Multi-geography CFO — Aviation · anchored India

Position overview

Gladwin International Leadership Advisors is representing a confidential organisation in Aviation & Aerospace on a senior CFO leadership mandate anchored in India. The remit explicitly spans Middle East, USA, Malaysia.

This is a multi-geography leadership role requiring orchestration across time zones, matrix stakeholders, and often dual-reporting into global and regional lines.

Expect a mandate where credibility is earned in rooms with customers and regulators, not only in headquarters workshops.

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Context you will inherit

• Market & sector: Defence manufacturing leadership — as India builds its defence industrial base, finding leaders who can manage complex long-cycle defence programmes with government stakeholder interfaces
• Geographic spine: Primary hub India with explicit corridor responsibility across Middle East, USA, Malaysia.
• Organisation stage: ESG and conduct expectations from owners and regulators are now hard constraints on how growth is pursued.
• Stakeholders: Owners may include PE operating partners, a promoter family office, or public-market investors — each with different tempo and KPIs.
• Secondary lens: MRO capability building — India sends $1.5 billion of MRO work overseas annually; building domestic MRO capability requires specialised engineering and quality leadership

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The mandate (12–24 month arc)

1. Performance management: Implement a single view of segment economics; kill vanity metrics that confuse the executive committee.
2. Tax & treasury: Optimise structure where legal and practical; ensure treasury policy matches operating reality in each hub.
3. M&A finance: Lead model quality, synergies discipline, and integration of finance teams on deals.
4. Digital finance: Sponsor ERP / EPM roadmap and management reporting automation — fewer spreadsheets, more decisions.
5. Enterprise risk partnership: Co-own conduct and operational risk themes where financial incentives drive behaviour.
6. Team capability: Hire or develop FP&A and business finance partners who can challenge GMs with data, not slides.

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Responsibilities (representative)

• Build finance business partnering that GMs trust as thought partners, not scorekeepers only.
• Sponsor digital finance roadmap — close, planning, and management reporting on modern platforms.
• Co-own working capital programme with COO and sales — DSO, DPO, inventory as appropriate.
• Lead finance integration on acquisitions with clear Day-1 / Day-100 milestones.
• Align incentive design with cash and return metrics, not only accounting profit.

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Leadership profile

• Judgment: High signal-to-noise under pressure; ethical clarity; willingness to halt initiatives that break risk appetite.
• Capital discipline: Examples of improving forecast accuracy, returns, or balance-sheet resilience in Aviation & Aerospace.
• Education: Strong undergraduate grounding; MBA / advanced degree / professional qualification common at this level.
• Communication: Executive presence in English; additional languages valued where market-relevant.
• Geographic muscle: Comfort operating from India with regular engagement across Middle East, USA.

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Team & culture

You inherit a mixed-tenure team — pockets of excellence beside roles that need upgrade. The mandate is to raise the bar without demoralising the organisation: clear standards, fair process, and visible wins that prove the new pace is achievable.

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Success measures (examples)

• Value creation: EBITDA / cash trajectory vs. owner or board case — especially under stress scenarios.
• Execution: On-time delivery of named transformation milestones; reduction in repeat incidents or audit findings.
• Leadership: External hires and internal promotions that stick; reduction in key-person concentration.
• Innovation: Launched offers or capabilities that move the needle on differentiation, not pilots that stall.

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First 90 days (orientation arc)

• Days 1–30: Map cash, covenant, and customer concentration risks before announcing initiatives.
• Days 30–60: Align owners and board on a 12-month value story — financial and non-financial.
• Days 60–90: Launch two quick operational fixes that build credibility with frontline managers.
• Deep-dive on talent — who is load-bearing, who is blocking, where external hire is mandatory.
• Socialise a simple KPI tree so every function sees how their metrics roll up.
• Clarify RACI for cross-border deals, staffing, and pricing exceptions.

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Stakeholder map (illustrative)

• Internal: Executive committee, functional peers, shared services leads, and programme PMOs.
• External: Key suppliers, technology partners, and joint-venture boards where applicable.
• Board / owners: Expect deep dives on risk, liquidity, talent, and transformation — slides light, substance heavy.

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Travel & mobility

Travel weighted to priority markets and quarterly global or regional forums; flexibility for crisis windows.

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Compensation

Package aligned to CFO benchmarks in Aviation & Aerospace — typically fixed, variable, benefits, and mobility where applicable. Structure detailed at shortlist.

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Application process

Gladwin International is managing this search confidentially. Shortlisted candidates will engage in structured conversations with the firm’s partners before client introduction. Please apply through the careers portal with a concise note on why this geography, sector, and remit fit your trajectory.

We review every submission personally; unsolicited outreach to the end client is discouraged and may disqualify candidacy.

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Reference: aviation-aerospace · CFO · India · Gladwin International Leadership Advisors