Technical Manager – Food Safety & Supplier Assurance

Technical Manager – Food Safety & Supplier Assurance 
£52,500 to £62,500 plus excellent benefits including company car (Work Level 5) 
Field-based - in this role you’ll work in a hybrid way splitting your time between home and coming into the office 1 to 2 days a week, with UK travel to supplier sites  

We’re looking for a Technical Manager to join Co-op’s Technical Services team, helping us build and embed simple, effective ways of working across our local supplier base. You’ll play a key role in managing risk, supporting suppliers and making sure the products we sell are safe, legal and high quality.

Why this role matters

Co op has a legal responsibility for every product we sell, whether it’s own brand or branded. This becomes more complex with locally sourced products, where smaller suppliers can face challenges around resources, infrastructure and technical know-how. As we continue to work with a focused group of around 40 local suppliers, it’s essential we’ve got strong systems in place to manage risk and maintain high standards. And that’s where you’ll come in. This role helps make sure our suppliers are capable, compliant and supported, protecting our customers and our brand.

What you’ll do

• Take a lead role in shaping supplier assurance and technical governance, making sure there are robust, consistent standards across your area.
• Build and embed clear, practical processes for supplier assurance, risk identification and escalation, including managing supplier documentation
• Keep suppliers up to date with changes in legislation and support them to meet UK food safety and labelling requirements
• Own supplier performance through key targets and data insights, tracking complaints and trends to drive continuous improvement and inform decision-making
• Handle incidents, withdrawals and recalls quickly taking a lead role in decision-making and escalation
• Work closely with suppliers to solve problems, while influencing and challenging where needed to improve standards and compliance
• Create and maintain a clear view of risk across all local suppliers, supporting better decision making
• Manage and support 1–2 colleagues
• Visit suppliers across the UK to build relationships and tackle issues first-hand

What you’ll bring

We’re committed to making our roles as accessible as possible, so we only ask for the minimum criteria. To thrive here, you’ll need to bring:

• A background in food tech (or similar experience in retail or manufacturing)
• An understanding of how things work in food retail and supply chains
• A HACCP Level 3 qualification (or higher)
• The confidence to manage risk and deal with issues as they come up
• Great relationship building skills, with both internal colleagues and external partners
• Organisational skills: you’re comfortable juggling different priorities
• The ability to work collaboratively and get stuck into tasks
• Experience of making risk-based decisions and taking accountability for technical outcomes

Why Co-op?

At Co-op, we’re owned by our members. And because we’re owned by you, we can do right by you. So when you join us, you’re not just taking a job, you’re joining a movement. We’re an organisation that puts people and communities first, and we’re powered by purpose. We want this to be a place where you can thrive, so you’ll also receive:

• An annual bonus (based on personal and business performance)
• 28 days holiday (rising to 32 with service) plus bank holidays 
• A pension with up to 10% employer contributions 
• Private healthcare
• Access to a subsidised onsite gym (at our Manchester HQ) 
• 30% discount on Co-op products and 10% off other brands 
• Stream – early access to a percentage of your pay as you earn it 
• Virtual healthcare including GP appointments, mental health support, nutrition and fitness advice 
• 24/7 colleague support service 
• Training and support for your development and career progression
• Cycle-to-work scheme

A place you’ll belong

We’re building diverse and inclusive teams that reflect the communities we serve. We welcome applications from everyone and are committed to creating a workplace where colleagues can feel like they belong, supported by our inclusive policies and the ways we work.

We’re proud to be part of the Disability Confident scheme and offer interviews to disabled candidates who meet the minimum criteria for a job. If you need any adjustments during the recruitment process, we’ll support you.

Learn more about our recruitment process at jobs.coop.co.uk/apply-process and our inclusion commitments at jobs.coop.co.uk/diversity-inclusion.