Quality Systems Coordinator

Business Title:                                            Quality Systems Coordinator

Reports to:                                                 Quality Manager

Leadership Scope:                                      Individual Leader

Company Info:               With a heritage of nearly 120 years, we aren’t just a company; we are a brand of trust.  But more than anything, we are a collection of individuals who, together, give Grote Industries a decisive competitive advantage. At Grote, our shared vision is clear – to meet the needs of the customers we serve. We accomplish that mission every day by following a set of core values that makes us who we are.

                                    Innovation has been the hallmark of Grote Industries from the start. From durable, easy to see stop lights to the latest in LED lighting technology, Grote has been leading the way in advanced vehicle system solutions from early in the last century right up to today. With these innovations, Grote has helped millions of people throughout North America and the world benefit from the innovation and design excellence of Grote products.

Position Summary:        The Quality Systems Coordinator is responsible for maintaining and continually improving the Madison site's IATF 16949 quality management system (QMS). This role is the site's point of contact for IATF certification and customer-specific requirements. The Coordinator owns the internal and external audit programs, the Layered Process Audit (LPA) program, document and record control, and quality KPI reporting. Working with process owners, operations, engineering, and plant leadership, the Coordinator keeps the QMS audit-ready, makes sure audit findings and nonconformances are corrected effectively, and turns quality data into actions that improve customer satisfaction and process performance.

Position Duties:             - Promote and ensure compliance with all safety procedures and practices within the manufacturing environment.

                                     - Serve as the Madison site's primary coordinator for the IATF 16949 / ISO 9001 Quality Management System, maintaining certification, coordinating certification and surveillance audits, managing required documentation, and ensuring compliance with customer-specific requirements (CSRs).

                                    - Develop and manage the site's risk-based internal audit program, including QMS system, manufacturing process, and product audits across all shifts, while ensuring qualified auditors and required audit coverage.

                                    - Coordinate external and special-process audits and assessments, including certification body, customer, supplier, regulatory, and applicable AIAG CQI assessments, and ensure findings and corrective actions are addressed within required timelines.

                                    - Own the site's Layered Process Audit (LPA) program, including audit schedules, checklists, auditor training, completion tracking, escalation of findings, trend analysis, and reporting in accordance with customer and AIAG requirements.

                                    - Administer the site's document and record control system, ensuring quality manuals, procedures, work instructions, PFMEAs, control plans, forms, specifications, and other controlled documents remain current, approved, accessible, and properly retained.

                                    - Coordinate management review, risk and opportunity management, contingency planning, and change management, ensuring required actions, customer notifications, approvals, and follow-up activities are completed.

                                    - Establish, monitor, and report site quality objectives and KPIs, including customer/internal PPM, scrap, cost of poor quality, customer complaints, corrective action closure, audit performance, LPA completion, and supplier quality performance.

                                    - Administer the corrective action and continuous improvement process, facilitating 8D, root cause analysis, containment, effectiveness verification, customer complaint/warranty response, and incorporation of lessons learned into PFMEAs, control plans, work instructions, and LPAs.

                                    - Maintain QMS training and competency records and provide training on quality systems, customer-specific requirements, document control, internal auditing, LPAs, product safety, and quality awareness throughout the site.

Requirements:               The ideal candidate will have a bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Quality, Industrial Technology, Business, or a related field; an associate degree combined with equivalent automotive quality experience will also be considered. Candidates should have 2–4 years of Quality Management System (QMS) experience within an IATF 16949 automotive or heavy-truck Tier 1/Tier 2 manufacturing environment, along with IATF 16949 internal auditor certification or the ability to obtain certification within six months of hire. Working knowledge of AIAG Core Tools, including APQP, PPAP, AIAG-VDA FMEA, MSA, SPC, and Layered Process Audits (LPA), as well as experience with document control, audit management, corrective action, 8D, and root cause analysis is required. Proficiency in Microsoft Office, including Excel for KPI tracking and reporting, is also required. Preferred qualifications include knowledge of automotive customer-specific requirements and AIAG CQI special-process assessments, ISO 9001 and/or ISO 14001 experience, ASQ quality certifications, IATF second-party or lead auditor training, Six Sigma certification, and experience with electronic QMS/document control systems and data visualization tools such as Power BI.