Head, Finance

Job Description

Head of Finance - Santan

About Santan

Santan is a food and beverage brand born from the Capital A ecosystem and transformed from an airline catering business into an innovative F&B disruptor. Leveraging its strong brand heritage, operational excellence, and customer-centric approach, Santan has evolved into a multi-channel food platform serving consumers and businesses across aviation, retail, digital, and enterprise channels.

Santan's ambition is to redefine accessible, high-quality ASEAN flavours while building a scalable, technology-enabled, and commercially sustainable food ecosystem across the region.

Position Summary

The Head of Finance will serve as a key member of Santan's leadership team and a strategic partner to the CEO, responsible for driving financial performance, commercial decision-making, operational efficiency, governance, and sustainable business growth.

The role requires a commercially minded finance leader who can balance growth and profitability while supporting the evolution of Santan's multi-channel business model across inflight catering, B2B food solutions, eCommerce, and retail operations.

The successful candidate will possess strong commercial finance, operational finance, and business partnering capabilities, with the ability to translate financial insights into actionable business decisions. This role will play a critical part in scaling Santan's operations, improving unit economics, enhancing operational performance, and supporting regional growth ambitions.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Finance & Business Partnering

• Partner closely with the CEO and leadership team in developing and executing Santan's strategic and financial plans.
• Provide financial insights and recommendations to support growth, profitability, and investment decisions.
• Evaluate new business models, partnerships, expansion opportunities, and commercial initiatives.
• Develop robust business cases and financial models to support strategic decision-making.
• Support long-term business planning and value creation initiatives.

Commercial Finance & Revenue Growth

• Drive revenue optimization across all revenue streams of the company.
• Develop pricing, profitability, and customer economics frameworks across multiple revenue streams.
• Partner with commercial teams to improve margins, revenue productivity, and return on investment.
• Establish robust financial analytics to support product portfolio management and growth decisions.
• Evaluate channel profitability, customer profitability, and investment returns across business initiatives.

Financial Management & Performance

• Lead financial planning, budgeting, forecasting, management reporting, and performance review processes.
• Drive sustainable profitability, margin improvement, and cash flow generation across all business segments.
• Develop financial models supporting growth, investment, and operational initiatives.
• Oversee treasury, working capital management, tax compliance, and cash flow planning.
• Ensure timely and accurate financial reporting and performance analysis.

Operational Finance & Supply Chain Excellence

• Drive food cost optimization, procurement efficiency, inventory management, and waste reduction initiatives.
• Improve working capital performance and cash conversion cycles.
• Partner with operations teams to enhance productivity and operational efficiency.
• Establish performance metrics and dashboards across production, logistics, retail, and catering operations.
• Support the expansion of central kitchen, manufacturing, distribution, and retail capabilities where relevant.
• Drive financial discipline across procurement, supply chain, and operational functions.

Governance, Risk & Compliance

• Support the implementation and maintenance of appropriate financial controls, policies, and compliance processes across Santan.
• Coordinate audit, tax, and regulatory compliance activities in collaboration with Group Finance and relevant stakeholders.
• Monitor compliance with applicable accounting standards and internal financial policies.
• Ensure proper controls over inventory, procurement, cash management, and revenue recognition processes.
• Promote financial discipline, accountability, and operational best practices across the business.

Stakeholder Management

• Serve as a trusted financial advisor to the CEO and leadership team.
• Partner closely with Group Finance and other Capital A stakeholders to ensure alignment with broader business objectives.
• Build strong relationships with auditors, regulators, financial institutions, suppliers, and business partners.
• Present financial performance, key business insights, and strategic recommendations to management and relevant governance forums.
• Build and lead a high-performing finance team capable of supporting Santan's continued growth.

Candidate Profile

Experience

• Minimum 12-15 years of progressive finance experience, including significant leadership experience as a Head of Finance, Finance Director, Financial Controller, Deputy CFO, or equivalent role.
• Strong experience within F&B, quick-service restaurants (QSR), consumer products, retail, hospitality, FMCG, food manufacturing, aviation catering, or multi-site consumer businesses.
• Demonstrated success supporting high-growth businesses and managing complex multi-channel revenue models.
• Strong commercial finance, business partnering, strategic planning, and performance management capabilities.
• Experience overseeing supply chain finance, procurement, inventory management, and operational finance functions.
• Proven track record in business transformation, performance improvement, and profitability enhancement initiatives.
• Experience managing regional or international operations across multiple markets would be advantageous.
• Exposure to franchising, consumer brands, eCommerce, digital commerce, or platform businesses would be highly desirable.
• Experience engaging with senior leadership teams, financial institutions, auditors, and key external stakeholders.

Qualifications & Professional Certifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Business Administration, Commerce, or a related discipline.
• Professional accounting qualification such as CPA, ACCA, ICAEW, CA, CIMA, or equivalent is strongly preferred.
• Membership in a recognized professional accounting or finance body is preferred.
• Strong understanding of financial reporting standards, taxation, treasury management, corporate governance, and internal controls.
• Demonstrated commitment to continuous professional development and staying abreast of developments within consumer, retail, food service, eCommerce, and digital business sectors.

Success Profile

The ideal candidate is a commercially minded finance leader who combines strong financial expertise with deep consumer and operational business acumen. This individual will have the ability to drive sustainable growth, optimize unit economics, improve operational efficiency, strengthen financial discipline, and support Santan's ambition to become a leading regional food and beverage brand.

The successful candidate will be a hands-on business partner who can balance commercial growth with financial discipline, helping Santan scale profitably while building a resilient and sustainable business for the future.

We are all different - one talent to another - that is how we rely on our differences. At AirAsia, you will be treated fairly and given all chances to be your best.We are committed to creating a diverse work environment and are proud to be an equal opportunity employer.

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