Company: Confidential listed defence-electronics and mission-systems company
Board base: Bengaluru, Karnataka
Sector: Radar, electronic warfare, communications and mission electronics
Appointment: Independent Director, Non-Executive
Intended committees: Risk, Technology & Programme Assurance Committee Chair; member, Audit Committee
Time commitment: 30–36 days annually, including secure programme and manufacturing reviews
Application deadline: 27 September 2026
Expected appointment: December 2026
Company context
The company designs, integrates and supports high-reliability electronic systems for defence, aerospace and homeland-security customers. Revenue is generated through development contracts, production programmes, upgrades, lifecycle support and selected exports. Its order book includes fixed-price, milestone and cost-reimbursable elements involving government customers, technology partners and specialised suppliers.
Market hint: A southern engineering base, radar and communications capability, strategic public-sector relationships and rising private-sector exports may suggest several Indian defence-electronics groups. Programme, service and customer identities remain confidential.
Board mandate
The director will govern the conversion of strategic technology and headline order book into deliverable, cash-generative programmes without compromising national security, ethics or product reliability.
Strategic priorities
- Establish programme baselines for technical maturity, scope, schedule, cost, cash, testing, acceptance, liquidated damages and customer dependencies.
- Separate firm order book, options, development potential, nominated work and management pipeline in all Board and public disclosures.
- Require independent estimate-at-completion and schedule confidence for material fixed-price and development programmes.
- Govern configuration, software, component obsolescence, counterfeit parts, traceability, secure coding, test evidence and field changes.
- Protect classified information and controlled technology through clearance, need-to-know, facilities, suppliers, remote access, travel and incident response.
- Review offset, localisation and indigenous-content claims against contractual definitions, evidence, supplier reality and penalty exposure.
- Govern exports through end-use, end-user, country, sanctions, licensing, re-export, technical support and anti-bribery assessment.
- Challenge single-source and small-supplier risk, long-lead electronics, foreign-content dependence and lifecycle spares.
- Review government receivables, milestone certification, advances, guarantees, claims, warranty and inventory ageing with Audit.
- Build succession for chief architects, programme directors, security leaders, test engineers and cleared specialists.
Decisions expected at Board level
- Whether to bid a strategic fixed-price programme before requirements and interfaces stabilise.
- Whether revenue recognition is supportable when acceptance evidence or customer dependencies remain incomplete.
- Whether an export opportunity creates unacceptable end-use, sanctions or reputation risk.
- Whether a field reliability issue requires fleet action before customer causality is agreed.
- Whether technology partnership terms provide genuine sovereignty or long-term dependence.
Candidate profile
Essential: Former defence, aerospace, high-reliability electronics, government programme or regulated technology CEO/COO/CTO/CFO, programme leader, regulator or Board director; programme and systems-engineering judgement; classified security; contracting, cost and export risk.
Preferred: radar/electronic warfare, defence procurement, software assurance, export controls, Audit/Risk Committee chairing, international defence partnerships.
Eligibility and conflicts
Active IICA Databank registration and verified test/exemption status are mandatory. Security and fit checks may apply. Candidates must disclose government, armed-forces, PSU, supplier, foreign-principal, intermediary, adviser, auditor, competitor and controlled-technology relationships.
First-year outcomes
- Independent programme and order-book assurance.
- Board-owned classified-technology and supplier-security controls.
- Export decisions supported by end-use and sanctions evidence.
- Reliable cost, cash, acceptance and warranty visibility.
- Succession for critical technical and cleared roles.