Country Head - Malaysia

OECL Malaysia – Freight Forwarding Division

Location: Malaysia

Function: Freight Forwarding / Sales & Business Development

Reporting To: Group Managing Director

Position Overview

OECL Malaysia is seeking an experienced and commercially driven Country Head – Malaysia to lead the expansion and development of its freight forwarding business across Malaysia.

The successful candidate will be responsible for building the Malaysia business, developing strategic customer relationships, driving revenue growth and profitability, and leading the sales and business development organization.

This is a senior leadership position requiring a strong track record in freight forwarding, customer acquisition, team management and revenue generation.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and execute the Malaysia country business strategy for freight forwarding and logistics.
• Lead the expansion of OECL's customer base and revenue across Malaysia.
• Identify and develop new business opportunities across key verticals, trade lanes and customer segments.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with key local and multinational customers.
• Lead, manage and motivate the sales and business development team to achieve agreed revenue and profitability targets.
• Establish a strong sales pipeline, customer acquisition strategy and revenue-generation culture.
• Set clear KPIs and targets for sales and business development personnel and monitor performance regularly.
• Personally develop and manage strategic / key accounts and high-value opportunities.
• Identify opportunities for growth across ocean freight, air freight, customs, warehousing, project logistics and other value-added logistics services, as applicable.
• Work closely with overseas offices and global partners to develop cross-border business and international trade opportunities.
• Develop strategic partnerships with shipping lines, airlines, overseas agents and other logistics service providers.
• Monitor market trends, competitor activities, pricing and customer requirements to identify growth opportunities.
• Ensure commercial discipline, including pricing, margins, credit control and overall profitability.
• Recruit, develop and retain high-performing commercial talent.
• Establish appropriate processes, reporting systems and governance for the Malaysia operation.
• Provide regular business performance reports and market intelligence to Group / Regional Management.
• Ensure compliance with company policies, applicable Malaysian regulations and industry standards.

Candidate Profile

Experience

• Minimum 10+ years of relevant experience in freight forwarding / international logistics, preferably with a reputed multinational or established freight forwarding company.
• Proven experience in a senior sales, commercial or country / branch leadership position.
• Demonstrated track record of revenue generation, customer acquisition and business expansion.
• Experience managing and developing a team of sales / business development professionals.
• Strong understanding of Malaysia's freight forwarding and logistics market.
• Experience handling both local and multinational customers will be highly advantageous.

Leadership & Commercial Skills

• Strong entrepreneurial and business-development mindset.
• Demonstrated ability to build a business rather than merely manage an existing operation.
• Strong network among shippers, manufacturers, trading companies and other relevant customers in Malaysia.
• Excellent negotiation, presentation and relationship-management skills.
• Strong commercial understanding with the ability to balance growth, revenue, margins and profitability.
• Ability to recruit, motivate and lead a performance-oriented sales organization.
• Strong analytical, strategic and decision-making capabilities.

Key Performance Indicators

The Country Head will be primarily accountable for:

• Revenue growth
• Gross profit / contribution growth
• New customer acquisition
• Customer retention and development
• Sales pipeline growth
• Team productivity and performance
• Key account development
• Market and trade-lane expansion
• Overall profitability of the Malaysia freight forwarding business

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate will be a well-established freight forwarding professional with 10+ years of industry experience, a strong customer network in Malaysia, and a proven history of leading revenue-generating teams.

OECL is looking for an individual with the commercial drive, leadership capability and industry relationships required to significantly expand the company's freight forwarding presence in Malaysia.