Head of Quality & Technical - Food Manufacturing

Food safety and quality are central to how we operate. We are looking for an experienced Quality Assurance & Technical Manager to lead the site-wide function at our Arndell Park manufacturing facility.

Picasso Foods Australia is an Australian food manufacturer producing a broad portfolio of chilled and frozen pizzas, bases, ready meals and food for sharing. From our Western Sydney kitchen, we supply families and leading retailers across Australia.

Reporting to the Managing Director and forming part of the Site Leadership Team, you will lead our Quality and Technical team and take ownership of food safety, product quality and regulatory and customer compliance across the site. This is a visible, practical role for someone who is comfortable setting direction, developing people and working directly with production teams on the factory floor.

Key responsibilities

• Lead the site team across all areas of food safety and quality management, ensuring ongoing compliance with regulatory requirements, certification and customer standards, and internal policies.

• Coordinate, implement, maintain and continually improve the site Food Safety and Quality Management System.

• Plan and manage the preparation, organisation, delivery and close-out of regulatory, customer, GFSI-recognised certification and other third-party audits.

• Lead, mentor and develop the Quality and Technical team, establishing clear priorities, accountabilities and performance expectations.

• Provide leadership on new systems, equipment, products and site processes that may affect food safety, legality or quality performance.

• Partner closely with Operations, Maintenance, Hygiene, Warehouse, Procurement and New Product Development to integrate quality standards throughout the product lifecycle.

• Act as the primary technical and quality point of contact for customers, suppliers, regulatory authorities, certification bodies and third-party inspectors.

• Direct root cause investigations, identify recurring trends and ensure effective corrective and preventive actions are implemented and sustained.

• Provide technical support for new product development, factory trials, customer visits and new business opportunities.

• Monitor performance, report on key food safety and quality measures, and ensure audit findings and improvement actions are closed within agreed timeframes.

• Promote a culture of quality, accountability and right-first-time thinking, contributing to the continuous improve