Financial Controller

Pilgrim; Mumbai; On-site; INR 2,800,000 - 4,200,000; Full time

Job summary

Pilgrim is seeking an Associate Director – Finance Controller in Mumbai to drive end-to-end financial controllership, governance, and cash management. You will lead a team of about 20 across Accounting, Receivables, Payables, Tax and Treasury, ensuring accurate books and strong compliance to enable profitable growth.

Responsibilities include closing, P&L ownership, balance sheet management, and optimization of working capital, tax, and audits.

Qualifications

• CA mandatory and strong grounding in accounting standards and audits.
• 5+ years in financial controllership with proven closure governance.
• Experience leading a finance team of 20+ members in FMCG, D2C, or Retail preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead monthly, quarterly, and annual close with accurate books.
• Own P&L, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow, provisions and reconciliations.
• Ensure GST, Income Tax, TDS compliance and internal controls.

Skills

CA

Financial Controllership

Audits

Working Capital

Stakeholder Mgmt

Education

Chartered Accountant (CA)

Tools

ERP systems

BI tools

Job description

Associate Director – Finance Controller will own end-to-end financial controllership, governance, and cash management at Pilgrim. Reporting to the Senior Director – Finance and leading an extended team of ~20 across Accounting, Receivables, Payables, Tax & Treasury, this role ensures accurate books, strong compliance, tight working capital control, and sharp financial visibility to drive profitable growth.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead monthly, quarterly, and annual closure with clean, accurate books.
• Own P&L, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow, provisions, and reconciliations.
• Ensure adherence to Ind-AS, IGAAP, and internal accounting policies.
• Drive audit readiness and maintain strong internal controls.

2. Process, Systems & Analytics

• Own marketplace (Amazon, Nykaa, Flipkart, etc.) and D2C reconciliations.
• Validate payment gateway settlements, returns, refunds, and commissions.
• Strengthen systems, processes, and automation leveraging ERPs and BI tools.
• Build scalable reporting disciplines and management insights for informed decision-making.

3. Compliance, Audit & Governance

• Ensure 100% compliance with GST, Income Tax, TDS, and Companies Act.
• Lead statutory, internal, and tax audits.
• Handle notices, assessments, and litigation.
• Strengthen Internal Financial Controls (IFC) and risk frameworks.
• Own DSO, ageing, and collections efficiency.
• Define credit limits, payment terms, and risk controls.
• Drive distributor, MT, and key account reconciliations.
• Ensure bad debt provisioning and recovery governance.
• Ensure accurate invoice processing and timely vendor payments.
• Drive GRN matching, approvals, and payment controls.
• Optimize payables cycle while maintaining vendor trust.
• Control trade spends, claims, and leakage risks.

Key Requirements:

• CA (mandatory) — strong academic track; first or second attempt preferred.
• Strong grounding in accounting standards, taxation, and audit.
• 5+ years of experience in financial controllership roles.
• Proven track record in financial closure, audits, AR/AP, working capital, treasury, and compliance.
• Experience leading and developing a high-ownership finance team of 20+ members.
• Prior experience in FMCG, D2C, or Retail preferred.
• High integrity with a strong control and compliance mindset.
• Detail-oriented with sound business understanding.
• Strong stakeholder management — management, auditors, sales, and supply chain partners.
• Bias for process rigour and continuous improvement