Many roads might potentially lead to the top job in finance, but only select professionals will get there.
Recently settled into his current position as group treasurer at Indonesian conglomerate Astra International, Andrew Ling is tasked with helming the finances of one of the country’s largest public companies.
‘If I were to ask my younger self where I would be in twenty years’ time, I would never have imagined myself where I am now,’ says the Malaysian national. ‘Looking back makes me cherish the twists and turns in my career, buoyed by the many mentors and friends I have made along the way who made it possible for me to come this far. I am inspired to achieve greater heights in the next chapter of my career.’
Boosting prospects
Ling’s career path began in 2004 as an associate at EY Kuala Lumpur, later moving into a senior associate role. Crediting his father with the foresight to send his son to a Chinese-language primary school, Ling’s fluency in both Cantonese and Mandarin led to a transfer to EY Hong Kong. ‘I didn’t ever envisage leaving Malaysia,’ he says.
In Hong Kong, Ling’s supervisor advised him to boost his career prospects with a professional qualification, on top of his tertiary degree in finance.
‘I chose ACCA, which is globally recognised and, in Malaysia, one of the most prestigious and widely known accounting qualifications,’ he says.
‘The lesson learned was that I needed to not take things for granted’
Studying after work proved challenging and, to the surprise of this hitherto scholastic high achiever, Ling failed two papers on his first attempt – one of them twice. ‘That was a humbling moment,’ he says. ‘The lesson learned was that I needed to put in more effort and not take things for granted.’
CV
2025
Chief of group treasury, Astra International, Indonesia
2021
CFO and director, Tunas Ridean (Tunas Group), Indonesia
2019
Group finance director, Jardine Restaurant Group, Hong Kong
2017
Finance director, Pizza Hut Hong Kong and Macau, Jardine Restaurant Group
2016
Head of corporate finance, Jardine Restaurant Group – Hong Kong and new markets
2014
Corporate finance manager, Jardine Pacific, Hong Kong
2008
Associate director, corporate restructuring and insolvency, EY Hong Kong (previously senior associate, EY Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)
With a decade of experience and ACCA’s globally recognised credentials on his CV, Ling had the opportunity to join British multinational conglomerate Jardine Matheson through its Corporate Finance Manager programme, which develops the group’s future CFO talents.
‘During the interview the recruiter emphasised that a lot of movement would be required across the APAC region, so they needed someone who could be quite mobile,’ he says, adding that this would be a significant shift for someone who had not intended to travel outside his home country.
Culture shift
Ling’s initial appointment as corporate finance manager at Jardine Pacific in Hong Kong would pave the way to the C-suite. However, the first six months were, he recalls, the toughest of his professional life.
‘I had to slowly work my way up, earning small wins and gaining recognition’
‘Switching from EY to corporate was so different in terms of both the work we do and the company’s culture,’ he says. ‘It was a steep learning curve getting myself up and running. I felt that I knew nothing, that I was a nobody – I had to slowly work my way up, earning small wins and gaining recognition.’
Progressing to Pizza Hut in Hong Kong and Macau honed Ling’s operational finance experience, leading to his promotion in 2019 to group finance director of Jardine Restaurant Group (operating over 900 Pizza Hut and KFC outlets in Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Vietnam and Myanmar) and broadening his regional exposure.
There, he led a zero-based cost transformation project that increased the company’s EBITDA by over US$9m in year one, with over US$20m in annual run rate improvement.
Stepping up
Then came an offer, in 2021, to move to Tunas Group (a public company and Jardine joint venture) as director and CFO. It wasn’t the best of times; the Covid-19 pandemic had begun, and Ling and his accountant wife had a young child, with a second on the way.
Astra International Indonesia
1957
Year founded
199,164
Number of employees
7
Core businesses, including automotive, financial services and property
300
Number of subsidiaries, joint ventures and associates
2.63m
Number of beneficiaries from Astra’s community initiatives
‘Global mobility comes with a set of challenges, no doubt – relocating the family being the main one,’ he says. ‘However, when opportunity comes it’s hard to let it go. You just need to double down and manage the risk as part of the process.’
Tunas, the largest independent automotive dealer group in Indonesia, was Ling’s introduction to the compliance requirements of a listed company, and also to the automotive industry and Indonesia as a market. Within a year, the company was privatised, with Ling leading the privatisation through a share buyback programme. The scope of his remit as CFO broadened to risk management and IT, with a focus on cybersecurity. ‘I had to pick that up quickly,’ he says.
Transformational focus
Ling also established a transformation office at Tunas. ‘I recognise that a lot more can be done to optimise business through automation and at the same time uplifting the team,’ he says. ‘Using automation tools to replace manual processes and streamline back-office processes, we saw the finance team’s productivity improve by over 40%.’
At Astra, a new set of challenges await Ling as he now shifts to a different capacity. The role, taken up as part of a future CFO talent programme offered by the Jardine group, is an opportunity for Ling to develop competencies in managing liquidity, investments, and risks, which are critical for corporate financial health and strategic goals.
‘Fundamentally, my new position is to optimise the capital structure of the organisation, including implementing funding strategies to support business operation and growth and financial risk management,’ he says.
‘Wherever I go, I’m a big believer in the team’
Ling also intends to support individual business units to increase their performance, involving more collaboration between the finance and treasury teams.
‘Wherever I go, I’m a big believer in the team,’ he says. ‘I like to be the person who elevates the team, through training, motivation, coaching and mentoring, helping talents to develop and seeing them grow.’
ACCA advocate
That thinking extends to Ling’s advocacy for ACCA. ‘As a CFO I need to be technically sound. ACCA provides updates important to keeping abreast of local developments, and membership gives me access to networking with likeminded professionals,’ he says.
‘I purposely put myself into uncomfortable positions to see how I respond and react’
‘In Indonesia, where ACCA is still growing, I am happy to be part of the member panel, coming together to discuss what we can do for ACCA, such as organising events and seminars to enhance the cohesiveness of the members and to grow ACCA.’
On every step of the journey so far, Ling has ‘learnt to be a better CFO’. He’s not done yet.
‘I purposely put myself into uncomfortable positions to see how I respond and react, and to learn,’ he says.
‘My vision is to be a CFO who can have high impact in an organisation and for its stakeholders. To be that, I feel I need to be more rounded, and to build certain skillsets that I do not have. I do this by taking on new initiatives and assignments, learning more along the way.’
