Finance Business Partner

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Role Overview

The Finance Business Partner (Plant & Sales Finance) will be responsible for leading and overseeing the financial management of all manufacturing plants and sales operations across India. The role serves as a strategic finance business partner to the Operations and Sales leadership teams, ensuring robust financial planning, performance management, cost optimization, compliance, and profitable growth for the business.

Key Responsibilities

1. Strategic Financial Leadership

• Act as a strategic business partner to the Operations Director and Sales Director to drive financial performance and operational efficiency.

• Develop and execute financial strategies aligned with overall business goals.

• Lead annual budgeting, long-range planning, and forecasting for manufacturing and sales functions.

• Provide financial insights and scenario analysis to support strategic decision making.

2. Plant Finance & Operations

• Oversee financial performance of all manufacturing plants across India.

• Drive cost optimization initiatives — including raw material management, conversion cost control, yield improvement, and waste reduction.

• Implement and monitor standard costing systems, variance analysis, and plant profitability reporting.

• Partner with supply chain and operations teams to ensure efficient working capital management (inventory, payables, capex).

• Ensure accurate and timely financial closing, reporting, and compliance at plant level.

3. Sales & Commercial Finance

• Lead sales finance for all channels (Modern trade, General trade, E-commerce, institutions).

• Provide pricing, trade spend, and margin analysis to support sales growth and profitability.

• Drive effective trade promotions, discount controls, and channel profitability management.

• Enable decision-making through sales forecasting, regional performance dashboards, and ROI analytics.

4. Performance Management & Analytics

• Develop KPIs and financial dashboards for manufacturing, supply chain, and sales functions.

• Provide actionable insights through data-driven performance reviews.

• Benchmark internal performance against industry peers and best practices.

5. Governance, Controls & Compliance

• Strengthen internal controls and ensure compliance with accounting standards, tax laws, and company policies.

• Partner with internal audit and risk teams to ensure integrity of financial reporting.

• Ensure timely statutory audits and coordination with external auditors.

6. Leadership & People Development

• Lead and mentor regional finance and plant finance controllers across the country.

• Build a high-performing finance business partnering team.

• Drive a culture of accountability, continuous improvement, and ethical conduct.

Key Interfaces

Internal:

External:

Qualification & Experience

• Chartered Accountant (CA) / CPA / MBA (Finance) from a reputed institution.

• 12–15 years of post-qualification experience, with at least 5–7 years in a senior finance leadership role within FMCG / Consumer Goods / Manufacturing industry.

• Strong exposure to plant finance and sales/commercial finance functions.

• Proven ability to manage PAN India operations and multi-location teams.

Skills & Competencies

• Strong business acumen and commercial orientation.

• Deep understanding of cost accounting, standard costing, and P&L management.

• Advanced financial modelling, analytics, and strategic planning skills.

• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills.

• Leadership, team building, and change management capability.

• Proficiency in ERP systems (SAP preferred) and business intelligence tools (Power BI, Tableau).

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• Plant and product cost reduction targets achieved.

• Sales margin improvement and trade spend optimization.

• Forecast accuracy and working capital efficiency.

• Timely and accurate financial reporting.

• Compliance and audit scores.

• Employee engagement and talent development within the finance function.