- Ability to read, write and speak in Hindi and English (Mandatory). Additional languages will be a plus.

- Capability to operate in high-pressure, field-intensive environments