2 replies to this topic

[wuggy]

Looking for sample org charts to understand the reporting relationships for QA and R&D/Food development. Who do they report to? Is R&D separate  from QA  ?

 

Would love a sample chart 

[jfrey123]

I don't have a current example chart, but it absolutely depends on your company's culture and processes.  At one of our plants that does meat processing for appetizers, new R&D starts with the sales folks based on what our customers might want us to start producing.  They'll work out some details about size of the packaging, ingredients, etc., and once a prototype is agreed upon in the test kitchen, they'll loop in QA and Procurement to do a HACCP review and start figuring out if we can mass produce it using existing suppliers.  So R&D doesn't have to be solely under one operation, but you should have a process that clearly points out all the steps your company goes through and whom is responsible for each step.

[Brothbro]

Yes it will 100% depend on your process and the size of your company. In larger companies I've worked for R&D was a separate department from QA. Smaller outfits tend to put R&D either with QA or on the owner's shoulders, because smaller owners often started the company with some technical expertise in their product.

 

R&D's relationship with QA should be close enough for RD to understand how new ingredients/processes will impact food quality/safety. Before formalizing a new process/ingredient there needs to be a step which involves QA oversight. So RD may not directly report to QA in most cases, but they need to understand that the QA department's knowledge on food safety/compliance will absolutely steer the development of some items. This can be reflected on an organization chart, but can also be reflected in the new product development process itself.