‘Business as usual’ is the antithesis of Sunil Rajamony’s professional mindset. On the contrary, at the vanguard of global business services (GBS), a next-generation driver of enterprise value and business outcomes, the GBS director at Huntsman’s days are filled with contemplating ways to challenge the status quo.
US-based Rajamony regards the transition of GBS from back-office cost centre to strategic function as ‘one of the most important business services stories of the last decade’.
‘GBS is a very exciting space because it sits right at the centre of how organisations are evolving,’ he says. ‘It touches process, technology, people, governance, analytics and business performance all at once. That means GBS offers a unique platform for finance professionals who want to be part of meaningful organisational change, rather than only one functional slice of it.’
‘The wide range of capabilities reflects the shift to a genuinely integrated GBS environment’
As a global manufacturer of speciality chemicals, US-headquartered Huntsman is behind countless consumer and industrial products that are part of everyday life, from energy-saving insulation and comfort foam for bedding and furniture to advanced materials for aircraft, automobiles and electrical power transmission.
Global outlook
Rajamony joined the company in 2007, his ACCA ‘global passport’ enabling his relocation from home base Kuala Lumpur to Belgium to accept a position as corporate internal auditor.
After four years he returned to Malaysia, by then on its way to recognition as one of Asia’s most dynamic business hubs.
Huntsman’s Malaysian GBS hub serves both global and Asia Pacific needs, including accounting, credit, treasury, human resources, internal audit, purchasing, global reporting and analytics, legal, corporate communications, supply chain and customer service, AI and automation. ‘What started with more traditional shared services activity, including internal audit and accounting shared services, has since expanded into a much broader multifunction model,’ Rajamony explains. ‘The wide range of capabilities supported today reflects the shift to a genuinely integrated GBS environment.’
Digital challenge
GBS has also become much more digitally enabled, he continues. ‘AI is becoming increasingly integrated into the business services sector, but I would describe the current stage as practical and evolving, rather than fully mature. There is a lot of excitement in the market, but the most effective organisations are approaching it in a disciplined way, focusing on where AI and digital tools can create tangible business value.
‘I see AI not as a standalone trend but as part of a broader shift in operating model design’
‘At Huntsman, our focus includes intelligent automation, AI, digital skills empowerment and the development of stronger digital capabilities. We are also building those digital capabilities alongside continuous improvement and process discipline, because technology on its own is not enough. If the underlying process is weak or sub-optimal, automating it only scales the weakness, making bad processes run faster.’
CV
2024
Global business services director, Huntsman Corporation (Malaysia/US)
2021
Hub leader and director, accounting, APAC, Huntsman (previously appointed director, accounting, in 2019)
2013
Global internal audit quality manager and internal audit manager, Asia, Huntsman
2007
Corporate internal auditor, Huntsman (Belgium)
2006
Asia financial planning and analyst, General Electric Oil and Gas
2004
Assistant audit manager, Sime Darby
2001
Senior associate, audit and business advisory services, EY/Arthur Andersen
1997
Audit assistant, Abu Bakar Rajudin & Co
Rajamony regards the implication for the future operating model of finance and GBS as significant. ‘I think we are moving from a model centred on transaction processing and functional silos towards one that is more platform-based, more standardised, more data-driven and more automation-enabled,’ he says.
‘Routine work will continue to be simplified, standardised or automated. As that happens, the value of people will increasingly shift toward judgment, business partnering, problem-solving, process design, governance, controls, insight generation and change leadership.
‘For finance professionals in particular, this means the future role is likely to be less about processing and more about interpretation, challenge, decision support and stewardship. For GBS, it means becoming a stronger orchestrator of enterprise capability: combining process, technology, data, control and service in a much more integrated way. So, I see AI not as a standalone trend but as part of a broader shift in operating model design.’
Staying power
From starting his career in practice – including three years with EY – Rajamony moved into the corporate sector. He joined Huntsman in 2007 and, after nearly two decades of advancement leading to senior regional roles, relocated in July 2026 to Houston, Texas, with his supportive wife and two children, to be based at Huntsman’s headquarters.
‘You learn to appreciate local realities while also thinking in enterprise terms’
The move ‘represents continuity and progression’, he says. ‘My work is already global in nature, and that will continue. But operating more directly in another major Huntsman environment will broaden my perspective further both as a person and as a leader.
‘The US role will continue to involve GBS leadership, stakeholder partnership, transformation and delivery, but with the additional benefit of being close to key stakeholders.’
A different lens
One of the biggest benefits of diverse functional and geographic exposure is that it changes the lens through which business is viewed.
‘It helps you move beyond a narrow silo and understand how different parts of an organisation connect,’ Rajamony explains. ‘You learn to appreciate local realities while also thinking in enterprise terms. You become more adaptable, more culturally aware, and more effective at stakeholder management.’
Huntsman
60+
Number of manufacturing, research and development and operations facilities
3
Core business divisions: advanced materials, performance products and polyurethanes
2005
Year publicly listed on the New York Stock Exchange
25
Number of countries where Huntsman has a presence
6,000+
Number of employees
US$5.68bn
Revenue in 2025
For finance professionals especially, he regards that kind of exposure as extremely valuable.
‘Finance is often seen as a technical discipline, but leadership in finance and GBS increasingly requires commercial understanding, change agility, cross-cultural fluency and the ability to operate across multiple stakeholders and functions. International experience accelerates that learning in a very real way.’
Strong foundations
After completing university, where he was named the best accounting graduate of his cohort, Rajamony pursued ACCA studies, which he describes as ‘a bit like the professional “holy grail”: challenging, prestigious and globally recognised. I wanted to prove to myself that I could achieve it.’
The portability of the ACCA qualification matters, but Rajamony frames it more broadly. ‘ACCA has been valuable to me not only because it enabled mobility, but because it helped build the kind of foundation that travels well: technical capability, credibility, ethics, adaptability and a global professional mindset.’
One of the biggest lessons learned from his professional journey so far is the importance of staying open to opportunities that may not fit an original plan perfectly.
‘Some of the most significant steps in my career came from taking on roles that stretched me or moved me into new environments,’ Rajamony says. ‘At the time, they may not have felt predictable or comfortable, but they proved to be the right growth experiences.’
