The CFO & Head – Finance & Accounts will serve as both a strategic business partner and a hands-on operational leader in a pharmaceutical manufacturing startup. This role is accountable for building, governing, and scaling the entire finance function—from ground-up process setup to strategic financial leadership.
The incumbent will ensure financial discipline, statutory compliance, and robust internal controls while enabling business growth, operational efficiency, and investor confidence.
Role Objective
- Build a compliant, audit-ready, and scalable finance organization.
- Act as a strategic advisor to leadership on growth, investments, and risk.
- Ensure strong financial governance while actively managing day-to-day finance operations.
Key Responsibilities
A. Strategic Responsibilities (Leadership & Business Partnering)
1. Financial Strategy & Business Planning
- Define and drive financial strategy aligned with company vision and scale-up plans.
- Lead long-term business planning including capacity expansion, product portfolio, and market entry strategies.
- Evaluate capital investments (plant, machinery) with ROI-based decision frameworks.
- Provide financial insights on pricing strategy and export business.
2. Investor & Fund Management
- Manage banking relationships, working capital funding, and treasury strategy.
- Optimize capital structure and cost of funds.
- Lead fundraising (equity/debt), including investor presentations, valuation, and due diligence in case it is required.
3. Risk Management & Governance
- Identify financial, operational, and regulatory risks (especially pharma compliance risks).
- Establish governance frameworks aligned with board and investor expectations.
- Drive financial transparency and ethical financial practices.
B. Tactical / Operational Responsibilities (Execution & Control)
1. Finance & Accounts Operations (Hands-on)
- Oversee end-to-end accounting: GL, AP, AR, payroll, fixed assets.
- Ensure timely monthly, quarterly, and annual financial closures.
- Maintain books as per applicable accounting standards.
- Personally review key entries, reconciliations, and critical financial reports.
2. Statutory Compliance & Audit Management
- Ensure 100% compliance with:
- Companies Act
- Income Tax (TDS, advance tax, returns)
- GST (returns, reconciliations, audits)
- EOU compliance
- Cost audit (if applicable)
- Lead statutory, internal, and tax audits with zero major observations.
- Maintain compliance calendar and proactively manage deadlines.
3. Costing & Pharma-Specific Financial Control
- Implement product-wise costing (BOM-based costing, batch costing).
- Monitor manufacturing costs including RM, PM, labor, overheads.
- Analyze variances (standard vs actual) and drive cost optimization.
4. Budgeting, MIS & Performance Monitoring
- Develop annual operating plan (AOP) and rolling forecasts.
- Design MIS dashboards covering:
- Plant performance
- Product profitability
- Working capital metrics
- Track actual vs budget and drive accountability across functions.
5. Cash Flow & Working Capital Management
- Closely monitor cash flows, receivables, and payables.
- Optimize inventory levels in coordination with supply chain.
- Ensure liquidity for operations, regulatory payments, and capex.
6. Internal Controls & SOP Implementation
- Design and implement SOPs for all finance processes:
- Procure-to-pay
- Order-to-cash
- Record-to-report
- Establish maker-checker controls and approval hierarchies.
- Ensure audit trails and documentation aligned with pharma compliance expectations.
C. Cross-Functional & Regulatory Interface
- Partner with QA, Regulatory Affairs, and Manufacturing teams to ensure financial alignment with GMP and regulatory expectations.
- Support regulatory submissions involving financial data (where applicable).
- Work with procurement and supply chain on vendor contracts and cost control.
Key Deliverables
- Set up fully functional finance & accounts process.
- Implement ERP with defined processes and controls.
- Establish complete statutory compliance system with zero delays.
- Develop SOP manual for finance function.
- Create cost accounting and product profitability framework.
- Deliver audit-ready financial statements.
Qualifications & Experience
- Chartered Accountant (CA) (preferred) or MBA Finance.
- 12–18 years of experience with at least 5+ years in pharma manufacturing.
- Experience in startup / greenfield setup highly preferred.
- Strong exposure to plant accounting and regulatory compliance.
Key Skills & Competencies
Strategic
- Financial planning & analysis (FP&A)
- Business partnering & decision support
Technical
- Accounting standards
- GST, Income Tax, Companies Act
- EOU/SEZ
- Costing in pharmaceutical manufacturing
Operational
- Hands-on accounting expertise
- ERP implementation & process design
- Strong audit and compliance management
Leadership
- Team building from scratch
- High ownership and execution mindset
- Ability to work in ambiguity and scale operations
Startup-Specific Expectations
- Willingness to operate at both boardroom and ground level
- Ability to build processes with limited resources
- Strong ownership, speed, and problem-solving mindset
- Capability to scale finance function in line with business growth
Job Type: Full-time
Pay: ₹70,000.00 - ₹150,000.00 per month
Benefits:
- Health insurance
- Leave encashment
- Provident Fund
Application Question(s):
- Are you willing to work for 6 days in a week?
Education:
Experience:
- Finance department: 10 years (Required)
Language:
Willingness to travel:
Work Location: In person
