Founders Office - Manager

DSM Fresh Foods Limited; Gurugram District; On-site; INR 3,000,000 - 6,000,000; Full time

Job summary

Zappfresh, the Manager Founders Office, acts as a strategic extension of the Founder, driving high-impact initiatives across business, operations, technology, and people. The role requires strong analytical capability, cross-functional leadership, and the ability to translate founder priorities into measurable outcomes.

You will collaborate with CXOs and senior leaders to ensure alignment, governance, and execution discipline.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field required.
• Postgraduate qualification in Management, Finance, Strategy, or PMO preferred but not mandatory.
• Experience with cross-functional coordination and senior leadership exposure.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic initiatives from ideation to execution.
• Conduct business research, financial modelling, and benchmarking.
• Prepare founder-ready briefs, reviews, and board-level presentations.
• Drive multi-functional projects across operations, supply chain, technology, HR, finance, and growth.
• Build project charters, timelines, risk registers, and governance.
• Draft notes, speeches, and strategic documents for the Founder.
• Coordinate with CXOs and business heads for alignment on founder directives.
• Identify gaps and propose actionable solutions; build dashboards and MIS.
• Manage debt obligations, lender relationships, and trackers.
• Lead pilots, new business initiatives, and digital transformation projects.

Skills

Strategic insight

Cross-functional leadership

Execution discipline

Stakeholder alignment

Project management

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering

Bachelor's degree in Commerce

MBA / related postgraduate qualification

Job description

Manager Founders Office

1. Role Summary

The Manager Founders Office at Zappfresh acts as a strategic extension of Founder Deepanshu Manchanda, driving highimpact initiatives, enabling faster decision-making, and ensuring execution excellence across business, operations, technology, and people. The role demands strong analytical capability, cross-functional leadership, and the ability to translate the Founders priorities into measurable business outcomes.

2. Key Responsibilities

Strategic Planning & Business Support

• Lead strategic initiatives from ideation to execution.
• Conduct business research, financial modelling, and competitive benchmarking.
• Prepare founder-ready briefs, business reviews, and board-level presentations.

Program & Project Management

• Drive multi-functional projects across operations, supply chain, technology, HR, finance, and growth.
• Build project charters, timelines, risk registers, and governance mechanisms.
• Track progress and ensure timely closure of founder-priority tasks.

Executive Communication & Coordination

• Draft high-quality notes, speeches, and strategic documents for the Founder.
• Manage confidential information with discretion.
• Coordinate with CXOs and business heads to ensure alignment on founder directives.

Operational Excellence & Problem Solving

• Identify business gaps and propose actionable solutions.
• Build dashboards, MIS, and performance trackers.
• Ensure operational discipline and follow-through across teams.

Stakeholder Management

• Liaise with internal teams, external partners, investors, and strategic stakeholders.
• Maintain seamless communication flow and ensure timely updates to the Founder.

Debt Management & Banking Coordination

• Support the Founder and Finance team in managing debt obligations and lender relationships.
• Track all loan facilities, repayment schedules, interest servicing, and debt covenants.
• Coordinate with banks, financial institutions, auditors, and internal stakeholders.
• Maintain trackers and dashboards related to debt servicing and financial commitments.

Special Projects

• Lead pilots, new business initiatives, digital transformation projects, and strategic experiments.
• Conduct feasibility studies and build execution roadmaps.

3. KPIs

• Strategic Initiative Delivery % of founder-priority projects delivered within agreed timelines
• Quality of Executive Outputs Founder/CXO rating on briefs, decks, and analyses
• Business Impact Contribution Quantified impact of initiatives (cost savings, revenue uplift, efficiency gains).
• Issue Resolution Speed Average turnaround time for founder-assigned tasks
• Cross-functional Alignment % of initiatives with full stakeholder buy-in and timely follow-through
• Recommendation Adoption Rate % of strategic recommendations accepted and implemented

4. Functional Competencies

• Strategic Insight & Foresight Ability to anticipate business trends, connect crossfunctional dots, and convert Founder priorities into actionable strategic roadmaps.
• Business Acumen & Commercial Understanding Strong grasp of P&L drivers, unit economics, cost structures, customer behaviour, and competitive landscape to support highquality decision-making.
• AI, Automation & Digital Enablement Ability to leverage AI tools, automation platforms, and data systems to improve decision-making, streamline workflows, and enhance operational efficiency across Zappfresh.
• Project & Program Leadership Capability to plan, govern, and execute multistakeholder projects with clarity, discipline, and measurable outcomes.
• Execution Excellence & Follow-through Strong ownership mindset with the ability to drive founderassigned initiatives to closure with speed, accuracy, and operational rigour.
• Stakeholder Alignment & Influence Ability to align CXOs, business heads, and cross-functional teams, ensuring buyin and seamless execution without formal authority.

Desired Candidate Profile

Education

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Commerce, Finance, Economics, Business Administration, or related disciplines.
• Postgraduate qualification in Management, Finance, Strategy, or Project Management will be preferred but is not mandatory.

Experience

• 4-8 years of relevant experience in Founders Office, CEO Office, PMO, Business Excellence, Corporate Strategy, Consulting, Finance, or Operations roles.
• Proven experience in managing cross-functional projects and driving business outcomes.
• Experience in coordinating with senior leadership teams and multiple stakeholders.
• Prior experience in fast-growing startups, consumer businesses, e-commerce, FMCG, food-tech, retail, manufacturing, or logistics sectors preferred.