Chief Information Officer — Social-Infrastructure Portfolio

The mandate

The investment committee has withheld further expansion pending clarity on renewal of a high-cost and brittle enterprise technology estate within a listed infrastructure developer and asset operator. The immediate arena is the social-infrastructure portfolio during a concession renewal cycle. For mandate 317, the successful executive inherits decisions that have been deferred, competing stakeholder expectations and a need to establish facts before committing further capital.

The Chief Information Officer operating perimeter covers approximately ₹27,850 crore in project and operating-asset portfolio, with activity spanning several social-infrastructure portfolio customer, product and delivery clusters rather than a single asset. The Chief Information Officer Infrastructure remit carries direct influence over roughly 525 colleagues and third-party capacity.

The chair, executive committee and principal capital sponsors want a Chief Information Officer who can convert ambiguity into a short list of explicit choices for the social-infrastructure portfolio. The Chief Information Officer Infrastructure seat must resolve a concession renewal cycle, while preserving the underlying strengths of the social-infrastructure portfolio. For mandate 317, value will come through sharper allocation, stronger leaders and an operating cadence that exposes variance early.

The Chief Information Officer’s first year on the social-infrastructure portfolio is expected to end with service stability, cyber hygiene and transparent technology economics. In mandate 317, authority covers resources and leadership appointments; material trade-offs go directly to the board sponsor.

Why this seat is open

This is an urgent replacement for the Chief Information Officer — Social-Infrastructure Portfolio seat following an accelerated leadership transition. Interim accountability is in place for the social-infrastructure portfolio, but the board wants a permanent appointment within 6–8 weeks because a concession renewal cycle cannot remain under split ownership. The predecessor’s outcome is being handled neutrally and professionally. The external search remains confidential until the preferred candidate and transition plan are agreed.

What you will own

• Set the Chief Information Officer value-creation thesis for the social-infrastructure portfolio, translate it into no more than five enterprise priorities and stop work that does not support them.
• Carry stewardship of approximately ₹27,850 crore in project and operating-asset portfolio, including allocation, risk acceptance and board forecasts.
• Lead the Chief Information Officer Infrastructure organisation of about 525 employees and partners, appointing a team with clear decision rights and credible succession for every critical seat.
• Resolve the social-infrastructure portfolio economics and execution constraints created by a concession renewal cycle, with Chief Information Officer-approved owners, dated milestones and transparent escalation thresholds.
• Establish one Chief Information Officer operating review across commercial, customer, financial, people, technology and risk outcomes for the social-infrastructure portfolio; remove reconciliations that obscure accountability.
• Have owned enterprise service, cyber, architecture and technology economics rather than a single application tower in mandate 317.
• Build the Chief Information Officer’s three-year succession and capability plan for the social-infrastructure portfolio, reducing dependence on individual executives and improving mobility across the wider Infrastructure organisation.

The first 12 months

• Days 1–90: Validate the social-infrastructure portfolio baseline, meet the 30 stakeholders most consequential to renewal of a high-cost and brittle enterprise technology estate, assess the leadership team, stabilise immediate delivery risks and agree a board-owned scorecard with explicit decision gates.
• Months 4–9: Make the principal Chief Information Officer portfolio and organisation choices for the social-infrastructure portfolio, install the new operating cadence, fill critical leadership gaps and deliver the first measurable release of cash, capacity or customer value.
• Months 10–12: Demonstrate a repeatable social-infrastructure portfolio trend against service stability, cyber hygiene and transparent technology economics, lock the following year’s capital and talent plan, evidence control sustainability and present a credible three-year value case with downside actions.

What the board will measure

• Delivery of the Chief Information Officer’s agreed first-year social-infrastructure portfolio value case within a 10% tolerance, with variance explained before rather than after the relevant quarter closes.
• A Chief Information Officer forecast that remains decision-useful across three consecutive quarters and reconciles the social-infrastructure portfolio’s operating, cash, customer and people assumptions.
• Closure of the Chief Information Officer mandate’s highest-priority social-infrastructure portfolio risk and execution issues by their board-approved dates, with independent evidence that fixes are sustained.
• Retention of at least 90% of critical social-infrastructure portfolio talent and ready-now successors for at least 70% of the Chief Information Officer’s direct reports.
• A quantified Chief Information Officer-owned improvement in the social-infrastructure portfolio operating constraint behind a concession renewal cycle, supported by a clean baseline and named data owner.
• Clear stakeholder confidence in mandate 317: no unresolved high-severity escalation older than 30 days and no material surprise withheld from its agreed governance forum.

The person

You are currently a CIO, Regional CIO or Enterprise Technology Head in a listed Infrastructure or adjacent enterprise. In relation to the social-infrastructure portfolio, your Chief Information Officer track record includes a transition where the original plan was no longer sufficient; you can explain your choices, evidence and numerical impact. Candidates from infrastructure, construction, utilities, transport assets or project finance will be considered where the operating model, customer stakes and governance intensity match this Chief Information Officer brief.

As a Chief Information Officer candidate, you bring 18–22 years of progressive Infrastructure or adjacent-sector experience, consistent with the 18-22 experience band. At minimum, you have carried a P&L, book, budget or accountable portfolio of ₹16,150 crore and led an organisation of at least 500 people.

For mandate 317, the board wants two transitions: a difficult social-infrastructure portfolio portfolio choice and a leadership-system change during a concession renewal cycle. As the prospective Chief Information Officer for this social-infrastructure portfolio, you must challenge optimistic cases and still create followership. References for mandate 317 must distinguish your contribution from the institution around you.

The Chief Information Officer role in Infrastructure is based in New Delhi; relocation is expected, although a structured weekly commute may be considered during the first quarter.

Non-negotiables

• Current or recent accountability at the level of CIO, Regional CIO or Enterprise Technology Head, with direct exposure to a board, investment committee or equivalent Infrastructure governance forum.
• Proven Chief Information Officer ownership of at least ₹16,150 crore and leadership of no fewer than 500 employees in a comparable social-infrastructure portfolio context.
• One completed Infrastructure or adjacent-sector example of renewal of a high-cost and brittle enterprise technology estate with outcomes sustained for at least two reporting periods after the initial intervention.
• Sector credibility from infrastructure, construction, utilities, transport assets or project finance; experience that is purely functional and lacks Chief Information Officer-level social-infrastructure portfolio consequences will not meet the bar.
• Willingness to meet the New Delhi location expectation, complete conflicts and background diligence, and protect the confidentiality of mandate 317.

Compensation and terms

The anticipated Chief Information Officer package is ₹3.2–4.6 crore fixed + performance variable and LTI, calibrated to the final social-infrastructure portfolio scope and the candidate’s current mix. Any long-term participation for mandate 317 follows standard vesting and performance conditions. The Chief Information Officer appointment in New Delhi, centred on the social-infrastructure portfolio, offers regular exposure to the chair, executive committee and principal capital sponsors. A notice period of up to 6 months can be accommodated for the selected executive in mandate 317.

Confidentiality

Client identity is withheld at this stage and will be disclosed under mutual confidentiality after an initial fit discussion for mandate 317. Rounded ranges and blended context prevent this document from being used to triangulate the organisation for mandate 317.