HARI THAKUR

**** ******* **** ****** ■ Winston Salem, NC 27106 ■ 336-***-**** ■ acokx3@r.postjobfree.com

CAREER OBJECTIVE

Seeking a challenging position as a Quality Assurance Manager with a growing company that

offers professional growth while being resourceful, innovative and flexible.

EDUCATION

Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science, May 2003

High Point University, High Point, NC

EMPLOYMENT

Director of Quality Assurance, July, 2014 – Present

Mizkan Americas, Inc., Deming, NM

• Responsible for Food Quality, Safety and Legality

• Leading the effort to obtain and maintain the highest level of BRC Certification

• Involved on formulating, directing, and participating in the development and

implementation of goals, objectives, policies, and procedures for the quality assurance

department.

• Managing internal and external auditing of quality systems.

• Overseeing the resolution of non-conforming areas.

• Auditing company policies, procedures, and systems that affect product quality to assure

compliance with the company’s quality system and good manufacturing processes.

Prepare documents and reports.

• Working with production personnel in an advisory role to assist them with quality issues

within their departments.

• Troubleshooting and resolving product quality problems by researching problems,

analyzing data, and developing solutions to problems.

• Overseeing analytical work done at each step of the production process to assure that

quality control standards are maintained.

• Helping to develop lab and plant specifications for each product.

• Providing technical support to customers and assist in the resolution of problems.

• Reviewing and approving the purchase of lab supplies and equipment.

• Ensuring completion of preventative maintenance and repairs of laboratory

instrumentation.

• Supervising employees engaged in quality assurance activities.

• Involved in Hire, train, monitor, and assist employees.

• Enforcing company policies, establish performance standards, and evaluate employee

status.

• Maintaining and managing the FDA SSOP programs and review daily documentation

generated to assure regulatory and specification compliance.

• Overseeing pest control programs. Ensuring compliance with HACCP, process and

quality SOPs, and adherence to GMP standards.

• Interfacing with third party auditors, Kosher Council, and county, state, and federal

agencies as pertains to audits, GMP, HACCP, regulatory, quality, and food safety issues.

• Providing quality training to all employees

Microbiologist, January, 2014 – July 2014

P&G / TEVA Pharmaceutical, Greensboro, NC

• Responsible to ensure that all assigned testing is completed in a cGMP compliant manner

per the required timing: Raw Materials, Bulk Chemicals, Finished Product, Stability,

Utilities - Monitoring

• Responsible for ensuring the Micro Lab is maintained per the cGMP’s and meets all

applicable global and national laws and regulations

• Performing calibration, maintenance and cleaning of lab equipment per the schedule:

water baths, autoclave, refrigerators, incubators, electronic balances, and Omnispense.

• Maintaining accurate, detailed records of work performed using various data collection

systems

• Responsible for the preparation and quality control testing of biological media

• Assist with data audits of standards, reagents, and other analytical instrumentation

• Complete reference standard, sensory and other project work as assigned

Quality Assurance Manager / Technical Services Manager, June 2011 – October 2013

McEntire Produce, Inc., Columbia, SC

• Wrote “customer ready” standard operating procedures and “customer ready” finished

product specifications

• Worked with the Production and Sales teams to prepare and ship product samples

• Worked with Production to create or duplicate new product items

• Detailed review and development of all finished product HACCP plans

• Participated and supported customer/ regulatory agency audits

• Audited the production lines and machines in a continuous basis which reduces scrap by

7% for high profit commodities in a first 30 days

• Continuously supporting of Food Safety, Quality Product and GMP adherence

Interim Director of Food Safety & Sanitation, April 2012 – October 2012

McEntire Produce, Inc., Columbia, SC

• Managed day to day activities of Food Safety, Sanitation, and Housekeeping

• Initiated and completed the deal to have in house Micro Lab to get testing via

BioMerieux/Tempo which improved company’s bottom line by $100,000 per year; hence,

this is helping us to tackle bacteriological area in a timely manner

• In house Micro Lab helped us get a better, improved and on time results of our products

by 100% of the time. This helped us maintenance team to have preventive maintenance

done in a timely manner without depending on third party results

• Initiated and completed the deal to switch over the company’s chemical vendor with

better performance chemical which improved company’s bottom line by $25,000 per year

and achieved better product shelf-life

• Switching sanitation chemicals also helped us improve our Adenosine triphosphate (ATP)

testing on production equipment by 25%

• Initiated and help completed the deal to bring sanitation in-house from contracted team

which helped company’s bottom line by $200,000 per year

• In house sanitation team helped the company to have more control over sanitation

activities and employees which helped productivity by 15% as this deal increase the

startup time significantly

• Reorganized the food safety, sanitation and housekeeping personnel working schedule to

cut overtime by 15% that also improved employees work efficiency and housekeeping

budget drastically

• Ordered all supplies for Food Safety, Sanitation, and Housekeeping

• Managed Pest Control Program

• Managed budget for Food Safety, Sanitation, and Housekeeping

• Managed hiring, firing and deployment of employees for the right place based on

individual’s skill set

Quality Assurance Laboratory Technician II, November 2009 – May 2011

Procter & Gamble Contractor (XLC Services), Greensboro, NC

• Micro Laboratory

• Performed calibration, maintenance and cleaning of lab equipment including: water

baths, autoclave, refrigerators, incubators, electronic balances, and Omnispense.

• Responsible for the preparation and quality control testing of biological media.

• Skilled in working with live cultures in a BSL 2 rated lab.

• Analytical Laboratory

• Quality testing bulk chemicals and Pepto Bismol including: Assay, Bismuth ID,

Salicylate ID, Arsenic, Heavy Metals, Chloride, Sulfate, Invert Sugar and Residue on

Ignition.

• Using tool equipment including: Karl Fisher, Refractive index Machine, Specific

Rotation Machine, Specific Gravity Machine, and Spectrum Identification Machine.

Quality Assurance Technician, September 2003 – July 2009

Hunter Farms Dairy, High Point, NC

• 6+ years of extensive microbiology experience in Dairy Industries

• Performed quality testing for milk and milk products, water, orange juice, ice cream

ingredients, sherbet, jugs, and the like.

• Administered various tests such as butter fat, total solids, SPC, VRBA, PI, yeast & mold,

chlorine, and weight & volume.

• Worked as an assistant for Quality Assurance Manager during yearly Randolph and Army

Audit

• Used tool equipment that included MilkoScan FT120, Gerber, CEM-Smart, Rosa Reader,

NovaLum, Refractometer, L/W Stain for milk slide, Microscope, and Cryoscope.

• In addition, wrote a computer program to print a daily product code dates in Java.

Electrical Foreman, September 1994 – March 1998

Dairy Development Corporation – BMSS, Biratnagar, Nepal

• Performed Statistical Process Control (SPC) for milk collection

• Supervised five lab technicians

• Responsible for the operation, maintenance, and repair of milk product equipment.

• Performed quality testing for skimmed powder milk

• Administered various tests such as moisture, butter fat, total solids, SPC, VRBA, yeast &

mold, and weight.

• Maintained and operated equipment such as the diesel engine steam boiler, and

functioned in areas such as the Waste Water Plant, Water Treatment Plant, Skimmed Milk

Powder Plant, and Power Supply System.

CERTIFICATIONS

• Investigation and Control of Microorganism in Foods and Food Processing Environments

– Microbac Laboratories, Inc.

• Applied Statistical Quality Control (SPC) Certificate – Northwest Analytical, Inc. (NWA)

• BRC Internal Auditor Certificate – Food Safety Net Services (FSNS)

• Six Sigma Quality Management Certification – (GTCC – Jamestown, NC)

• Food Safety Management – (NCSU – Raleigh, NC)

• HACCP Coordinator – (NCSU – Raleigh, NC)

• Maintenance Technology & Dairy Technology – Svendborg and Dalum Technical

College, Denmark

COMPUTER APPLICATIONS

• MS Office

• AX

• NAV

• SAP

• SharePoint

• JAVA & JavaScript

• C/C++

• Windows & Linux

HONORS & ACTIVITIES

• Phi Theta Kappa Scholarship

• National Dean's List Award

• Merit Awards

• National Collegiate Award

REFERENCES

• Available upon request!

Contact this candidate