Interim Chief Financial Officer

This interim CFO assignment supports a mid-sized manufacturing business through a concentrated period of financial and operational improvement. The successful candidate will rapidly assess the numbers, identify areas of concern, and establish greater financial discipline and transparency across the organisation.

Key priorities include reviewing manufacturing costing, inventory valuation and margin accuracy, building PE-grade management reporting, and strengthening monthly P&L processes, forecasting and cash flow visibility. The role also involves partnering with senior leadership to surface commercially meaningful financial insights and address underlying operational issues.

• Review manufacturing costing, inventory valuation and margin accuracy across the business.
• Establish robust, PE-grade management reporting with clear visibility of performance and profitability.
• Strengthen monthly P&L processes, forecasting, cash flow visibility and financial controls.
• Identify and address underlying financial and operational issues affecting the business.
• Partner with senior leadership to deliver accurate, timely and commercially relevant financial insights.

• Significant senior finance leadership experience within manufacturing is essential.
• Strong technical understanding of manufacturing costing, inventory and operational finance.
• Experience establishing investor-grade reporting, ideally within PE-backed or similarly rigorous environments.
• Demonstrated success in interim, turnaround or business improvement assignments.
• Pragmatic, hands-on approach with the ability to deliver results quickly.
• Immediate or near-immediate availability with a local base in Cairns, QLD.

Emu Search is an Australian executive search and advisory firm placing senior finance, operations and commercial leaders into interim and permanent roles. The firm works with businesses across a range of sectors requiring high-calibre, deployment-ready executives.