Chief Financial Officer – Transformation — Water And Utilities Business

The mandate

A water-and-utilities business operates treatment, network and reuse projects whose reported progress does not consistently reconcile to completed design, installed quantities, certified milestones or cash collection. Teams debate margin after problems mature, while project leaders use different forecast assumptions. Several assets require delivery recovery, and the board wants a CFO who can turn finance transformation into earlier operating decisions.

The remit covers approximately ₹25,450 crore in projects and operating assets and 1,550 employees and material partners. The CFO owns planning, project control, accounting, cash, commercial finance, working capital, systems, audit and finance talent. Delivery leaders own construction, commissioning and operations; commercial and legal teams own contract actions. Finance must provide an independent, decision-useful view of cost to complete and value.

Project economics will be rebuilt from work packages. Design maturity, procurement, civil quantities, electromechanical installation, testing, access, approvals and handover must connect to budget and forecast. Physical progress unsupported by accepted evidence will not drive revenue or confidence. The CFO will establish one definition of committed, incurred, forecast and at-risk cost.

Water projects carry particular interfaces. Source availability, land, power, pipeline access, treatment performance and customer acceptance can delay benefits despite construction spend. Completion cases will include commissioning chemicals, trial operation, performance guarantees, defect correction and operating ramp. A mechanically complete facility is not financially complete if certification and collection remain uncertain.

Why this seat is open

The incumbent will leave through an accelerated, orderly transition. Interim finance leaders protect statutory and payment decisions but cannot own the transformation and recovery portfolio. The board seeks appointment within six to eight weeks. The succession is not linked to a restatement, fraud allegation or undisclosed conduct issue.

What you will own

• Establish project P&Ls and cost-to-complete views grounded in physical evidence.
• Integrate schedule, quantity, procurement, billing, claims and cash forecasts.
• Reset working-capital governance across certification, receivables, retention and suppliers.
• Strengthen investment, change-order and commercial controls.
• Simplify finance systems and management reporting around decisions.
• Build project controllers and finance successors close to delivery.

Monthly reviews will begin with forecast movement. Each change needs an operating cause, evidence owner and management action. Unallocated contingency and unexplained margin release will not be used to smooth performance. Finance will visit sites and sample quantities, invoices and milestones with engineering and independent assurance.

Billing and collection require distinct governance. A completed quantity may await documentation, employer certification, invoice or payment. The CFO will segment the queue and assign commercial action at each stage. Claims will remain probability-weighted and separate from base liquidity. Supplier payment decisions will balance contractual fairness, continuity and available evidence.

Systems change will be selective. Common project and cost codes, contract master data and controlled forecast versions come before dashboard replacement. Automated reports must reconcile to ledger and source evidence. Manual adjustments will have owners and expiry dates; recurring workarounds will trigger process or system correction.

The finance organisation will combine independence with delivery fluency. Project controllers should challenge schedule and quantity assumptions without becoming project managers. Rotation between central and site roles will build judgement, while escalation to the committee remains protected where local pressure threatens recognition or provision.

Commissioning reserves will be reviewed separately from construction contingency. Treatment performance, power consumption, consumables, operator training and defect-response capacity can change acceptance and early operating cash. The CFO will require a funded pathway from trial run through stable output, including who owns cost when customer water quality or network conditions differ from the design basis.

The first 12 months

During the first 75 days, the CFO will validate the ten largest cost-to-complete positions, stabilise cash and assess finance leadership. By day 90, the committee will receive a recovery baseline, control priorities and decisions on weak projects or systems.

By month eight, five priority projects should use integrated physical and financial forecasts, certification and receivable queues should carry accountable actions, and two low-value reporting or system layers should be retired. Project-controller coverage will be established.

At year-end, forecast completion variance should remain within 5% across the priority book for three months, overdue certified receivables fall 25% and cash conversion improve by 10 percentage points. Ninety per cent of high-risk change orders must have timely financial treatment, with no material revenue position unsupported by physical and contractual evidence.

What the board will measure

• Project margin and cash grounded in physical progress.
• Earlier visibility of completion and commissioning exposure.
• Faster certification, billing and collection.
• Simpler, controlled finance information.
• Independent project controllers and succession.

The person

You are a transformation CFO, infrastructure finance director or project-controls executive with 22–28 years of experience. You have governed at least ₹14,750 crore and 1,075 employees. Evidence must include a project-book reforecast, a working-capital recovery and a finance-system change that improved operating decisions after implementation.

This onsite Hyderabad role requires frequent project, customer and committee travel. You can test engineering evidence without taking delivery authority.

Compensation and terms

Fixed compensation is ₹2.2–3.0 crore plus performance variable. Measures include forecast accuracy, cash, margin quality, controls, system simplification and succession. The final offer will reflect the confirmed transformation and project-accountability scope.

Confidentiality

The business, projects, customers, claims and finance evidence remain confidential. Further information follows qualification and an undertaking. Hyderabad and the rounded portfolio are non-identifying.