APAC Financial Controller

Mercuri Urval; Shah Alam; On-site; MYR 180,000 - 300,000; Full time

Job summary

Mercuri Urval is seeking an APAC Regional Finance Controller based in Malaysia, reporting to the Europe-based CFO with dotted-line to the Head of Asia Pacific. The role focuses on commercial finance, regional controlling, and finance transformation across multiple APAC markets.

The successful candidate will drive budgeting, forecasting, and performance analysis, while ensuring robust internal controls and adherence to group standards. Multinational environment with SAP/SAP BI tools is preferred.

Qualifications

• University degree in Business Administration, Finance or Accounting.
• Proven cross-country experience in Asia Pacific desirable.
• Fluent in English and Mandarin Chinese.

Responsibilities

• Act as the primary finance business partner to the Regional Head of Asia Pacific and regional sales leadership.
• Translate financial data into clear, forward-looking insights that support commercial decision-making, pricing, and go-to-market strategies.
• Own the regional financial reporting cycle, including monthly, quarterly, and annual closings across all APAC sales entities.
• Lead the regional budgeting and forecasting process in close collaboration with sales teams and the BU Head of Finance.

Skills

English fluency

Mandarin Chinese

Education

University degree in Business Administration, Finance or Accounting

Tools

SAP FI/CO

Power BI

SAP BW

Tableau

Job description

We are representing a European Engineering company to appoint APAC reginal finance controller based in Malaysia. This role will report to the CFO based in Europe and dotted line report to the Head of Asia Pacific

Main responsibilities

Business Partnering & Commercial Finance

• Act as the primary finance business partner to the Regional Head of Asia Pacific and regional sales leadership
• Translate financial data into clear, forward-looking insights that support commercial decision-making, pricing, and go-to-market strategies
• Challenge and support the business in understanding profitability drivers, pipeline coverage, and resource allocation across the region

Regional Controlling & Reporting

• Own the regional financial reporting cycle, including monthly, quarterly, and annual closings across all APAC sales entities
• Deliver consolidated regional performance analysis with clear commentary on variances, trends and risks
• Ensure consistent application of group accounting standards and reporting frameworks across all entities

Planning, Budgeting & Forecasting

• Lead the regional budgeting and forecasting process in close collaboration with sales teams and the BU Head of Finance
• Build robust financial models to support scenario planning, investment cases, and strategic reviews
• Drive forecast accuracy and improve the quality of financial planning inputs from the region by transferring funnel data to financial plans

Functional Leadership & Coordination

• Provide functional guidance (dotted-line) to local controllers in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore, with an initial priority focus on Taiwan and Korea
• Support the development and standardization of finance processes across the region
• Identify and drive opportunities for process harmonization, automation, and digitalization within the regional finance function
• Ensure robust internal controls across all regional entities and compliance with local statutory and tax requirements

Finance Transformation

• Be a key driver to the execution of Finance Strategy 2030
• Play an active role in the SAP S/4HANA implementation as it relates to Asia Pacific
• Lead the adoption of AI tools and digital innovation to continuously elevate the quality, speed, and impact of finance processes and reporting across the region impact of finance processes and reporting across the region.

Qualification

• University degree in Business Administration, Finance, Accounting
• Minimum 10 years of progressive experience in controlling, FP&A, or finance business partnering
• Proven experience working across multiple countries in Asia Pacific; strong understanding of regional business culture and regulatory landscape
• Fluent in English and Mandarin Chinese.
• Strong knowledge of SAP FI/CO.
• Familiarity with BI tools such as Power BI, SAP BW, or Tableau.
• Genuine curiosity for and hands-on interest in AI tools and emerging technologies

ideally within a multinational, sales-driven or technology environment