Group Chief Financial Officer — Applied-AI Portfolio

The mandate

A recent strategy review exposed capital structure redesign ahead of the next investment cycle within a privately held enterprise artificial-intelligence products company. The immediate arena is the applied-AI portfolio during a responsible-AI control build. For mandate 152, the successful executive inherits decisions that have been deferred, competing stakeholder expectations and a need to establish facts before committing further capital.

The Group Chief Financial Officer operating perimeter covers approximately ₹850 crore in AI product and services revenue, with activity spanning several applied-AI portfolio customer, product and delivery clusters rather than a single asset. The Group Chief Financial Officer Artificial Intelligence remit carries direct influence over roughly 275 colleagues and third-party capacity.

The chair, executive committee and principal capital sponsors want a Group Chief Financial Officer who can convert ambiguity into a short list of explicit choices for the applied-AI portfolio. The Group Chief Financial Officer Artificial Intelligence seat must resolve a responsible-AI control build, while preserving the underlying strengths of the applied-AI portfolio. For mandate 152, value will come through sharper allocation, stronger leaders and an operating cadence that exposes variance early.

The Group Chief Financial Officer’s first year on the applied-AI portfolio is expected to end with forecast integrity, funding headroom and board-grade controls. In mandate 152, authority covers resources and leadership appointments; material trade-offs go directly to the board sponsor.

Why this seat is open

This is a newly created Group Chief Financial Officer — Applied-AI Portfolio seat, established because a responsible-AI control build now requires one accountable executive rather than distributed ownership. The board has classified the appointment as urgent and intends to move from qualified shortlist to offer within 6–8 weeks. Interim governance protects the applied-ai portfolio, but it is not a substitute for a permanent appointee. The external search remains confidential to avoid unnecessary disruption before the appointment is agreed.

What you will own

• Set the Group Chief Financial Officer value-creation thesis for the applied-AI portfolio, translate it into no more than five enterprise priorities and stop work that does not support them.
• Carry stewardship of approximately ₹850 crore in AI product and services revenue, including allocation, risk acceptance and board forecasts.
• Lead the Group Chief Financial Officer Artificial Intelligence organisation of about 275 employees and partners, appointing a team with clear decision rights and credible succession for every critical seat.
• Resolve the applied-AI portfolio economics and execution constraints created by a responsible-AI control build, with Group Chief Financial Officer-approved owners, dated milestones and transparent escalation thresholds.
• Establish one Group Chief Financial Officer operating review across commercial, customer, financial, people, technology and risk outcomes for the applied-AI portfolio; remove reconciliations that obscure accountability.
• Have signed or directly owned board financial statements, liquidity decisions and investment cases at the stated scale in mandate 152.
• Build the Group Chief Financial Officer’s three-year succession and capability plan for the applied-AI portfolio, reducing dependence on individual executives and improving mobility across the wider Artificial Intelligence organisation.

The first 12 months

• Days 1–90: Validate the applied-AI portfolio baseline, meet the 30 stakeholders most consequential to capital structure redesign ahead of the next investment cycle, assess the leadership team, stabilise immediate delivery risks and agree a board-owned scorecard with explicit decision gates.
• Months 4–9: Make the principal Group Chief Financial Officer portfolio and organisation choices for the applied-AI 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 applied-AI portfolio trend against forecast integrity, funding headroom and board-grade controls, 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 Group Chief Financial Officer’s agreed first-year applied-AI portfolio value case within a 10% tolerance, with variance explained before rather than after the relevant quarter closes.
• A Group Chief Financial Officer forecast that remains decision-useful across three consecutive quarters and reconciles the applied-AI portfolio’s operating, cash, customer and people assumptions.
• Closure of the Group Chief Financial Officer mandate’s highest-priority applied-AI portfolio risk and execution issues by their board-approved dates, with independent evidence that fixes are sustained.
• Retention of at least 90% of critical applied-AI portfolio talent and ready-now successors for at least 70% of the Group Chief Financial Officer’s direct reports.
• A quantified Group Chief Financial Officer-owned improvement in the applied-AI portfolio operating constraint behind a responsible-AI control build, supported by a clean baseline and named data owner.
• Clear stakeholder confidence in mandate 152: 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 Group CFO, listed-company CFO or Divisional CFO in a privately held Artificial Intelligence or adjacent enterprise. In relation to the applied-AI portfolio, your Group Chief Financial 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 AI, enterprise software, data infrastructure, cloud, analytics or applied research will be considered where the operating model, customer stakes and governance intensity match this Group Chief Financial Officer brief.

As a Group Chief Financial Officer candidate, you bring 22–28 years of progressive Artificial Intelligence or adjacent-sector experience, consistent with the 22-28 experience band. At minimum, you have carried a P&L, book, budget or accountable portfolio of ₹900 crore and led an organisation of at least 200 people.

For mandate 152, the board wants two transitions: a difficult applied-AI portfolio portfolio choice and a leadership-system change during a responsible-AI control build. As the prospective Group Chief Financial Officer for this applied-AI portfolio, you must challenge optimistic cases and still create followership. References for mandate 152 must distinguish your contribution from the institution around you.

The Group Chief Financial Officer role in Artificial Intelligence is based in Hyderabad; 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 Group CFO, listed-company CFO or Divisional CFO, with direct exposure to a board, investment committee or equivalent Artificial Intelligence governance forum.
• Proven Group Chief Financial Officer ownership of at least ₹900 crore and leadership of no fewer than 200 employees in a comparable applied-AI portfolio context.
• One completed Artificial Intelligence or adjacent-sector example of capital structure redesign ahead of the next investment cycle with outcomes sustained for at least two reporting periods after the initial intervention.
• Sector credibility from AI, enterprise software, data infrastructure, cloud, analytics or applied research; experience that is purely functional and lacks Group Chief Financial Officer-level applied-AI portfolio consequences will not meet the bar.
• Willingness to meet the Hyderabad location expectation, complete conflicts and background diligence, and protect the confidentiality of mandate 152.

Compensation and terms

The anticipated Group Chief Financial Officer package is ₹3.2–4.6 crore fixed + performance variable and LTI, calibrated to the final applied-AI portfolio scope and the candidate’s current mix. Any long-term participation for mandate 152 follows standard vesting and performance conditions. The Group Chief Financial Officer appointment in Hyderabad, centred on the applied-AI 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 152.

Confidentiality

Client identity is withheld at this stage and will be disclosed under mutual confidentiality after an initial fit discussion for mandate 152. Rounded ranges and blended context prevent this document from being used to triangulate the organisation for mandate 152.