Finance mandate
The company sells building, repair and maintenance products to professional and household customers through stores, distribution and digital ordering. The range includes high-velocity essentials, project-specific goods, bulky products, long-tail parts and supplier-supported categories. Financial performance depends on availability and advice, but also on disciplined buying, inventory accuracy, trade credit, rebates, delivery, returns and claims.
The Board seeks a finance-led Independent Director who can reveal economic value beneath gross sales and accounting margin. Supplier funding, stock rotation, free goods, retrospective rebates, customer credit and project deliveries can shift profit and cash between periods. A store can appear profitable before central inventory, delivery, shrink, credit loss and occupancy are fully allocated.
Eleven finance-oversight questions
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Is gross margin complete? Reconcile invoice price, discounts, rebates, free stock, price protection, freight, damage, returns, warranties, delivery and payment cost by category and channel.
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Is supplier income earned and collectible? Review contractual triggers, measurement, accrual, evidence, allocation and collection. Buying targets should not encourage purchases made mainly to achieve rebates.
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Is inventory physically and commercially real? Govern item identity, unit conversion, location, ownership, consignment, damage, project reservation, returns, obsolete specifications and recoverability.
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Are long-tail and project lines earning their space and cash? Assess demand frequency, service value, minimum order, lead time, holding cost, substitution, return rights and customer dependence.
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Does trade credit create profitable loyalty? Measure limit, utilisation, ageing, collected margin, disputes, security, project exposure and relationship concentration. Sales growth must not conceal credit deterioration.
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Are store economics fully loaded? Include occupancy, staff, shrink, local delivery, shared inventory, central support, digital interaction, credit loss and capex. Mature, ramping and structurally weak stores need separate treatment.
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Does digital ordering improve network returns? Track acquisition, basket, fulfilment source, picking, delivery, cancellation, return, fraud and customer support. Online revenue should not merely transfer margin from stores while adding logistics cost.
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Are project and bulk orders recognised responsibly? Review specification, customer confirmation, delivery evidence, partial fulfilment, site storage, acceptance, returns, retention and cut-off.
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Is shrink understood rather than averaged? Separate theft, breakage, unit-conversion error, receiving variance, wrong issue, fraud, write-off and system error by category and location.
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Does capex improve cash return? Evaluate stores, warehouses, automation, vehicles and technology using throughput, service improvement, inventory reduction, labour, adoption and post-investment evidence.
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Can the balance sheet withstand a building-cycle decline? Stress-test volume, commodity price, markdown, receivables, supplier terms, lease commitments, debt, covenant and liquidity under correlated contraction.
Audit Committee agenda
The Director will lead reviews of supplier rebates, inventory existence and provisioning, customer credit, project cut-off, leases, shrink, related-party procurement, marketplace or digital settlements, warranties, impairment, capex and treasury. Finance and internal audit must have direct access to the Committee Chair.
The Board dashboard should include gross-to-net margin; supplier income accrued and collected; purchase commitments; inventory turns and ageing; damaged and project-reserved stock; shrink; trade receivables and loss; store cohorts; digital fulfilment; returns; delivery cost; lease exposure; capex benefits; working capital; debt and covenant headroom; audit findings; and downside liquidity.
Capital and commercial decisions
The appointee will contribute to store and warehouse expansion, supplier exclusivity, private labels, trade-credit programmes, logistics models, acquisitions, leases, automation, debt and capital return. Each decision should state complete margin, inventory, credit, fixed commitments, cash payback and exit cost.
Acquisitions require item-level inventory diligence, supplier and customer balance confirmation, rebate validity, lease review, shrink history, warranties, licences, tax, litigation and the cost of systems integration.
Candidate profile
Candidates should bring at least 25 years of senior experience across retail finance, distribution, building products, consumer or trade credit, inventory businesses, audit, treasury or large private-company governance. Former CFOs, finance directors, controllers, audit partners, distribution executives and Audit Committee Chairs may be appropriate.
The candidate must be willing to move from consolidated accounts to store shelves, warehouse records and customer balances. Experience with supplier rebates, high-SKU inventory, multi-site profitability, leases, credit, digital retail, acquisitions or restructuring will be valuable.
Eligibility and conflicts
Active inclusion in the IICA Independent Directors Databank is mandatory. The candidate must meet the enterprise's enhanced independence standard. Relationships involving promoter entities, suppliers, manufacturers, contractors, property owners, logistics providers, lenders, insurers, auditors or competitors must be declared.
The Board position may not be used to obtain supply, property, logistics, credit, technology, audit or advisory work for connected parties.
First-year outcome
The Director will begin by reviewing supplier income, category margin, inventory, shrink, trade credit, store cohorts, leases, capex and cash conversion, supported by store and warehouse visits. Within one year, the Board expects verified inventory, collected supplier economics, disciplined credit, fully loaded store profitability and a Finance Function capable of challenging growth before it consumes cash.