Technical Manager

SUMMARY:
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POSITION INFO:

Our client based in Kenya, one of the leading exporters of premium & prepared vegetables and the largest commercial grower and exporter of chilies from Kenya, seeks to hire a Technical Manager, responsible for ensuring accepted standards are well kept and consumer satisfaction is achieved for all products in terms of safety, quality, integrity, and legality.

Key Responsibilities:

1. 1. Systems implementation and documentation

• Ensure that the laid down Quality Management Systems are adhered to at all times within the production units and that the product conforms in terms of quality, safety, integrity, and legality.
• Investigating and looking for ways of improving the current systems/practice applied in production units whenever there is a change in supermarket standards.
• Understanding the requirements for audits and customer visits and be able to help in preparation for the visits/audits.
• Ensuring that the documents/records in use are current, the correct versions, and completed in a way that is unambiguous and clear.
• Update QMS data on the Technical Manager database.

1. 2. Factory audits implementation.

• Familiarise with all customer factory standards and act as the contact person for all factory standards compliance.
• Schedule and conduct all factory standards audits, in line with customer expectations.
• Keep track of all customer audits, results of past audits, and expectations.
• Update audit data on the Technical Manager database.

1. 3. Micro standard compliance

• Contact person with lab for all micro results.
• Update and review micro matrix to match existing customer expectations.
• Follow up with both field and packhouse teams to achieve accurate microsampling regimes.
• Update microdata on the Technical Manager database. Trend and update microdata and follow through with both field and packhouse for improvement plan feedback on reported deviations.

1. 4. Staff Training:

• Planning of scheduled refresher training to ensure a high level of understanding and for updating in case of changes to normal practice.
• Liaising with Site Technical Manager that the department is well staffed at all times.
• Update Training data on the Technical Manager database.

1. 5. Product Quality:

• Working with the packhouse to ensure that the production process yields products that consistently satisfy stated customer quality attributes.
• Maintain an up-to-date record of customer complaint trends, facilitate investigation of all customer complaints and ensure corrective actions are put in place to avoid a re-occurrence.
• Understanding of New Product Development and looking at new concepts that can be trialed within the current HACCP.

1. 6. Customer complaints and claims.

• Flag out claims and customer complaints with the packhouse QA and production teams.
• Contact person for all customer claims.
• Update customer claims data on the veg sales platform.
• Trend and update customer claims and follow through with veg pack houses on customer claims improvement plan feedback.
• Update customer complaint data on the Technical Manager database.

1. 7. Finished product specifications.

• Familiarise with all customer finished product specifications and act as a contact person for all finished product specifications.
• Follow up on getting all new products specifications developed and approved by both technical and commercial heads of department for onward use by veg pack houses.
• Keep track of all finished product specifications and guide the packhouse on product specifications.

1. 8. Any other duties may be assigned from time to time by the immediate supervisor, manager, or senior management