Chief Operating Officer (COO) – Regional Engineering & Manufacturing

The Human Capital; Kuala Lumpur; On-site; MYR 1,800,000 - 3,200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Executive perks

Performance incentives

Career growth opportunities

Job summary

The Human Capital is seeking a dynamic Chief Operating Officer for our client, a leading regional engineering and manufacturing group in Malaysia. You will oversee Malaysian operations as the regional HQ, with growth plans to expand across Asia, driving performance and governance against ambitious milestones.

Reporting to the board, you will own P&L and balance sheet, lead lean manufacturing, optimize working capital, and build a data-driven leadership team focused on safety, quality, and

Qualifications

• Deep financial and capital management experience.
• Proven track record in heavy manufacturing leadership.
• Strong strategic and data-driven decision making.

Responsibilities

• Own P&L and balance sheet; drive capital optimization.
• Lead end-to-end manufacturing operations with lean principles.
• Build a cohesive leadership team with clear KPIs.
• Ensure regulatory compliance and safety on the shop floor.

Skills

Financial acumen

Manufacturing leadership

Strategic vision

Data-driven leadership

Lean manufacturing

Job description

Chief Operating Officer (COO) – Regional Engineering & Manufacturing

Location: Malaysia, Wider KL Region (Regional HQ, will progress to look after Asia operations steadily handling multiple countries)

The Opportunity

Backed by over three decades of robust market presence, our client is a formidable heavy industrial manufacturing and engineering group generating significant revenues. With established operations spanning Malaysia and several other countries in Asia, the business is on an aggressive and highly strategic growth trajectory as it prepares for its next major phase of expansion.

This is a unique opportunity to take an attractive regional manufacturing business to the next level within the wider scope of a highly successful MNC group of engineering companies.

To steer this transformative phase, the board is seeking a dynamic, deeply analytical, and energetic Chief Operating Officer (COO). This executive will take full command of the Malaysian operations, solidifying it as the definitive Regional Headquarters before subsequently expanding their oversight to include the group’s other manufacturing facilities. As such, the role offers fantastic career growth prospects that can be realised as you grow further in the role of COO for the business.

Again, we would like to stress that this is a rare opportunity to serve as the critical operational linchpin in a major enterprise modernization and share in the substantial upside of the organisation’s expansion. Core remuneration will be supported by executive perks and lucrative performance incentives tied to key growth milestones.

The Role

Reporting directly to the Board of Directors and managing a range of key departmental heads, the COO will operate as a holistic business leader. You will drive the enterprise forward across four fundamental pillars:

Financial & Capital Strategy: Take absolute ownership of the P&L and Balance Sheet. You will drive financial positioning, optimize working capital, manage credit control, and ensure the organization is operating at maximum valuation readiness for the next phase of expansion.

Commercial & Manufacturing Enterprise: Lead the core business engine. You will optimize end-to-end heavy manufacturing operations (specializing in complex engineered products), championing lean manufacturing principles on the shop floor to eliminate bottlenecks, accelerate cycle times, and maximize gross margins. You will also have a major role to play in customer and business strategy development across the region.

Infrastructure & Governance (Land): Oversee physical asset expansion, including the development of a brand-new Asian HQ and factory extension. You will maintain uncompromising regulatory compliance and risk mitigation across all local authorities (DOE, BOMBA, JKR, DOSH).

Human Capital & Leadership: Drive a modernized, high-performance culture. You will transition functional departments into a highly cohesive, data-driven leadership team utilizing transparent KPIs. Safety will be embedded as a core cultural value, targeting zero Lost Time Injuries (LTI) while aggressively driving factory output.

The Executive Profile

We are targeting a highly driven, passionate manufacturing professional who combines a conservative, disciplined work ethic with a modern, adaptive approach to technology and team leadership.

Deep Financial Acumen: Exceptional capability in interpreting, structuring, and presenting complex financial data, cash flows, and P&L statements to extract operational yields.

Heavy Manufacturing Expertise: Proven experience running end-to-end manufacturing operations, with a strong understanding of delivering complex engineered products on time, at cost, and up to stringent international standards (ISO, ASME, UL).

Analytical & Inquisitive Mindset: A natural problem-solver who asks the right questions, probes deeply into operational bottlenecks, and engineers highly logical, data-driven solutions.

Strategic Vision: The foresight to see beyond daily firefighting—capable of structuring regional operations, expanding physical infrastructure, and building a resilient business model that can truly support the expanding operations.

Modern Leadership: High EQ with a proven track record of moving legacy teams toward structured KPIs and performance management, all while fostering a safe, equitable, and highly productive shop-floor environment.

All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.