Quality, Food Safety & Regulatory Recruiters
Manufacturing Headhunters recruits manufacturing professionals nationwide.
This is what we do all day: recruit manufacturing professionals.
No postings. No stacks of resumes. No chasing. You interview a short list.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
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Quality, food safety and regulatory hiring is shaped by the standard the plant answers to. A quality manager at an automotive supplier, a device maker and a bakery all share a title and almost nothing else. This family spans the VP of quality or chief quality officer, director of quality, quality and QA managers, QC and QC lab managers, quality engineers, supplier, customer and design quality engineers, quality systems staff, validation and CQV, auditors, CAPA, document control, metrology, microbiology, sterility assurance, regulatory affairs and compliance, and FSQA managers, directors and SQF practitioners. No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
- No upfront fee
- Pay only if you hire
- Manufacturing only
- We reach people who aren't on job boards
- Replacement guarantee on standard searches
What should you know about positions we recruit in Quality, Food Safety & Regulatory?
VP of Quality / Chief Quality OfficerCheck Enterprise QMS. Director of QualityCheck Multiple sites. Quality ManagerCheck Owned the standard the plant runs (ISO 9001, IATF 16949, AS9100, ISO 13485, SQF or BRCGS) and the audit outcomes. QC ManagerCheck Lab methods and LIMS.
- VP of Quality / Chief Quality OfficerCheck Enterprise QMS.
- Director of QualityCheck Multiple sites.
- Quality ManagerCheck Owned the standard the plant runs (ISO 9001, IATF 16949, AS9100, ISO 13485, SQF or BRCGS) and the audit outcomes.
- QC ManagerCheck Lab methods and LIMS.
- Quality EngineerCheck AIAG core tools (APQP, PPAP, FMEA, MSA, SPC) or design controls for medical.
- Supplier Quality EngineerCheck PPAP approvals.
- Supplier Quality ManagerCheck Supplier base size.
- Customer Quality EngineerCheck OEM portals and scorecards.
- Design Quality EngineerCheck Design controls (21 CFR 820 / ISO 13485).
- Quality Systems ManagerCheck Certification audits.
- Validation EngineerCheck IQ/OQ/PQ.
- Regulatory Affairs ManagerCheck 510(k)/PMA or drug submissions.
- FSQA ManagerCheck PCQI and HACCP certificates.
- FSQA DirectorCheck Multi-plant programs.
- Food Safety Coordinator / SQF PractitionerCheck Maintains the food safety plan.
- Sterility Assurance ManagerCheck EO, gamma or steam sterilization validation (ISO 11135, 11137).
- QA ManagerCheck We test regulatory knowledge, audit history and team leadership..
- QC Lab ManagerOwns analytical laboratory workloads and the reliability of reported results.
- Senior Quality EngineerOwns difficult failure investigations and quality engineering decisions.
- Quality Engineering ManagerOwns quality engineers and the technical priorities behind corrective action.
- Quality Systems Engineer / SpecialistOwns QMS procedures and evidence that documents match actual plant work.
- Validation / CQV ManagerOwns qualification and validation priorities across equipment and process changes.
- Quality Auditor / Lead AuditorOwns audit planning and evidence-based findings against an applicable standard.
- CAPA ManagerOwns corrective-action decisions and evidence that failures do not recur.
- Document Control ManagerOwns controlled documents and records through revision and distribution.
- Metrology / Calibration ManagerOwns measurement capability and calibration systems supporting production decisions.
- QC Microbiology ManagerOwns microbiology laboratory work and interpretation of contamination evidence.
- Regulatory Compliance ManagerOwns manufacturing compliance obligations and the evidence behind inspection readiness.
- Lead Quality EngineerOwns technical direction of quality investigations and engineering decisions.
- Quality SupervisorOwns daily quality-team work and practical inspection or release coverage.
Combined quality, food safety & regulatory titles share a page where the work is the same; each link opens the relevant hiring brief.
What should you know about matching the responsibility, not only the title?
The right quality manager has owned the standard your plant runs, whether ISO 9001, IATF 16949, AS9100, ISO 13485, SQF or BRCGS, and has the audit outcomes to show for it. Directors add multiple sites, certification history and reductions in cost of poor quality.
Quality leadership and plant quality managers
The right quality manager has owned the standard your plant runs, whether ISO 9001, IATF 16949, AS9100, ISO 13485, SQF or BRCGS, and has the audit outcomes to show for it. Directors add multiple sites, certification history and reductions in cost of poor quality. Executives add regulator or OEM escalations.
Quality engineers across the supply chain
Quality engineers prove themselves with AIAG core tools, APQP, PPAP, FMEA, MSA and SPC, or with design controls in medical. Supplier quality engineers run audits and PPAP approvals and travel. Customer quality engineers handle portals, scorecards, 8D responses and controlled shipping. Design quality engineers carry ISO 14971 and verification and validation.
Quality systems, auditing and documentation
A quality systems manager runs certification audits, the internal audit program, document control and CAPA inside an eQMS. We distinguish people who prepared for an audit from those who owned a system through a recertification, and we look at CQA and lead auditor credentials.
Laboratories, validation and sterility
QC lab managers bring methods, LIMS and OOS investigations in pharma, or microbiology in food. Validation engineers run IQ, OQ and PQ and process, cleaning and computer system validation with 21 CFR Part 11. Sterility assurance is a narrow specialty in aseptic and device manufacturing.
Regulatory affairs and food safety
Regulatory managers bring submissions such as 510(k), PMA or drug filings and EU MDR. FSQA managers carry PCQI and HACCP certificates, SQF practitioner status and GFSI audit results, matched to USDA or FDA exposure. Directors have handled a recall or a regulatory crisis and retailer audits.
Ready to start? Tell us the seat.
Where we find this experience?
Quality talent sits in competitor plants operating under the same standard. Plant quality managers at multi-site companies become directors, supplier quality leads at OEMs become managers, and plants with recent certifications often have strong quality systems people. Registrar auditors are another useful pool, as are professional quality society chapters.
Device and pharmaceutical sites, biotech and contract manufacturers, and validation consultancies supply validation and regulatory talent. Food plants, co-manufacturers and the food protection community supply FSQA leaders. Automotive and aerospace suppliers feed customer and supplier quality, and contract laboratories feed QC.
Quality leaders carry the history of their plants, including findings and customer holds. We treat that history carefully. A candidate who has lived through a withdrawn certificate or a recall may be exactly the person to hire, if the lesson was learned, so we ask for the story and for people who can confirm how the candidate behaved under pressure.
How this manufacturing search runs?
We start by learning which standard governs the plant, how the last audit went and what the customer says about you. If there is an open finding or a customer escalation, we want to know before any candidate does, because the right person for a rebuild is not the right person for maintenance.
Credentials are verified, and we confirm which audits the candidate personally led or answered. We prepare candidates for a technical conversation with your leadership and for the unglamorous questions about data integrity and ethics. Regulated roles get extra attention to any history that could matter to an auditor.
For regulated roles, we also ask about independence. Quality has to be able to say no to production and to the owner. We explore how candidates handled disagreement with a plant manager, a shipment pressed out the door, or an auditor's finding they thought was wrong, and we describe your culture honestly so the match runs both ways.
Ready to start? Tell us the seat.
What should you know about questions about Quality, Food Safety & Regulatory searches?
How do you charge for quality searches?
A percentage of first-year base salary, agreed in writing before we start. No upfront fee.
Do we pay only on a hire?
Yes: If no candidate we present is hired, you owe nothing.
Can we keep an open audit finding confidential?
Yes: We describe the situation to candidates only after they are qualified and have agreed to confidentiality.
Do you contact quality professionals who are not looking?
Yes: The strongest ones are employed and often protected by their current audits, so we approach them directly.
How do you handle location and relocation?
Regulatory and food roles are usually on site. We confirm commute or relocation willingness before interviews.
Is a quality engineer from another industry qualified?
Sometimes: The core tools carry over, but a move from automotive to medical or food needs specific regulatory knowledge, and we say when it is missing.
What replacement guarantee applies?
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
What should you know about start your Quality, Food Safety & Regulatory search?
Ready to start? Tell us the seat.
What should you know about related role families?
- Executive & General Management
- Plant & Production Management
- Manufacturing, Process & Industrial Engineering
- Automation, Controls & Electrical
- Product Design, R&D & Program Management
- Maintenance, Reliability & Facilities
- EHS & Sustainability
- Continuous Improvement & Operational Excellence
- Supply Chain, Procurement & Planning
- Logistics, Distribution & Warehouse
- Technical Sales, Applications & Field Service
- Manufacturing Finance & Accounting
- Machining & Toolroom
- Welding, Fabrication & Metal Finishing
- Industrial Maintenance & Plant Technicians
- Production Operators, Setup & Line Leads
- Assembly, Electronics & Composites
- Process Operators & Process Technicians
- Quality Inspection, Metrology & Lab Technicians
- Packaging Line & Sanitation Technicians
- Warehouse, Materials & Shipping
What should you know about hiring guidance for this work?
What should you know about open jobs?
Ready to start? Tell us the seat.
The Six-Step Search
What do you get before interviewing?
1. Search CalibrationYou get a hiring brief that separates the work, reporting authority and non-negotiable requirements. We agree what would make a candidate worth an interview before contacting anyone. 2. Market MappingYou get a defined search pool, not a reposted vacancy.
1. Search Calibration
You get a hiring brief that separates the work, reporting authority and non-negotiable requirements. We agree what would make a candidate worth an interview before contacting anyone.
2. Market Mapping
You get a defined search pool, not a reposted vacancy. We identify the kinds of plants and teams where people already handle comparable equipment, processes and operating demands.
3. Professional Contact Intelligence
You get a way to reach working people directly. We check professional contact routes and approach candidates discreetly, without making your plant or vacancy public unless you approve.
4. Persistent Personalized Outreach
You get individual conversations about the actual opening. We explain the work, shift and location, ask whether a move makes sense, and follow up without pretending every person is interested.
5. Live Candidate Qualification
You get evidence of fit before spending interview time. We talk through decisions, equipment, results and reasons for moving, then distinguish direct experience from skills that would need support.
6. Candidate Intelligence and Process Support
You get a focused short list with the information behind it. We explain motivation, practical constraints and concerns, support interviews, and keep offer decisions with your hiring team.
What should we discuss first?
What should we settle first about Quality, Food Safety & Regulatory?
Quality, food safety and regulatory hiring is shaped by the standard the plant answers to. A quality manager at an automotive supplier, a device maker and a bakery all share a title and almost nothing else. This family spans the VP of quality or chief quality officer, director of quality, quality and QA managers, QC and QC lab managers, quality engineers, supplier, customer and design quality engineers, quality systems staff, validation and CQV, auditors, CAPA, document control, metrology, microbiology, sterility assurance, regulatory affairs and compliance, and FSQA managers, directors and SQF practitioners.
Ready to start? Tell us the seat.
What should you know before sending quality, food safety & regulatory?
When do you pay a recruiting fee?
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. The signed recruiting agreement sets the fee basis and payment terms. Sending an opening does not itself commit you to a fee or an exclusive arrangement.
How long does it take to see a short list?
We discuss the search conditions before describing a realistic next step. Shift, location, equipment match and the candidate's reasons for moving all matter. We do not promise a shortlist date before understanding the opening.
How do you handle counteroffers?
We ask what is driving the move before introducing a candidate. We discuss what might change if the current employer offers more money or a different job. Your team still decides whether that person's motivation fits the opening.
What replacement terms apply?
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
What do you not do?
We do not bill hourly for a standard permanent search, repost a job-board ad as a search, or supply high-volume general labor. Retainers are not the default. Any different arrangement must be agreed in writing.
Read the contingency fee terms · Review Quality, Food Safety & Regulatory
What did the last empty seat cost you?
How long did your last search take? How much did the empty seat cost while you waited?
Put your own cover costs and lost production into the Cost-of-Vacancy calculator. It uses your numbers, not a claim about what another plant loses.