Quality Control Lead

Quality Lead – Food Manufacturing

We're seeking a hands-on Quality Lead to champion food safety, product quality, and continuous improvement in our manufacturing operation. In this role, you'll lead daily quality activities, mentor Quality Control Technicians, and help drive compliance with regulatory and customer requirements. This is an excellent opportunity for a quality professional ready to take on greater leadership responsibility and make a visible impact on plant performance.

Key Responsibilities

Quality & Food Safety Leadership

• Lead daily quality assurance and food safety activities across the facility.
• Serve as the primary resource and escalation point for QC Technicians.
• Ensure compliance with HACCP, GMP, sanitation, allergen, and regulatory requirements.
• Promote a culture of quality, accountability, and continuous improvement.

Team Leadership & Development

• Train, coach, and mentor Quality Control Technicians.
• Support employee development through ongoing feedback and guidance.
• Drive consistent execution of quality standards across all shifts.

Quality Systems & Compliance

• Oversee product, ingredient, packaging, environmental, and allergen monitoring programs.
• Investigate quality issues, identify root causes, and implement corrective actions.
• Maintain accurate quality records and documentation.
• Develop and improve SOPs, work instructions, and quality procedures.
• Support internal audits, customer audits, and regulatory inspections.

Continuous Improvement

• Track and report key quality and food safety metrics.
• Identify opportunities to improve product quality, efficiency, and compliance.
• Partner with cross-functional teams to implement sustainable process improvements.

Qualifications

Required

• 3+ years of Quality Assurance, Food Safety, or Quality experience in food manufacturing.
• Experience leading, mentoring, or serving as a key resource for quality team members.
• Strong knowledge of HACCP, GMPs, FDA/USDA regulations, and food safety systems.
• Experience with inspections, environmental monitoring, allergen control, and quality documentation.
• Strong communication, leadership, organizational, and problem-solving skills.

Preferred

• SQF Practitioner certification or internal auditing experience.
• Experience supporting customer audits and FDA/USDA inspections.
• Frozen food manufacturing experience.
• Bilingual English/Spanish.
• Experience analyzing and reporting quality performance metrics.

Why Join Us?

Join a growing organization where you'll have the opportunity to lead quality initiatives, develop team members, and help strengthen food safety and compliance programs. Your expertise will directly impact product quality, operational excellence, and customer satisfaction.

Job Type & Location

This is a Contract to Hire position based out of Woodridge, IL.

Pay and Benefits

The pay range for this position is $27.00 - $32.00/hr. Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific elections, plan, or program terms. If eligible, the benefits available for this temporary role may include the following: • Medical, dental & vision • Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital • 401(k) Retirement Plan – Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions available • Life Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for the employee and dependents) • Short and long-term disability • Health Spending Account (HSA) • Transportation benefits • Employee Assistance Program • Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation or Sick Leave)

Workplace Type

This is a fully onsite position in Woodridge, IL.

Application Deadline

This position is anticipated to close on Jul 21, 2026.

About Actalent

Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services and talent solutions. We help visionary companies advance their engineering and science initiatives through access to specialized experts who drive scale, innovation and speed to market. With a network of almost 20,000 consultants and 5,000 clients across the U.S., Canada, Asia and Europe, Actalent serves many of the Fortune 500. We are proud to be an Engineering News-Record (ENR) Top 500 Design Firm for our engineering design services and a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing® winner for both client and talent service.

The company is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all applications without regard to race, sex, age, color, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any characteristic protected by law.

If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, such as the modification or adjustment of the job application process or interviewing process due to a disability, please email View email address on click.appcast.io for other accommodation options.

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance: Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, for all positions located in the city and county of San Francisco, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Massachusetts Lie Detector: It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI): We may use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support parts of our hiring process, including sourcing, screening, and evaluating candidates. AI helps assess applications and qualifications, but final decisions are made by our hiring team. By applying, you acknowledge and agree that your application may be reviewed using AI tools.