Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Sovenson Limited; Shah Alam; On-site; MYR 600,000 - 900,000; Full time

Job summary

Based in Shah Alam, Sovenson Limited, a global manufacturing group, seeks a Chief Financial Officer to lead the finance function and partner with the CEO and senior leadership. This is a newly created role to strengthen financial leadership across the Asia, Europe and North America footprint, combining technical finance with commercial and operational judgment.

The CFO will oversee accounting, treasury, FP&A, tax and governance, manage a regional team of 40–50, drive capital planning and working

Qualifications

• 15+ years of progressive finance experience.
• CFO or Finance Director level with 5+ years in senior leadership.
• Strong understanding of manufacturing economics, including costing and margins.
• Proven experience leading sizeable finance teams across entities or jurisdictions.
• CPA/CA/ACCA or equivalent would be highly regarded.
• Fluent, professional English and ability to operate in an international environment.

Responsibilities

• Lead the finance function and act as a strategic partner to the CEO and leadership.
• Take ownership of Finance, Accounting, Controlling, Treasury, Tax, FP&A and Governance.
• Lead a regional finance organisation of 40–50 professionals.
• Oversee financial reporting, budgeting, forecasting, cash-flow planning and long-term planning.
• Translate financial performance into clear commercial insights for senior management.
• Develop robust forecasting models and forward-looking analysis for decisions.
• Partner with manufacturing and operations on cost control, margins and working capital.
• Oversee manufacturing-related finance, inventory, plant performance and controls.
• Strengthen financial systems, reporting, governance and internal controls.
• Lead treasury, funding, banking relationships and liquidity management.
• Oversee statutory reporting, tax and audits across jurisdictions.
• Support capex, capacity investment and strategic expansion decisions.
• Provide financial leadership for corporate development and financing initiatives.
• Support professionalisation and internationalisation of the Group's finance function.
• Travel internationally about 25% across Asia, Europe and the United States.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Finance management

FP&A

Treasury

Tax governance

Cost accounting

Inventory management

Cross-functional collaboration

Stakeholder communication

IPO exposure

Board interaction

Global experience

Education

CPA/CA/ACCA

Tools

ERP systems

Job description

Industry: Manufacturing / Process Manufacturing

We have been instructed by a sizeable international manufacturing group with significant operations across Asia, Europe and North America to appoint a Chief Financial Officer based in Shah Alam, Selangor.

This is a newly created leadership position, reporting directly to the CEO, and represents a significant strengthening of the Group's finance leadership capability.

The organisation employs several thousand people across its international operations and maintains a substantial manufacturing footprint. The incoming CFO will lead a sizeable regional finance organisation and take responsibility for the full spectrum of finance activities across the business.

This is not intended to be a purely accounting or reporting-focused CFO position. The successful candidate will be expected to combine strong technical finance expertise with commercial judgement, operational understanding and forward-looking financial leadership.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the overall finance function and act as a key strategic partner to the CEO and senior leadership team.
• Take ownership of Finance, Accounting, Controlling, Treasury, Tax, Financial Planning and Analysis, and Governance.
• Lead and develop a regional finance organisation of approximately 40–50 professionals.
• Oversee financial reporting, budgeting, forecasting, cash-flow planning and long-term financial planning.
• Translate financial performance into clear commercial insights and help senior management understand the business story behind the numbers.
• Develop robust forecasting models and provide informed forward-looking analysis to support business decisions.
• Partner closely with manufacturing and operational leadership on cost control, productivity, margins, working capital and profitability.
• Oversee manufacturing-related finance including standard costing, inventory, plant performance and operational financial controls.
• Strengthen financial systems, reporting processes, governance and internal controls across the organisation.
• Lead treasury, funding, banking relationships and liquidity management.
• Oversee statutory reporting, tax and audit requirements across relevant jurisdictions.
• Support capital expenditure, capacity investment and strategic expansion decisions.
• Provide financial leadership in relation to corporate development, restructuring, financing or capital-market initiatives where relevant.
• Support the continued professionalisation and internationalisation of the Group's finance function.
• Travel internationally as required, with approximately 25% travel across Asia, Europe and the United States.

Candidate Profile

We are particularly interested in senior finance leaders with strong experience in manufacturing, process manufacturing, industrial products, chemicals, healthcare-related manufacturing or other complex production environments.

Ideal candidates will bring:

• Approximately 15+ years of progressive finance experience.
• Existing CFO experience, or substantial experience as a Finance Director / Regional Finance Director / Head of Finance, ideally with at least five years at senior leadership level.
• Strong understanding of manufacturing economics, including costing, inventory, working capital, margins and plant performance.
• Proven experience leading sizeable finance teams across multiple entities or jurisdictions.
• Strong capability across accounting, controlling, FP&A, treasury, tax and financial governance.
• The ability to combine technical finance expertise with strong commercial and operational judgement.
• Experience working directly with CEOs, Boards and senior business leaders.
• IPO, capital markets or public-company experience would be a significant advantage.
• A recognised professional accounting qualification such as CPA, CA, ACCA or equivalent would be highly regarded.
• Strong academic credentials.
• Fluent, highly professional English, with the ability to operate confidently in an international leadership environment.
• A hands-on, high-energy leadership style and the ability to operate effectively in a fast-moving manufacturing environment.

The Opportunity

This is an opportunity to build and shape the CFO function within a sizeable international manufacturing organisation.

This role carries significant influence across financial strategy, operational performance, business planning, governance and future growth.

For an experienced manufacturing finance leader, this offers the opportunity to move beyond traditional finance stewardship and play a central role in the continued development of an international industrial business.

All applications and discussions will be handled in strict confidence.