Board Finance Adviser — Logistics Property Capital Choices

The mandate

The investment committee of a logistics business repeatedly returns to a question its current papers answer inconsistently: when does ownership of a gateway site protect operational capability, and when does it lock capital into a location whose demand may change? The adviser will test the financial reasoning across lease, purchase and staged occupation choices, not act as a property broker or recommend sites for an interested counterparty.

The nine-month term begins on 26 October 2026. Three reserved days each month cover a model challenge session, a written investment critique and discussion with the committee chair; one quarterly investment committee meeting is included in the retainer. Clarifying questions receive a reasoned response within three business days, or an explicit statement of additional evidence needed. Extra attendance requires prior agreement rather than an open-ended availability promise.

Property and finance employees do not report to this adviser: the appointment has no line authority and no executive responsibility for site decisions. Internal finance owns models, property specialists own negotiations and the board decides commitments. Advice should identify where assumptions about occupancy, reinstatement obligations, residual value or exit costs could reverse a recommendation. It must also recognise that operational continuity may justify paying for flexibility even when a simplified discounted-cash calculation favours long-term ownership.

After the final review, the committee chair and board may authorise renewal through a new written property-investment advisory term, never longer than twelve months; its retainer and reserved capacity must be agreed afresh rather than roll forward automatically. The engagement can coexist with other non-competing advisory work if the reserved capacity remains protected. Retainers with bidding landlords, property funds seeking these sites or direct network competitors require disclosure and may be incompatible. No real-estate transaction fees or referral payments may accompany this work, and sensitive site plans remain confined to the committee's authorised process.

What you will own

• Test lease-versus-own comparisons for consistent treatment of deposits, reinstatement liabilities, financing costs and exit assumptions, asking the internal team to correct differences that artificially favour one tenure choice.
• Challenge gateway demand scenarios by separating committed customer activity from prospective corridor growth, showing the committee which investment conclusions depend on assumptions that have not yet been verified commercially.
• Shape a capital flexibility paper that compares staged occupation, break clauses and expansion rights, helping directors understand what they would pay to preserve an ability to change the network footprint.
• Question residual-value expectations using downside operational uses and likely disposal constraints, encouraging evidence proportionate to the decision without presenting an unqualified independent property valuation.
• Advise the committee on the financial conditions that should precede a site commitment, including funding headroom and operating contingency requirements, while leaving contractual approvals with authorised executives and directors.
• Review the first post-decision investment update for consistency with the original assumptions, highlighting learning points and emerging exposure rather than directing property or finance staff to alter their plans.

Candidate qualifications

• Bring substantial logistics or international trade finance experience within an 18–22-year career, with direct involvement in property, capacity or long-lived infrastructure investment choices. Show how you challenged a lease or ownership recommendation and what changed in the decision. General real-estate enthusiasm without an understanding of operating-network economics will not meet the requirement.
• Demonstrate investment appraisal that treats uncertainty honestly: lease liabilities, deposit recovery, reinvestment needs, residual values and exit costs must be handled consistently. You should be able to identify when a model's apparent precision exceeds the quality of its inputs and explain alternative assumptions clearly enough that directors can judge their relevance rather than merely accept your conclusion.
• Have advised senior decision forums without confusing influence with delegated executive power. The evidence sought includes concise written challenge, respectful examination of an operating team's preferred option and the ability to recognise when a property specialist or qualified valuation adviser is needed. You must not promise a definitive technical opinion beyond your professional competence.
• Maintain independence from landlords, investors and counterparties involved in the contemplated sites. Disclose related financial interests and overlapping engagements before access to investment papers. The monthly commitment requires reliable preparation as well as meeting attendance; a busy portfolio is acceptable only when the three reserved days and response obligation can be honoured consistently throughout the agreed term.

Application

Applications for this mandate are received in one way only: through the India Board Terminal's application process. It is automated end to end. Your Executive Passport travels to the mandate holder in its confidential form, your answers to the three questions below are read before anything else in your file, and every stage that follows is recorded on your applications page.

There is no address to write to and no intermediary to call. The mandate holder reads what the Terminal delivers and nothing else, which is what keeps the process the same for every applicant and keeps your name out of it until you release it. Applications close on 15 October 2026. Mandate reference CVU-ADV-2026-IND-096.