Head of Quality Assurance (Defense)

TL;DR

Head of Quality Assurance (Defense/Manufacturing): Leading the development, governance, and continuous improvement of QA/QC across advanced defense manufacturing operations with an accent on QMS establishment, regulatory compliance, and supplier quality strategy. Focus on managing non-conformance and CAPA governance, ensuring industrialization readiness, and acting as the final quality authority for mission-critical programs.

Location: Abu Dhabi, AE (Onsite)

Company

hirify.global is a joint venture between EDGE and Indra focused on advanced defense manufacturing operations.

What you will do

• Provide executive leadership for Quality Assurance & Quality Control across the full manufacturing lifecycle.
• Establish and govern the enterprise Quality Management System (QMS), including procedures, control plans, and calibration governance.
• Own non-conformance and CAPA governance (NCR/MRB) using root cause analysis (8D) to prevent recurrence.
• Lead quality readiness for industrialization and ramp-up, including validation support and change impact management (ECR/ECN).
• Define and drive supplier quality strategy, including qualification, audits, surveillance, and scorecards.
• Govern quality KPIs and risk indicators (FPY, escapes, NCR aging) and provide executive reporting.

Requirements

• 10+ years in quality leadership roles within defense, aerospace, or high-reliability manufacturing environments.
• Proven experience establishing and governing enterprise-level QMS (EN/AS 9100 family, ISO 9001).
• Track record of quality governance across industrialization, ramp-up, serial production, and system integration.
• Experience leading supplier quality strategy and defense supply chain oversight.
• Executive-level experience managing non-conformance, CAPA governance, and regulatory compliance.
• Experience in the UAE or Middle East defense/aerospace environments is highly valued.