Aaron Weller

Pepper Labs is a Malaysian social enterprise ( https://pepperlabs.my/ ) with 11 years of expertise focused on driving inclusive growth through talent development, digital upskilling, and community empowerment. We partner with governments, corporates and global institutions to deliver workforce transformation initiatives particularly in areas like AI, digital skills, and employability while leveraging technology to create sustainable social and economic impact across Malaysia.

Lead APAC talent acquisition and HR operations across Malaysia, Singapore, and Hong Kong, delivering end-to-end recruitment, workforce advisory, and payroll governance. Progressed from Associate Consultant to Senior Consultant within the consultative talent environment, before transitioning into a separate HR & Talent Business Partner – Key Accounts role in Hexa Business Group focused on client delivery, stakeholder alignment, and account growth. 𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: Talent Acquisition & Delivery:  Delivered end-to-end APAC hiring across 3 markets, achieving a 3:1 CV-to-placement ratio and 94.6% fill rate.  Secured 30 recruitment mandates from a single client engagement (~MYR 900K total contract value), expanding account penetration and revenue.  Built a 700+ niche talent pipeline and 23,500+ LinkedIn network to support rapid sourcing for hard-to-fill roles.  Conducted targeted headhunting and market mapping to improve pipeline quality and candidate-role fit. HR Business Partnering & Advisory:  Partnered with senior stakeholders on workforce planning, hiring strategy, and talent intelligence aligned to business needs.  Advised on compensation benchmarking, talent availability, and market trends across Construction & Infrastructure, Technology, and Financial Services.  Applied structured HRM frameworks to ensure consistent, compliant, and scalable HR delivery. Account Management & Operations:  Managed multi-country APAC client portfolios, aligning hiring priorities, timelines, and service expectations.  Oversaw ~50 external consultants across multiple sites, generating ~MYR 3.0M annual revenue / MYR 600K gross profit while maintaining workforce continuity and payroll accuracy.  Led contract lifecycle management to ensure compliance with client policies and local regulations.  Supervised HR, payroll, and admin teams to drive performance, service quality, and operational efficiency. Data-Driven Optimisation:  HR analytics & Power BI.

Led APAC & EMEA shared services operations covering financial reporting, payroll accounting, and workforce cost management, progressing from Finance & HR Payroll Analyst to General Accountant – Team Lead within a multi-entity global environment. 𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: HR–Finance Collaboration & Workforce Planning:  Partnered with HR and Finance stakeholders to enhance workforce cost visibility, supporting headcount planning, budgeting, and forecasting across APAC & EMEA.  Acted as a key liaison between HR, Finance, and Operations, ensuring alignment on workforce costs, payroll data integrity, and organisational reporting.  Supported workforce planning initiatives by providing insights into employee cost structures, headcount trends, and budget utilisation. Payroll & Workforce Cost Governance:  Oversaw payroll accounting across multiple countries, ensuring alignment between HR systems and financial reporting outputs.  Strengthened payroll related controls, accruals, and employee cost allocations to improve reporting accuracy and compliance.  Ensured integrity of workforce cost data to support business decision-making and audit requirements. Financial Operations & Reporting:  Led month-end and year-end close processes across APAC & EMEA, ensuring timely and accurate financial reporting.  Maintained balance sheet integrity, including payroll related accounts and employee benefit provisions.  Supported internal and external audits, ensuring compliance with reporting standards and internal controls. Leadership & Process Optimisation:  Managed and developed a regional accounting team, driving cross-functional collaboration with HR, Finance, and Operations.  Contributed to process standardisation and continuous improvement, enhancing operational efficiency, reporting consistency, and data accuracy.

Developed skills in 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘀𝗶𝘀, and 𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 applicable to HR and consulting roles. (𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝘅𝗲𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗱: 9 ACCA papers, 8 CIMA papers, 8 CPA papers)

Built 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀, 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲, and 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄𝗹𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲 to support HR advisory and consultancy expertise.