seeing clearly – acting wisely

Engeler Interim Finance

Bridging vacancies and stabilization
International integration and divestiture projects
Restructuring and digitalization

Lars Engeler – Interim CFO

Trusted by mid-sized international companies to ensure operational and financial stability during transformation and transition periods.

About me Contact LinkedIn

With over 30 years of international experience in specialist and leadership roles, I have founded my own “Interim CFO” business to share the expertise and insights I have acquired throughout my career.

I have worked as a controller, auditor, credit manager, project manager and CFO in large corporations, mid-sized companies, and private equity backed “buy and build” ventures in several countries.

About

Guided by “seeing clearly – acting wisely”,

I combine a profound understanding of the entire value chain with a quick grasp of processes, structures, markets and people to drive sustainable progress for organizations.

years of professional experience and multiple tenures as Managing Director
distinct finance and management roles (incl. 5× CFO, 4× Controller)
different companies
years studying or working abroad
different countries of residence
Fluent in 5 languages (German, English, Spanish, French, Portuguese)

Service Offering

I specialize in supporting mid-sized, internationally active companies (€30–300 million revenue, 30–300 employees) and am fluent in five languages.

My interim management services cover three distinct areas – often overlapping:

  • Covering a CFO vacancy arising from sudden illness, contract termination, or reassignment of the incumbent CFO
  • Ensuring continued operations at a site that is being closed, wound down, or having its activities transferred elsewhere
  • Leading the finance team through periods of turbulence or significant change
  • Managing the year-end closing process, preparing financial statements, coordinating with auditors, tax advisors and legal counsels

  • Carving out and selling off parts of a company
  • Acquiring and integrating companies
  • Merging or liquidating companies
  • Founding subsidiaries or setting up a new site

  • Understanding business needs and defining scope and objectives of a business process improvement or systems implementation project
  • Evaluating suppliers, negotiating contracts
  • Supervising or leading the implementation of new systems and processes
  • Examples: financial planning and reporting systems, BI, ERP, CRM, invoice management & purchase-2-pay, product information systems (PIM), master-data-management (MDM), document management (DMS/ECM) and others
  • Employing Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Clear, proactive communication with all stakeholders is fundamental in every mandate.

I am happy to act as the main contact for external partners such as auditors, tax advisors, accounting and payroll providers, lawyers, insurers, banks, data protection officers, IT and HR service providers.

Project History

PURE

Critical situations require an experienced manager who stabilizes the team and operations while ensuring that key deadlines are met. As in the following cases of my professional career:

  • Interim CFO for the Mexican subsidiary of an international corporation, overseeing the annual closing process
  • Preparation of individual and consolidated financial statements following the sudden illness of the Head of Finance
  • Assumption of customer financing and accounting responsibilities with 40 employees after the abrupt termination of the long-serving manager

PROCESS

I provide end-to-end leadership in digitalization initiatives – from defining business requirements and project goals to supplier assessment, contract negotiation and supporting implementation.

  • ERP: MS 365 BC, e.bootis, SAP S/4, SAP ByD
  • Business Intelligence: Qlik, SAC, SAP-BI
  • Financial reporting and consolidation: LucaNet, Board, Hyperion Financial Management
  • Invoice Management / Purchase-2-Pay: xSuite, tangro
  • Product Information / Master Data Management: Stibo Systems
  • Document Management: Enaio

PROJECT

My career has centered around leading transformational change, restructuring, and business integration in complex environments involving new systems, teams, and processes. For example:

Buy and Build

  • Completed 5 acquisition projects comprising 21 legal entities with employees in 11 European countries to form a pan-European platform for cleanroom-consumables (PE-backed)
  • Managed the acquisition and integration of a US-based online toy retailer
  • Founded a US subsidiary for the distribution of household hardware
  • Merged 5 wholesaler & retail companies (PE-backed) including site closures and construction of a new central warehouse and offices

Integration / Desinvestment

  • Initiated and managed the conversion of a fully-fledged sales subsidiary in Austria into a sales agency entailing local site closure
  • Oversaw department store downsizing and e-commerce upscaling projects in China
  • Integrated 3 subsidiaries into corporate headquarters
  • Implemented production closures and integrated the supply chain in Latin America
  • Sale of a corporate group through a professional bidding process

Professional Experience and Education:

Year

Company

Sector

Ownership

Sales in €

Headcount

Function

2023-2026

Dastex Group, Muggensturm

Cleanroom garments and consumables

PE

160m

300

CFO / Managing Director

2021-2023

HABA Familygroup,
Bad Rodach

Toys, kindergarten furniture, e-commerce

family

360m

2,000

Director Finance & Controlling / CFO

2012-2020

Fissler Group,
Idar Oberstein

Premium cookware

family

250m

800

CFO

2010-2012

Merz Pharma,
Frankfurt am Main

Therapeutics, aesthetics, consumer

family

800m

2,500

Director Group Controlling

2007-2008

KMS Group,
Mönchengladbach

Hairdressing supplies, wholesale and retail

PE

80m

400

CFO / Managing Director

2004-2007

Procter & Gamble, Darmstadt

Consumer goods (acquired the Wella group in 2003)

listed

70bn

70,000

Director Business Development & Special Assignments

2000-2004

Wella Argentina,
Buenos Aires

Production and distribution of hair cosmetics

listed

30m

320

CFO

1998-2000

Wella Brasil,
Rio de Janeiro

Regional Management Latin America

listed

270m

Regional Controller

1994-1998

Wella Group

Global hair cosmetics business (professional and consumer)

listed

3,4bn

17,000

Various finance functions

1993-1994

University of Ottawa

Accelerated MBA Program

MBA

1989-1993

ESB Reutlingen

Integrated study program in European Business Administration, London – Reutlingen

BA (Honours) + Dipl.-Betriebswirt (FH)

Contact

Contact me to discuss how I can help your company navigate transitions and achieve financial excellence.