Quality Manager

The Oberalp Group is a management driven family business - a house of brands that creates high quality technical mountaineering products. We have 6 own brands Salewa, Dynafit, Pomoca, Wild Country, Evolv and LaMunt. As an exclusive partner of other brands in the sports sector we offer our entire know how in communication, sales and image building.
We are a team of more than 1000 employees in 11 countries worldwide – a group of adventurers and dreamers, mountaineers, looking for their next peak.

Quality Manager – Footwear (M/F/d)

At Oberalp we are looking for a Quality Manager to lead and develop quality management across our Footwear & Equipment division.
In this role, you will be responsible for ensuring product quality throughout the entire product life cycle, from development and industrialization through production and market feedback. You will lead a multicultural Quality team across Europe and Asia, coordinate testing and laboratory activities, and work closely with R&D, Operations, suppliers, and manufacturing partners to ensure consistently high product standards.

Tasks and responsibilities

• Lead and coordinate a multicultural Quality team of 10 people located across Europe and Asia
• Coordinate Quality Assurance and Quality Control activities for the Footwear division, ensuring consistent quality standards throughout the product life cycle
• Define, monitor, and continuously improve Quality KPIs, using qualitative and statistical data to identify trends, risks, and improvement opportunities
• Develop, implement, and maintain company quality standards, procedures, and testing protocols
• Coordinate laboratory and field-testing activities, including test planning, scheduling, product selection, and management of the field tester network
• Work closely with R&D and Operations during product development and industrialization, ensuring quality requirements are considered from the early stages of product creation
• Conduct Quality Approval Meetings during development and approve production counter samples before release
• Collaborate closely with manufacturing partners in Eastern Europe, Vietnam, and other Asian countries, ensuring effective quality control throughout production
• Coordinate factory inspections and in-line production quality controls
• Manage non-conformities, quality complaints, and technical issues with suppliers and manufacturing partners, driving root cause analysis and corrective actions
• Analyze defect data, test results, and quality statistics to identify improvement opportunities and enhance product quality, manufacturing efficiency, and supplier performance
• Support CSR-related audits and inspections in collaboration with the CSR department
• Monitor and manage chemical compliance in accordance with applicable regulations
• Maintain close communication with Customer Service to analyze and address customer feedback and product complaints
• Develop and manage the Quality budget for the division

Profile

• Technical background in Engineering or a comparable field, or equivalent professional experience
• Proven experience in Quality Management, preferably within the footwear
• Strong knowledge of footwear manufacturing processes, quality control, testing, and supplier quality
• Experience in leading and developing international and multicultural teams
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with an approach to quality data, root cause analysis, and corrective actions
• Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration skills
• Fluent in English and Italian, with availability to travel internationally

Annual Gross Base Salary Range:

65.000€ - 80.000€ + additional target bonus of 5-10% of base salary
Compensation for this role is based on skills, experience, qualifications, and job-related responsibilities. We are committed to fair and equitable compensation practices. Pay decisions are made consistently across comparable roles and career levels, supporting our commitment to equal pay for substantially similar work.