Jim Kieffer

***** ****** ***** ** ********, FL **778 Cell: 727-***-**** ac7v2z@r.postjobfree.com

Self-Driven Quality Management Professional with Record of Achievement in Driving System Effectiveness and Client Satisfaction, Well Positioned for Role as Director of Quality

Process Improvement Regulatory Compliance Employee Engagement

Highly motivated quality management professional with consistent record of progression through roles of increasing responsibility. Subject matter expert in ISO 9001 and FDA compliance with proven strengths in driving achievement of corporate quality objectives. Known for achievements in earning high customer satisfaction ratings while increasing productivity. Trained in Gallup Q12 to boost employee engagement and productivity.

AREAS OF EXPERIENCE

Driving System Effectiveness & Efficiency

Project Management Professional (PMP)

Gallup Employee Engagement Q12 Program

Hoshin Kanri Strategic Planning

Sigma Logic Problem (Six Sigma)

Risk Management

FDA, ISO 9001, ISO13458 AS9100

QFD

Lean Techniques

5S, Error Proofing

FAI

HACCP

PROFESSIONAL HISTORY

Transitions Optical, Pinellas Park, FL 2001-2018

Quality Manager, 2006-2018

Direct development of corporate quality initiatives, including staffing, budget, and strategy for product quality in North America. Develop internal quality system to ensure consistency with appropriate international system standards, including FDA and ISO 9001 requirements. Oversee supplier management, finished product inspection, process auditing, incoming raw materials auditing, Training Department, New Product Introduction Team, QA Lab, document control, management of change, corrective action system, and Calibration Department. Drive testing uniformity across facilities via Global QA Lab Team. Built strong relationships with suppliers and clients to resolve issues and make improvements.

Achievements

Recognized within the organization as the quality system expert who can lead global initiatives. Examples of these initiatives include acting as the Project Manager to develop the Global Industrialization Process, Management of Change and CA program.

Acting as the Quality Project Manager, ensured delivery of product requirements for major product launches including our newest and most complex products in 2014 & 2015 by establishing necessary systems and controls.

Raised employee engagement by 15% by implementing Gallup’s Q12 Employee Engagement Program within the Quality Department. This is critical since our employees are the foundation to success.

Introduced Sharepoint tool to organize quality information resulting in “ease” of finding information

Developed 22 key quality systems with individual scorecards, owners, and process maps as SOP resulting in departmental efficiencies and key contribution to a 30% department size reduction.

Acting as Project Manager, redesigned corrective action to drive consistency and effectiveness contributing to an 80% reduction in customer complaints and increased customer satisfaction. New CA system was rolled out globally.

In 2014 organized a 1.5 year test to eliminate a QA Test that did not add value. This test has been in place for 20+ years. The elimination of the test has decreased the QA Lab testing cycle by 50%

Defined and led a new incoming traceability program to support problem solving and cost avoidance; program was key to resolving one of the largest quality issues in company’s history.

Developed & deployed a “sustaining” philosophy resulting in productivity improvements by minimizing “fire-fighting” leading to a stable-predictive work environment; presented in 2015 at ASQ meeting.

Earned the high customer satisfaction ratings amongst our facilities which is attributed primarily to developing strong customer relationships, responsiveness and providing a consistent quality product.

Acting as Project Manager, led team to develop organization’s first in-line audit program on finished goods inspection with two-month ROI, adopted by other manufacturing locations.

Facilitated the reduction of packaging errors from 2500 ppm to 20 ppm since 2006 by raising Operator awareness, error proofing, benchmarking, and guiding organization toward technology to achieve packaging errors reduction objectives.

Introduced trend analysis program to automatically monitor >160 key variables, resulting in decrease in significant internal losses.

QA Lab Supervisor, 2004-2005

Oversaw testing for R&D Team; managed nine employees. Established departmental goals; set and monitored budget. Ensured accurate product testing through employee training and equipment maintenance. Secured conformance of finished product to specifications. Collaborated with team to drive compliance with ISO 9001, FDA, and 14001 standards. Set global specifications.

Achievements

Drove/measured lab performance by establishing a mission statement and corresponding scorecard, resulting in a reduction of internal complaints to two in 2005.

Achieved targeted variation targets for measurement across testing equipment.

Increased employee engagement by clarifying expectations, facilitating communications through team and individual meetings, and providing tools to streamline processes.

Ensured achievement of quality, environmental, and safety expectations by developing self-audit program.

Boosted productivity, decreasing headcount, via improved employee engagement, automation, lean activities, and removal of non-value added tests.

Constructed statistical training course to enable Lab Technicians to monitor data trends.

Quality Control Engineer / Supplier Engineer, 2001-2004

Drove continuous improvements on incoming raw material quality through monthly conference calls, quarterly face-to-face meetings, and on-site management to resolve major quality issues. Developed effective reports to track incoming raw material characteristics. Identified variables to protect process, and implemented process controls. Contributed to validating new products and developing specifications via statistical analysis. Secured compliance with FDA requirements and ISO 9001 standards via internal audits. Employed 5S audits to enhance organization. Implemented error proofing and lean techniques to propel continuous improvements.

Achievements

Reduced incoming defectives from >6% to 2% by increasing checks and developing monthly supplier reports.

Built strong customer relationships through visits and telephone conferences.

Collaborated as member of New Product Introduction Team with responsibilities to analyze test data and establish specifications.

Florida Tile Industries, Lakeland, FL 1996-2001

Quality Control Manager, 1999-2001

Maximized quality by controlling variation of incoming raw materials, setting standard operating procedures, and monitoring strategic checkpoints. Managed manufacturing and quality of all glaze and ink colors. Controlled firing of all traditional products in tunnel kilns to maintain quality and consistency of texture and color. Oversaw budgets and management of Kiln, Glaze Preparation, and Quality Control Departments.

EDUCATION

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN MATERIAL SCIENCE & ENGINEERING WITH HONORS

UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA, Gainesville, FL

TRAINING

Sigma Logic (PPG’s version of Six Sigma), Lean, 5S, Crucial Conversations, Bringing Out the Best

Gallup’s Q-12 Employee Engagement Tool (http://www.gallup.com/consulting/52/Employee-Engagement.aspx)

Certified in HACCP

CERTIFICATIONS

ASQ Certified Quality Manager, ASQ Certified Quality Engineer, ABO Certified (American Board of Ophthalmology)

AFFILIATIONS

American Society for Quality, Pi Kappa Phi Fraternal Organization

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