Director of Sourcing, Quality Assurance, and Compliance – North America Sporting Goods

Position Overview:

Under the direction of the VP of Product the Director of Sourcing Quality Assurance (QA) and Compliance leads the global quality strategy for Johnson Health Techs (JHT) consumer products in the North America Sporting Goods (NASG) division. This role ensures that overseas manufacturing partners meet all regulatory requirements and safety standards for fitness equipment including ASTM and EN957 guidelines for product safety. The Director will oversee vendor production setup and quality processes to align with our design specifications ensuring products consistently meet JHTs quality standards.

This position requires significant leadership in managing crosscultural teams and coordinating with Product Development Sourcing and Engineering teams to drive vendor compliance product testing and effective engineering change management across the supply chain. The Director of Vendor QA & Compliance will serve as a key liaison between our headquarters and international manufacturing sites championing quality improvements and regulatory compliance at every stage of product development and production.

Responsibilities:

Regulatory Compliance: Ensure all manufacturing vendors comply with applicable regulatory and safety testing requirements for our products. Verify that products meet global safety standards (e.g. ASTM F2276 for fitness equipment safety and EU EN 957 series) and maintain proper certifications and test documentation for each market.

Vendor Quality Audits: Plan and conduct regular vendor audits and quality inspections to assess manufacturing processes adherence to ISO 9001 quality management systems and overall compliance. Implement corrective action plans and supplier corrective action requests (SCARs) for any nonconformances and follow up to verify effective resolution

Production Alignment: Oversee vendor production setup and process validation to ensure alignment with company design specifications and quality expectations. This includes supervising first article inspections pilot builds and production line validations to confirm vendors can manufacture products to our standards.

Product Testing Oversight: Manage the product testing program for all vendorproduced items ensuring that performance and safety tests are conducted (both inhouse and via thirdparty labs) according to JHT protocols and industry standards. Review test reports and certification results to confirm that products consistently meet or exceed quality and safety benchmarks.

Engineering Change Management: Oversee and manage the Engineering Change Order (ECO) process for any design or specification changes impacting vendorproduced components. Establish clear change management procedures and ensure thorough documentation of all proposed changes including technical specifications risk assessments and approvals.

o Involve crossfunctional teams (engineering production quality) in evaluating and approving changes to maintain product integrity and communicating those changes to overseas vendors with clear instructions and documentation control.

Documentation Control: Ensure rigorous documentation control for product designs specifications test plans and quality standards. Maintain an organized system for version control of drawings BOMs test protocols and supplier quality agreements. Guarantee that vendors always have the latest specifications and requirements and that any changes are recorded and disseminated promptly.

Quality Standards Enforcement: Implement JHTs quality standards across all supplier facilities. Work closely with procurement and sourcing teams to integrate quality requirements into vendor selection and agreements making quality an active part of the global sourcing process. Verify that each supplier is capable of meeting our companys quality benchmarks before and during production

Supplier Performance Monitoring: Develop and track supplier performance metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) related to product quality ontime delivery and compliance. Use supplier scorecards and data analytics to monitor trends drive continuous improvement with vendors and make informed decisions about supplier development or qualification status.

Team Leadership: Lead and mentor a team of quality assurance professionals including onsite QA inspectors document control specialists and test engineers many of whom are based overseas. Provide direction and support to ensure the team effectively executes quality inspections testing and process audits at vendor locations. Foster a culture of quality accountability and continuous improvement within the team.

CrossFunctional Collaboration: Collaborate closely with internal teams including Product Development R&D Engineering and Operations to address quality issues and preventative measures. Communicate vendor feedback and manufacturing insights to design teams to improve product designs for manufacturability and compliance. Partner with Product Safety Committee to stay uptodate on new standards or regulations and ensure proactive vendor adherence.

Continuous Improvement: Identify opportunities for improving product quality and supplier processes. Champion initiatives such as Six Sigma projects or Lean manufacturing improvements at vendor sites to reduce defects and enhance efficiency. Share best practices and training with vendors to elevate their quality control capabilities and align them with Johnsons expectations.

Other duties as assigned

Education:

Bachelors degree in Engineering (Mechanical Industrial or related field) or equivalent. A Masters degree or MBA is a plus.

Experience:

8 years of experience in quality assurance quality engineering or manufacturing engineering with at least 35 years in a leadership role managing supplier or vendor quality.

Proven experience in managing overseas manufacturing vendors or suppliers preferably in the consumer products or fitness equipment industry. Demonstrated ability to navigate crosscultural business environments and build effective working relationships with international teams.

Strong background in regulatory compliance and product safety standards applicable to consumer products. Familiarity with standards such as ASTM F2276 standards for fitness equipment European safety standard EN 957 and related compliance requirements (e.g. CE marking RoHS or applicable UL standards for electrical components).

Handson experience with quality management systems and frameworks. Working knowledge of ISO quality management principles and audit processes; experience helping suppliers achieve or maintain ISO certification is highly desirable.

Experience overseeing product testing and certification programs able to interpret test results and certification reports and guide teams through failure analysis and corrective action if products do not meet requirements.

Direct experience with Engineering Change Management and documentation control in a manufacturing setting. Familiar with processes for Engineering Change Requests (ECRs) / Engineering Change Orders (ECOs) and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) systems to control revisions of product documentation.

Prior success in leading quality improvement initiatives such as Six Sigma or Lean projects. Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt certification ASQ Certified Quality Engineer (CQE) or Certified Quality Auditor (CQA) credentials are a plus.

Demonstrated track record of implementing supplier quality programs conducting supplier audits and improving supplier performance. Able to travel internationally to supplier sites and lead onsite quality audits and training.

Other Requirements:

Ability to travel internationally up to 20% of the time

Requires valid drivers license with an acceptable driving record.

Benefits:

We offer an excellent compensation package and teamoriented work environment with growth opportunities. Some of our outstanding benefits include:

Health & Dental Insurance

Company paid Life Insurance

401(k)

Paid Time Off benefits

Product discounts

Wellness programs