Posted on June 28, 2012

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Quality Assurance Associate

The Rainforest Alliance is an international nonprofit organization that works to conserve biodiversity and ensure sustainable livelihoods by transforming land-use practices, business practices and consumer behavior. Based in New York City, with offices throughout the United States and worldwide, the Rainforest Alliance works with people whose livelihoods depend on the land, helping them transform the way they grow food, harvest wood and host travelers.

RA-Cert, a division of the Rainforest Alliance, supports the organization’s mission by delivering sustainability auditing, verification, validation and certification services based on the best available global standards. RA-Cert conducts its work with the highest integrity, transparency and quality in order to generate positive economic, ecological and social benefits for our clients and worldwide.

Position Summary:

The Quality Assurance Associate will support the work of the Quality Assurance (QA) Unit in the RA-Cert Division. QA staff manages Rainforest Alliance accredited systems for implementation of FSC, SAN, and Carbon auditing services, while also managing the quality management and monitoring program for regional implementation of these systems. The QA Associate’s responsibilities will include interactions across accreditation systems and quality monitoring while working with the QA Manager and Technical Experts.

Responsibilities:

• Tracking and maintenance of the Quality Assurance Unit’s quality audit schedule to ensure timely scheduling of audits, preparation for audits, and tracking of nonconformity timelines;
• Periodic aggregation of quality monitoring results from Salesforce for reporting to QA staff and RA-Cert management;
• Maintenance of accreditation body audit schedules including collation of upcoming audits to accommodate accreditation requests, preparation of regional offices for witness and office audits, PRFs for invoices;
• Tracking of accreditation body nonconformities including maintenance of tracking sheets and necessary follow-up with Technical Experts regarding nonconformity timelines;
• Compilation of evidence for accreditation body nonconformities;
• Respond to accreditation body and/or certification scheme requests for information, e.g., supply chain details for certificate holders, database exception reports, trademark infringement cases;
• Tracking of inquires to ensure timely follow-up;
• Compilation of updates for Quality Assurance reporting to RA-Cert staff on a regular basis (using SharePoint functions);
• General maintenance of documents (policies, procedures, templates) for final proofreading to ensure consistent formatting and overall effectiveness, as well as to prepare for efficient translations;
• Creation of tailored templates for regional implementation, e.g., service-specific certification agreements;
• Maintenance of RA-Cert information management resources (e.g., SharePoint wiki site) for consistent formatting, effective functionality, and to ensure information is up-to-date;
• Assistance with training event coordination and participant follow-up, including events taking place via regional offices;
• Periodic monitoring of the auditing and certification pages on the RA web site to report necessary updates;
• Periodic reporting of non-FSC clients for posting on the RA web site;
• Coordinate, collect and collate RA-Cert staff comments on various documents under consultation, including certification scheme standards, QA policies, etc.;
• Compilation of RA-Cert reporting, including audit timeliness metrics, RA-Cert strategic quarterly report, RA monthly updates, RA Membership report, and travel tracking;
• Assist with services administration of new RA-Cert services; and
• Other dities as assigned.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree required; preferably in Natural Resources, Public Administration or a related field;
• 3 – 5 years of experience in a professional work environment;
• Experience in developing systems including tools, procedures and manuals;
• Proficient in Microsoft Excel, Word, and Outlook with a working knowledge of PowerPoint;
• Excellent writing, editing and verbal communication skills;
• Strong organizational skills to manage multiple priorities in a time sensitive manner;
• Excellent interpersonal skills with ability to interact culturally, linguistically, and diplomatically with diverse internal and external individuals;
• Initiative, self-motivated, resourceful, and dependable with a strong attention to detail; and
• Ability and willingness to travel on a limited basis for meetings.

Salary:

Commensurate with experience. Competitive benefits package provided.

The Rainforest Alliance is an equal opportunity employer.

Application Instructions

Send resume, cover letter and salary history to Human Resources, Rainforest Alliance, 665 Broadway, Suite 500, New York, NY 10012; Fax: 212-677-2187; E-mail: Personnel@ra.org. If emailing, use the following format in the subject line: first name and last name, job title of position you are applying for.