Senior Commercial Finance Manager

PositiveLinks Asia; Petaling Jaya; On-site; MYR 180,000 - 340,000; Full time

Job summary

PositiveLinks Asia is seeking a senior finance leader in Malaysia to drive strategic planning, forecasting, and capital allocation within a fast-moving consumer goods environment. You will partner with sales, marketing and trade teams on pricing, promotions and ROI analysis, while leading a high-performing finance team to deliver timely P&L insights for profitable growth.

This role emphasizes cross-functional collaboration, process modernization, and strong stakeholder management with retailers

Qualifications

• 3 cycles of budget planning, forecast, monitoring and annual plans in same company
• Involvement with sales, marketing and trade teams
• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or Finance; CPA/MBA preferred
• 10+ years in accounting/finance with commercial FMCG/retail experience
• Strong understanding of pricing, margins, promotions, ROI analysis
• Excellent English and computer literacy
• Strong leadership to challenge commercial teams and manage risks
• Strategic thinker focused on results
• Strong planning, organization and change management
• Proven ability to train and mentor teams
• Negotiation, influencing, presentation, stakeholder management
• Time management across multiple projects
• Self-driven, proactive and results-oriented

Responsibilities

• Lead annual strategic planning, long-term forecasting and capital allocation
• Partner with commercial teams on pricing, promotions, and trade spending
• Lead ROI analysis for Customer Business Plans and ensure investments align with objectives
• Participate in Joint Business Planning as the finance advisor
• Modernize finance processes, structures and systems for agility
• Lead and develop the finance team with cross-functional collaboration
• Drive accuracy and timeliness of budgets, rolling forecasts and P&L
• Develop and monitor financial KPIs to ensure margins and pricing targets
• Provide financial input to planning and monthly business meetings
• Analyze FMCG market dynamics, competitor strategies, pricing, merchandising and retail activities
• Translate data into actionable insights for management and commercial teams
• Foster collaboration between Finance and Customer Development and engage retailers/regional stakeholders

Skills

Commercial finance

Budget planning

Forecasting

Leadership

Stakeholder management

English proficiency

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or Finance

CPA or MBA preferred

Job description

Responsibilities

• Lead annual strategic planning, long-term operational forecasting and capital allocation.
• Partner with commercial teams on pricing, promotions, trade spending and key business decisions through financial analysis.
• Lead ROI analysis for Customer Business Plans and ensure investments support brand and business objectives.
• Participate in Joint Business Planning sessions as the primary finance advisor.
• Modernize finance processes, structures and systems to improve agility and scalability.
• Lead and develop the finance team while promoting cross-functional collaboration and financial competency.
• Drive the accuracy and timeliness of budgets, rolling estimates and overall business P&L.
• Develop and monitor financial KPIs to ensure margin and pricing targets are achieved and identify commercial risks and opportunities.
• Provide financial input into planning and monthly business meetings to support financial health and profitable growth.
• Analyze FMCG market dynamics, competitor strategies, pricing, merchandising and retail activities.
• Translate complex financial and external market data into clear, actionable insights for management and commercial teams.
• Build strong collaboration between Finance and Customer Development teams and maintain regular engagement with retailers and regional stakeholders.

Requirements:

• At least 3 cycles of budget planning, forecast, monitoring and annual plans within the same company
• Strong involvement working closely with sales, marketing and trade teams
• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or Finance, with CPA or MBA preferred.
• Minimum 10 years of relevant accounting or finance experience, with clear commercial finance experience in FMCG, consumer goods or retail
• Strong understanding of commercial finance, including pricing, margins, promotions, trade investment and ROI analysis.
• Excellent spoken and written English with strong computer literacy.
• Strong leadership skills with the confidence to challenge commercial teams and raise potential risks.
• Strategic thinker with a strong focus on results.
• Strong planning, organization and change management capabilities.
• Proven ability to train, mentor and motivate teams.
• Strong negotiation, influencing, presentation and stakeholder management skills.
• Effective time management with the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
• Self-driven, disciplined, proactive and results-oriented.

Required Skills

• Proven track record in commercial finance and handling commercial teams