About the Search
Nucleus Advisory has been retained by a confidential client to identify a General Manager for a newly established agribusiness venture. The client is a premium fresh-produce joint venture backed by a leading publicly listed plantation group and a global agribusiness partner. Based at a state-of-the-art AgTech Campus in Kulai, Johor, the company is developing an integrated farm-to-market ecosystem encompassing cultivation, nursery and propagation, post-harvest handling, grading and packing, cold-chain logistics, and export-oriented agribusiness, serving domestic customers and high-value export markets, particularly Singapore and the Middle East. This is a greenfield business with significant capital backing and a mandate to scale rapidly.
Position Overview
The General Manager has full profit-and-loss accountability for the business and provides strategic leadership and end-to-end oversight of operations. Reporting to the Board of Directors, the role translates strategy into measurable results across production and R&D, projects and infrastructure, commercial, quality, supply chain, and corporate services. The General Manager is accountable for profitability, scalable growth, operational excellence, governance, and domestic and international market expansion.
Key Responsibilities
- Strategy and Business Leadership: Develop and execute the company's long-term strategy, annual business plan, budgets, departmental objectives, and KPIs; deliver revenue, profitability, yield, growth, and market-expansion targets approved by the Board
- Operations and Commercial: Oversee production, R&D, projects, post-harvest operations, QA/QC, supply chain, logistics, and commercial performance; align crop and production planning with demand forecasts and customer requirements; drive domestic and export-market growth, with particular focus on Singapore and the Middle East
- Financial Management: Prepare and present budgets, forecasts, investment proposals, and business cases to the Board; monitor profitability, margins, unit economics, and cash flow; manage CAPEX and OPEX
- Governance, Risk and Sustainability: Maintain strong corporate governance, statutory compliance, and enterprise-risk management; ensure compliance with food-safety, product-integrity, ESG, and sustainability requirements, including MyGAP, GlobalG.A.P., HACCP, and Halal where applicable
- People Leadership: Build and develop a high-performing leadership team suited to a greenfield, fast-scaling venture
Qualifications
- 15+ years of leadership experience, including 5+ years in senior management with P&L ownership in agribusiness, FMCG, plantations, or fresh produce
- Fluent in spoken and written Mandarin (required - role involves joint-venture partner engagement)
- Bachelor's degree required; relevant postgraduate qualifications are an advantage
- Willing to be based in Kulai, Johor (relocation support available for the right candidate)
- Experience in greenfield ventures, joint ventures, or scaling an early-stage operation is strongly preferred
- Exposure to export markets (Singapore, Middle East) and international food-safety certifications is an advantage
Compensation
RM200,000 - RM300,000 per year, commensurate with experience.
How to Apply
- Submit your application through this posting. All applications will be treated in strict confidence. Shortlisted candidates will be contacted by Nucleus Advisory.