Executive summary
Group CFO and currently Group COO with 17 years of GCC senior finance leadership, including IPO-readiness currently underway at Al-Suhail Holdings. Track record of taking a sub-scale, founder-run regional FMCG distribution group and rebuilding it into a public-market-ready platform: group consolidation in D+4 under IFRS, EBITDA margin expansion from 6.8% to 11.2% on a $400M+ revenue base, three M&A integration closes totalling $86M EV, and a $4.2M SAP S/4 rollout across six jurisdictions delivered on plan. INSEAD MBA, UAE-licensed CPA.
The role described in this brief is the role I am currently being prepared for inside Al-Suhail — at a similar scale and with the same listing horizon. I am open to executing it for your group instead.
Most-relevant experience
Group COO (promoted from Group CFO) — Al-Suhail Holdings, Dubai
2020 – present
Family-owned FMCG distribution group, $480M revenue, 6 jurisdictions, 1,400 FTE.
IPO-readiness and governance (current mandate)
- Leading the IPO-readiness workstream — DFM listing scoped, KPMG and Latham appointed. Built the group reporting architecture, audit committee charter, and 5-quarter P&L outlook now used as the Board reporting primary planning document.
- Reset audit relationship to a Big Four firm (Deloitte) with sharper scope at $620K, down from $890K under the previous auditor.
- Built the consolidated group reporting from scratch — three historical years restated to IFRS, close cycle compressed from D+18 to D+4.
Margin and working capital
- Took group EBITDA margin from 6.8% to 11.2% in 24 months — P&L ownership across multi-country GCC consolidation.
- Released $38M of working capital over three years (inventory 84 → 61; DSO 71 → 54).
- Refinanced a $60M facility at 175 bps tighter; saved $2.1M/year. Treasury and cash-pooling restructure across 6 entities.
M&A and integration
- Deal lead on the $46M-EV acquisition of a KSA personal-care distributor — DD through SPA through integration of 220 FTE. $7.4M synergy run-rate by month 14 vs $6.0M plan.
- Closed and integrated a $28M-EV Jeddah subcontractor and a $12M-EV captive grocery brand.
ERP and finance transformation
- Delivered the $4.2M SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud rollout across six jurisdictions in 14 months, on budget — decommissioned 11 legacy systems. Built GCC-wide VAT GCC compliance reporting layer.
VP Finance and Strategy — Gulf Industrial Partners, Riyadh
2016 – 2020
- Restored unqualified audit opinion at a $260M-revenue group that had not closed a clean audit in three years.
- Led the carve-out and sale of the non-core plant-leasing arm for $34M (1.8× initial valuation).
- Negotiated a $90M syndicated facility at 65 bps below prior.
Head of FP&A — Emirates Mall Co., Abu Dhabi
2013 – 2016
- Re-tenanting programme lifted blended yield from 6.2% to 7.9% on 280,000 sqm GLA.
- Closed a $12M-EV captive-tenant acquisition in 4 months from LOI.
Manager, Audit and Assurance — Deloitte Middle East
2008 – 2013
Big Four audit foundation. Portfolio included a $300M-revenue regional FMCG group (same industry and structure as Al-Suhail). Trained 22 associates; regional manager-of-the-year, 2012.
Capability map against this mandate
- 15+ years GCC senior finance: 17 years across UAE/KSA.
- IFRS / listed-company / IPO-readiness: Active IPO-readiness lead at Al-Suhail; KPMG + Latham appointed.
- M&A at deal-lead level: Three closes, $86M total EV; one carve-out at 1.8×.
- ERP transformation: $4.2M SAP S/4HANA rollout, 14 months, on plan, 6 entities.
- Margin and working-capital discipline: 440 bps EBITDA expansion; $38M WC release.
- CPA / top-tier MBA / Arabic: UAE CPA; INSEAD MBA; Arabic native.
Education and credentials
MBA, INSEAD · 2016 · Singapore + Fontainebleau
BSc Finance, Magna Cum Laude · American University of Beirut · 2008
CPA (UAE-licensed) · CFA Level II passed · Prosci Change Management Practitioner
Arabic (native) · English (fluent, board-level) · French (B2) · Russian (B1)
References available on request.