Head - Financial Planning & Analysis - CA/CPA/CMA

Description: This is a numbers + narrative + action role: not just reporting what happened, but explaining why, forecasting whats next, and driving decisions to improve revenue, utilization, cost, and margins. Key Outcomes (What success looks like): - A robust FP&A rhythm: forecast accuracy, monthly accountability, and predictable margin delivery - Executive-grade MIS dashboards (Revenue, GM/EBITDA, utilization, realization, cost levers, cash conversion) - Clear costing and profitability by customer / project / practice / location / delivery model - Strong governance on budgeting, rolling forecasts, and headcount planning - Business partnering that tangibly improves pricing discipline, margin, bench, and cost efficiency - High-quality business cases for capex, large deals, build-vs-buy, and strategic initiatives Responsibilities: 1) FP&A Leadership: Budgeting, Forecasting, Planning - Lead annual AOP, quarterly reforecasts, and monthly rolling forecasts (revenue, margin, headcount, opex, capex). - Build driver-based models for IT services: bookings pipeline revenue conversion, utilization, realization, mix, onsite/offshore, subcontractors, bench. - Ensure tight alignment of plans with business strategy and delivery capacity. 2) MIS & Performance Management (Operating Cadence) - Own monthly close-to-MIS process: dashboards, variance analysis, flash reporting, and leadership readouts. - Establish weekly/monthly performance reviews with BU leaders: commitments, gaps, actions, owners, timelines. - Upgrade reporting from financial statements to decision analytics. 3) Business Finance Partnering (Revenue, Margin, Cost) - Partner with Sales to improve: pricing, discount governance, deal margin, and contract economics. - Partner with Delivery/Operations to drive: utilization, pyramid optimization, bench control, subcontractor governance, and productivity. - Institutionalize account/project profitability reviews and margin improvement plans. 4) Costing, Unit Economics & Analytics - Build and continuously improve costing frameworks: project costing, standard cost cards, role rates, location costs, burdening. - Own analytics on gross margin bridge (rate, utilization, mix, leakage, attrition, subcontracting, unbilled, write-offs). - Drive insights on client concentration, practice performance, cohort analysis, and productivity metrics. 5) Strategic Finance & Business Cases - Lead business cases for capex, office/SEZ decisions, tools/platform investments, automation/AI initiatives, and large strategic programs. - Support CFO/CEO with board-level narratives: what happened / what changes / what we will do. 6) Governance, Controls & Cross-functional Alignment - Set up planning governance with HR (workforce planning), procurement (vendor costs), IT (tooling spend), and delivery (capacity). - Drive accountability culture: targets owners actions tracking. 7) Team & Capability Building - Build and mentor an FP&A team across MIS, analytics, and business partnering. - Introduce automation/BI where needed (Power BI/Tableau, Anaplan/Adaptive-like planning approaches, strong Excel/SQL foundations). Key Interfaces: - Internal: CEO, CFO, BU Heads, Sales/Pre-sales, Delivery Leaders, HR, Procurement, IT, Finance Controller - External: Auditors/consultants (as needed), benchmarking partners, tools/vendors for BI/planning Ideal Candidate Profile: Experience: - 10-16 years in FP&A / Business Finance / Corporate Finance, with at least 57 years in IT Services / Tech Services / Product Engineering services / Digital & Cloud services. - Proven track record in margin management and partnering with Sales + Delivery. - Experience working in a mid-sized or scaled-up environment (PE-backed / high-growth a plus). Must-have functional strengths: - Built/owned MIS and performance dashboards for leadership (not just monthly decksan operating system). - Strong in costing and unit economics (project costing, rate cards, utilization, realization, bench/subcon drivers). - Budgeting + forecasting expertise: driver-based models, scenario planning, and forecast accuracy improvement. - Ability to create high-quality business cases (NPV/IRR, sensitivity analysis, ROI narratives). Skills: - Exceptional Excel/financial modeling; strong PowerPoint storytelling - BI/analytics comfort: Power BI/Tableau, SQL basics (preferred), and ability to structure data for insights - Strong stakeholder management; can challenge and influence senior leaders - Executive presence, crisp communication, and an owner mindset Education: - CA / MBA (Finance) / CPA / CMA preferred (strong experience can compensate)