Head of Quality & Compliance

Head of Quality & Compliance at Manufex About Manufex Manufex is a US-based on-demand manufacturing marketplace connecting hardware and industrial companies with vetted suppliers across CNC machining, sheet metal fabrication, 3D printing, and more. We bring pricing transparency, quality assurance, and streamlined procurement to a market historically run on emails and phone calls. Every Manufex order runs through a unified managed thread where AI agents handle DFM review, visual quality control, compliance verification, and documentation in real time. The quality and compliance function at Manufex is not a back-office audit team it is the intelligence layer that defines what "good" means on the platform, and the escalation authority when the agents hit their limits. About the Role As Head of Quality & Compliance at Manufex, you will own two things that no agent can own on its own: the rulebook and the judgment call. On the rulebook side you will define the parameters, thresholds, guardrails, and decision logic that govern how the VQC agent, DFM agent, and compliance agent operate. Every acceptance criterion, every rejection threshold, every escalation trigger is something you write, validate against real order data, and continuously refine. The agents execute your playbook. You author it. On the judgment side every ticket, inspection dispute, non-conformance, or compliance issue that the agents cannot resolve autonomously will land with you. You are the human-in-the-loop for the Manufex quality system. When the VQC agent flags an ambiguous defect and cannot make a call, you make the call. When a supplier disputes a rejection and the agent lacks the context to adjudicate, you adjudicate. When a compliance verification fails in a way the agent doesn't have a resolution path for, you resolve it and then encode that resolution back into the playbook so it doesn't happen again. This is a foundational role that sits at the intersection of deep manufacturing quality expertise and AI-augmented operations. If you've led quality functions at a marketplace, OEM, or contract manufacturer and you're energized by the idea of building the quality system that an AI runs and being the authority it defers to when it can't this role is built for you. Responsibilities 1. Agent Playbook Parameters, Guardrails & Decision Logic Own and author the quality and compliance playbook that governs all agents and defining the rules they operate by Work closely with the Founding AI Engineer and product team to translate playbook logic into agent parameters, prompt constraints, and decision trees you don't need to write the code, but you need to be precise enough that someone else can Version-control the playbook every rule change is documented, justified, and traceable back to a real escalation or quality event that prompted it 2. Escalation Handling Human-in-the-Loop Serve as the terminal escalation authority for all quality and compliance tickets that agents cannot resolve autonomously Triage and resolve escalated tickets, disputes and compliance escalations inspect flags, review counter-evidence, make the accept/reject call, and communicate the decision with documented rationale; expired certifications, missing documentation, certification scope mismatches, or supplier disputes around regulatory requirements Own the feedback loop every manual resolution is an input to improving the playbook, and rising escalation volume is your signal that it needs work. 3. Supplier Quality Management Build and own the Manufex supplier quality program onboarding audits, quality scorecards, corrective action workflows, and performance benchmarking across the network Manage NCR, SCAR, and CAR processes end-to-end, working in concert with the production management team on active order threads Lead root cause analysis on recurring quality failures and drive systemic improvements both at the supplier level and in the agent playbook Develop and maintain supplier quality tiers ensuring higher-tier suppliers meet elevated standards that unlock higher-value order routing 4. Compliance & Certification Ownership Own Manufex's compliance posture across the supplier network AS9100D, IATF 16949, ISO 9001, NADCAP, and process-specific certifications Maintain and expand the compliance agent's knowledge base keeping certification requirements current, accurate, and mapped to the right supplier tier and industry vertical Manage relationships with certification bodies and external auditors as the platform scales Own buyer-facing compliance documentation PPAP, FAI, material certifications, and inspection reports generated or verified through the platform 5. Cross-Functional Partnership Partner with the technology team to improve agent accuracy. Work with Operations and Production Management to resolve quality issues within live order threads, maintaining buyer experience standards Support Sales in regulated-industry conversations aerospace, defense, medical devices, EV where buyers need confidence in the platform's quality posture before placing their first order Contribute quality and compliance requirements to the product roadmap you know where the agents fall short before anyone else does Requirements Bachelor's degree in Manufacturing Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related technical field 8+ years in quality engineering or quality operations, with at least 3 years in a senior or leadership role Prior experience at a manufacturing marketplace, contract manufacturer, or OEM with a large distributed supplier base strongly preferred Deep working knowledge of AS9100D, IATF 16949, and ISO 9001 not just familiarity, but the ability to write the verification logic that an agent can execute against Hands-on experience managing NCR/SCAR/CAR workflows and driving supplier corrective actions to closure Strong command of root cause analysis methodologies 8D, CAPA, Fishbone, 5 Whys The ability to write precise, unambiguous decision rules this role requires translating quality judgment into structured parameters that software can execute; if you've written quality procedures and inspection standards before, you understand the discipline required Comfort operating as a human-in-the-loop you are the escalation endpoint, which means you need to be fast, decisive, and right more often than not Familiarity with GD&T, CAD interpretation, and DFM principles across CNC, sheet metal, and additive manufacturing processes Strong cross-functional communication able to work fluidly with an AI engineering team, an operations team, and external suppliers without friction Preferred Qualifications Six Sigma Black Belt or Green Belt ASQ Certified Quality Engineer (CQE) or Certified Quality Manager (CQM) Experience writing quality management system documentation inspection plans, control plans, acceptance criteria that others execute against Experience in aerospace, defense, EV, or medical device supply chains Prior exposure to AI-assisted quality systems, automated inspection tooling, or computer vision-based defect detection