A note from Vince Shiers, Managing Director
“I am very pleased to announce these promotions and to welcome new talent into the business. It is inspiring to see our team go from strength to strength and these appointments reflect both the high calibre of our people and the continued growth of RQA. I would like to thank each of them for their contribution so far and look forward to seeing the impact they will make in their new roles.”
We are delighted to announce Craig’s promotion to Operations Director, recognising the impact of his dedication to service delivery and the significant contribution he continues to make to RQA’s success.
Craig Stevenson began his career with RQA 15 years ago as a Project Team Supervisor, progressing to Project Team Manager and in 2018, Operations Manager. Over that time he has played a pivotal role in building our business – recruiting around 40% of today’s RQA employees, developing teams to lead major international projects and forging lasting relationships with clients and consultants worldwide. His leadership and oversight of our operations have been a major driver of our growth to date.
We are very pleased to announce Gill’s promotion to Technical Director, recognising her leadership in championing technical innovation, her commitment to mentoring colleagues and her dedication to ensuring the continued excellence of our services globally.
Gill Dando is a highly experienced technical consultant with wide ranging expertise in food safety, product recall, pharmaceuticals and microbiology, having previously held many senior technical roles in both retail and manufacturing. Since joining RQA Group in 2022, she has worked closely with our clients to deliver tailored expert consultancy and bespoke training projects, while also playing a pivotal role in upholding our global quality standards.
We are delighted to welcome Laura Foster-Stockill to RQA Group as a Principal Consultant. Laura brings over 25 years of experience in the food industry, including nine years at Asda Head Office where she served as Category Technical Manager and later as Audit and Food Standards Technical Manager. More recently, she has worked as a Lead Food Safety Auditor at FSSI, managing and auditing suppliers worldwide.
At RQA, Laura will draw on her expertise in consultancy, auditing, and training to support our clients and strengthen our technical capabilities. We are delighted to welcome Laura to the team and look forward to working with her.
We are very pleased to announce the promotion of Katie Bickle to Business Development & Marketing Manager at RQA Group. This next step recognises her impact on our business development, marketing & data team, her substantial contribution to enhancing client relationships and her commitment to ensuring every organisation we work with has a positive and rewarding experience with RQA.
Katie joined RQA in 2022 as a Project Coordinator and quickly established herself as an invaluable member of the team, supporting multinational clients and building strong relationships. She went on to become Sales & Marketing Coordinator, before moving into the role of Business Development & Marketing Executive where she championed the addition of a dedicated Data Analyst position that strengthened the insights and services we provide to clients.