Quality & Assurance Lead, Apparel, Accessories and Footwear

Position Overview Quality & Assurance Lead for Apparel, Footwear and Accessories in Italy is part of the Ralph Lauren Global Product  Integrity team.
Q&A Lead reports to the Head of Global Quality and is accountable for the Quality of RL Luxury products that are made in Italy and in other European countries and manages the Quality team of product experts that own inline, final inspections & pre-production samples at the factories.
Q&A Lead is ultimately accountable for ensuring the team and suppliers are literate in all corporate compliance, procedures and regulatory RL standards.
Actively involved in global seasonal meetings, product reviews and cross functional activities.
The ideal candidate for this position is a strong and proven team leader who will be deeply involved in root cause analysis, corrective action plans, and action calendars. Essential Duties & Responsibilities · Leading the team of quality inspectors in region for on-site inspections with weekly visits at the factories. · Responsible for scheduling inspections according to product complexity, delivery and supplier performance. · Reports monthly analysis and communicates progress on quality KP Is to suppliers and RL Leadership. · Implement QA driven procedures and quality standards. · Oversee the laboratory testing process on raw materials or finished products to ensure compliance to RL quality and regulatory standards. · Owns the factory quality audits across Europe to establish a high level of product quality assurance. · Extensively partner with Sourcing and Product Teams to ensure calendar needs and quality control activities are met. · Assess current supplier matrix and publish supplier score cards to internal RL business partners. · Partner with suppliers to have their own in-house inspectors according to the requirements of the Vendor Quality Program.
Training and continuous calibration of these inspectors is required. · Actively participate inseasonal risk assessment meetings for the product reviews; proactively detect and mitigate quality issues. · Manage QA Budget for travel and consulting services. Experience, Skills & Knowledge · Minimum of 10 years of experience with luxury product and successfully leading teams in Quality· Proven technical skills for apparel and footwear and accessories. · Fluent in English.
Both spoken and written. · Deep understanding of Quality management systems. · Critical thinking with an analytical mindset. · Strong communication skills. · Adaptability while leading a team through change. · Collaboration & coaching. · Primary location Casalecchio di Reno (BO) and Scandicci (FI). · Local and international travel is required.