Director – Quality Assurance (Intimate Apparel)

Location

Sri Lanka

About the Company

One of Sri Lanka's largest and most respected apparel manufacturing groups is seeking an exceptional Director – Quality Assurance to lead Quality for one of its key manufacturing clusters.

The organization is a global partner to some of the world's leading fashion and lifestyle brands, delivering innovative, high-quality intimate apparel across multiple international manufacturing locations. The business is recognized for its excellence in technical innovation, sustainability, operational excellence, and world-class manufacturing.

This is a strategic leadership opportunity for an experienced quality professional with deep expertise in bras, briefs, shapewear, seamless products, bonded garments, and intimate apparel manufacturing.

The Role

Reporting to the senior leadership team, the Director – Quality Assurance will provide strategic leadership for the complete Quality function across a manufacturing cluster, ensuring world-class product quality, customer satisfaction, manufacturing excellence, and continuous improvement.

The successful candidate will lead quality transformation initiatives while partnering closely with Manufacturing, Technical, Product Development, Engineering, Merchandising, Supply Chain, and Customer teams to deliver exceptional quality performance.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership

• Develop and execute the Quality Assurance strategy for the manufacturing cluster.
• Lead and inspire a high-performing Quality organization across multiple manufacturing facilities.
• Drive a culture of quality excellence, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Establish standardized quality systems and governance across all operations.

Manufacturing Quality

• Ensure robust quality assurance from product development through bulk production and final shipment.
• Lead quality planning during development, pilot runs, pre-production meetings, inline inspections, end-line inspections, and final audits.
• Drive Right First Time (RFT), First Pass Yield (FPY), and defect reduction initiatives.
• Ensure customer quality expectations are consistently achieved.

Customer & Brand Management

• Act as the senior Quality representative for international customers.
• Lead customer audits, technical reviews, quality scorecards, and performance improvement initiatives.
• Drive root cause analysis and sustainable corrective actions for customer concerns.
• Build strong relationships with premium global apparel brands.

Operational Excellence

• Lead Lean, Six Sigma, and continuous improvement projects to enhance manufacturing performance.
• Develop KPI dashboards covering:
  • DHU
  • RFT
  • FPY
  • Customer Claims
  • Supplier Quality
  • Cost of Poor Quality
  • Audit Performance
• Utilize analytics to identify trends and implement preventive actions.

Compliance & Quality Systems

• Ensure compliance with customer quality manuals and international quality standards.
• Strengthen quality management systems through structured audits and governance.
• Champion risk management and preventive quality methodologies.

Supplier Quality

• Improve supplier quality performance for fabrics, trims, and raw materials.
• Partner with sourcing and procurement teams to enhance incoming material quality.

Leadership

• Lead, coach, and develop QA Managers, Technical Managers, and Quality leadership teams.
• Build succession pipelines and strengthen organizational capability.
• Foster a collaborative, performance-driven culture.

Candidate Profile

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Textile Engineering, Apparel Technology, Industrial Engineering, or a related discipline.
• MBA or Master's Degree is an advantage.
• Lean Six Sigma, ISO Lead Auditor, or other Quality certifications are desirable.

Experience

• 18+ years of experience in apparel manufacturing.
• At least 8–10 years in senior Quality leadership.
• Proven experience leading Quality across multiple manufacturing facilities or business units.
• Extensive experience in intimate apparel manufacturing, including bras, briefs, shapewear, bonded garments, and seamless products.
• Demonstrated success in driving quality transformation and operational excellence within a global manufacturing environment.

Technical Expertise

• Quality Management Systems
• Garment Construction
• Bra & Intimate Apparel Manufacturing
• Fabric & Trim Quality
• Statistical Process Control (SPC)
• AQL Standards
• Root Cause Analysis
• CAPA
• FMEA
• Lean Manufacturing
• Six Sigma
• Risk Management
• Product Engineering
• Manufacturing Excellence

Leadership Competencies

• Strategic Leadership
• Executive Presence
• Customer Relationship Management
• Change Management
• Cross-functional Collaboration
• Data-driven Decision Making
• Coaching & Talent Development
• Problem Solving
• Stakeholder Management

Preferred Brand Exposure

Experience working with international brands such as:

• Victoria's Secret
• Calvin Klein
• Marks & Spencer
• Triumph
• Aerie
• Hanes
• Maidenform
• La Senza
• Soma
• Oysho
• Tommy Hilfiger

will be a distinct advantage.

If you are a visionary quality leader with a passion for manufacturing excellence and a proven track record in the intimate apparel industry, we invite you to be part of a world-class organization shaping the future of global apparel manufacturing.