- Respected Global US MNC
- Fast tracked career progression
- Location: Johor, Malaysia (site-based)
- Level: Director (scope to appoint at Senior Director for an exceptional candidate)
- Competitive industry remuneration package
The opportunity
Our client is a global tier-one equipment OEM supplying the advanced technology manufacturing sector. Its Johor facility is a greenfield operation that has gone from a standing start to full production in a remarkably short period — and it is still accelerating.
The trajectory is the story here. The site ramped from zero, has multiplied its quarterly output several times over in the space of a year, and has further manufacturing capacity already being installed. Within the next two years it is expected to account for a very significant share of the group's total global manufacturing capacity, making it one of the most important facilities in the company's worldwide network.
We are retained to appoint the senior Materials Management leader for that operation.
This is a rare combination: the resourcing, systems and brand of a global tier-one OEM, with the pace, autonomy and build-it-yourself character of a young site. The person who takes this role will be building the Materials organisation that has to support a factory doubling in scale, not administering one that has already settled.
Why this role matters more than a standard site Materials Director position
Three things separate this from a conventional factory materials role:
- Scale of growth. The site's output has grown several-fold in successive quarters, with further expansion already funded and underway. Materials is the constraint function in that equation — supply continuity, planning accuracy and materials flow determine how fast the factory can actually go.
- Breadth of remit. This is not a Purchasing Director role with planning attached, nor a Planning Director role with buyers attached. It is genuine end-to-end Materials Management: planning, procurement, logistics, trade compliance and materials flow, brought together as one integrated function.
- Succession intent. The client is explicit that this appointment is a route to future site leadership. The intended path is Director, Materials → broader Manufacturing / Operations leadership → Site Leader / General Manager. They are prepared to recognise candidates who bring credible succession potential alongside the functional depth.
- Scope of the role
You will lead the site's entire Materials organisation — approximately 100 people across three main functional groups — with direct reports at Manager and Senior Manager level.
Planning & scheduling
Factory master scheduling and production planning.
Materials planning and MRP integrity.
Alignment of demand, manufacturing capacity and supply into an executable schedule.
Shipping and delivery coordination against customer commitments.
Procurement & purchasing
Site-level procurement strategy and execution.
Leadership of the factory buying organisation across a substantial and rapidly growing spend base.
Supplier performance, escalation and continuity of supply in a constrained, long-lead-time environment.
Cost, inventory and working capital performance.
Logistics, materials flow & trade compliance
End-to-end materials flow leadership across the factory.
Inbound and outbound logistics coordination.
Licensed Manufacturing Warehouse (LMW) responsibilities.
Import/export and trade compliance governance.
Organisation building
Build a future-ready Materials team capable of supporting a materially larger factory — structure, capability, bench strength and succession.
Install the operating cadence, KPIs and disciplines that hold as volume scales.
Balance of the role: approximately 75% operational execution, 25% strategic. The structures exist; the growth rate means execution and operational discipline are what count right now. This is a hands-on, on-the-floor leadership position.
Candidate profile
The essential requirement is genuine breadth. The client needs someone who has led across the full Materials spectrum, not a specialist in one part of it:
Planning + Procurement/Purchasing + Materials + Logistics + Factory Operations
You will be leading experienced Planning, Purchasing, Logistics and Trade Compliance managers. You need enough functional credibility to lead all of them.
Manufacturing environment — what transfers well
- Semiconductor equipment OEMs (strongly preferred, though not mandatory).
- Contract manufacturers and EMS businesses supporting semiconductor, industrial or complex equipment accounts.
- Complex industrial equipment manufacturing.
- Precision and engineered-to-order manufacturing.
- High-mix, lower-volume production environments.
- Medical equipment, diagnostics or comparably complex engineered manufacturing.
Seniority
There is real flexibility on level. The client will consider:
A strong Senior Manager ready for a first Director appointment.
An established Director-level Materials or Supply Chain leader seeking greater scope and a bigger platform.
An ambitious operator with clear runway to progress beyond this role.
Candidates who have moved across Materials, Supply Chain, Procurement, Engineering and Operations may well be stronger here than someone who has spent an entire career narrowly within planning — breadth is valued precisely because of the succession intent.
Location
Thiss is a Johor site-based leadership role or could be remote for an exceptional candidate.
Malaysian candidates strongly preferred; Johor-based candidates naturally well placed.
Relocation from Penang is entirely viable and actively welcomed — the client recognises Penang as a deep talent pool for this profile.
KL-based candidates will be considered with relocation.
Singapore-based candidates are genuinely open, including those willing to commute into Johor (an early or reverse commute works well in practice). Candidates will need to demonstrate a credible, sustainable commitment to being on site.
Package
Competitive Director-level package, benchmarked to attract senior manufacturing and supply chain leadership talent in Malaysia. The client has indicated flexibility above the standard band for candidates who combine the required functional depth with genuine site leadership potential. Relocation support available.