Job Description

Regional Food Safety & Quality Assurance Manager

The Regional Food Safety & Quality Assurance (FSQA) Manager for QDOBA is responsible for advancing food safety and product quality across a designated regional footprint, with a focused effort on improving the bottom 25% of restaurant performers. This role delivers targeted support through audits, coaching, and strategic interventions to reduce operational risk and ensure regulatory compliance. Additionally, the FSQA Manager routinely visits key suppliers to validate product integrity and food safety practices at the source, ensuring alignment across the supply chain and restaurant operations to protect the guest experience and brand reputation.

Key Duties/Responsibilities

Restaurant Operations FSQA (75%)

• Partner with QDOBA's third-party food safety vendor (NSF) by conducting targeted food safety audits and follow-up visits at priority-risk locations (bottom 25%) based on audit and health department scores, complaint history, and incident data.
• Coach restaurant teams and field leaders on immediate corrective actions and long-term preventive solutions.
• Identify root causes of underperformance and collaborate with operations to deliver tailored support plans.
• Monitor progress over time and drive improvement metrics in partnership with regional and district leadership.
• Deliver on-site food safety training, including HACCP principles, personal hygiene, allergen control, temperature logs, and cleaning protocols.
• Assist with ServSafe certification and renewal as needed for restaurant leaders and teams.
• Track and follow up on corrective actions and provide coaching to resolve recurring issues.
• Serve as FSQA liaison for regional health department inspections and manage resolution of violations.
• Support implementation of FSQA initiatives such as digital audit tools, sanitation improvements, or brand standards upgrades at underperforming locations.

Supply Chain FSQA (15%)

• Visit QDOBA's priority, new, and problematic suppliers on a scheduled basis throughout the calendar year, or as needed, to evaluate adherence to food safety, sanitation, traceability, and product specifications.
• Partner with Sourcing and D&L teams to monitor quality and food safety compliance of suppliers and distributors.
• Investigate quality incidents flagged via ArrowStream and support resolution, documentation, and follow-up.
• Assist in onboarding new suppliers by evaluating food safety programs, conducting initial assessments, or coordinating with FSQA leadership for approval.
• Provide feedback to Supply Chain and FSQA leadership on supplier performance and risk levels.

Reporting & Continuous Improvement (5%)

• Maintain comprehensive records of audit outcomes, supplier assessments, and corrective actions taken.
• Analyze food safety trends across bottom-quartile stores to identify systemic issues and share best practices.
• Assist in the rollout of new policies, digital audit tools, and food safety initiatives across the region.

Incident Response & CAPA (5%)

• Serve as a regional escalation point for food safety incidents, including contamination, recalls, guest complaints, and health department citations.
• Lead or support root cause investigations and ensure timely execution of corrective and preventive action (CAPA) plans.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams including Legal, Operations, and Supply Chain on incident resolution.

Qualifications

Education - bachelor's degree in food science, Public Health, Microbiology, or related field preferred.

Experience - 5+ years of experience in food safety, QA, or restaurant operations in a multi-unit environment.

Skills/Knowledge/Abilities Strong understanding of FDA Food Code, sanitation practices, supplier verification, and digital audit systems (e.g., iAuditor, ArrowStream). Excellent communication, coaching, and problem-solving skills.

Physical Requirements - Ability to travel 5075% within assigned regions. Must be able to stand, walk, and conduct site audits in kitchen and manufacturing environments.

Reasonable Accommodation: Qdoba and its affiliates will make reasonable accommodations to allow a qualified individual with a disability to enjoy equal employment opportunities and to perform the essential functions of the job. This position description should be applied accordingly.

Benefits

• Medical, Dental, Vision, & 401k
• PTO (including vacation and sick)
• Tuition reimbursement

Pay Range: $93,000-$100,000

QDOBA takes pride in carefully selecting talented people and mixing them together to discover amazing flavors. We value the diversity that all our employees bring to the table and the new flavors they bring to our team. Employment decisions and rewards recognize job accountabilities, business needs, and performance merit without regard to age, gender, race, religious affiliation, Veteran status, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, or any other protected classification recognized by applicable federal, state, or local law.

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