Centre of Excellence (COE) - Accounting

Centralization & Transition

• Support the transition of book closure and reporting activities for the assigned regions from unit finance teams into the COE, including workshops, knowledge transfer and parallel runs; the transition itself is owned by the centralization PMO team, and the incumbent is not responsible for its delivery.
• Document standard operating procedures, close checklists and the hand-offs between units, the Accounting COE and the Reporting COE.
• Identify legacy issues, unreconciled balances and control gaps during transition and drive them to closure.

Book Closure & Trial Balance

• Own month-end, quarter-end and year-end closure for all hospitals in the assigned regions, in line with the group close calendar.
• Review unit trial balances, ensuring all rectification, provisioning and period-end entries are passed and the trial balance is clean.
• Scrutinize expense and balance sheet ledgers; review provisions, accruals, prepaid amortization, advances and statutory liability balances.
• Review closing schedules, including fixed assets and CWIP, prepaid, rent, statutory dues (PF, ESI, TDS, GST), advances and deposits.
• Coordinate with the Accounting COE (Procure to Pay, Reconciliations, Fixed Assets) to ensure its outputs feed the close completely and on time.
• Drive a faster, more predictable close through standardized processes and clear ownership.

Financial Reporting & Insights

• Prepare and review quarterly and annual standalone reporting packs for the units in the assigned regions.
• Provide timely, accurate inputs to the FS, Audit & Insights Lead for standalone and consolidated financial statements.
• Ensure inter-unit and inter-company balances are reconciled and confirmed ahead of consolidation.
• Ensure compliance with Ind AS, Schedule III of the Companies Act, 2013 and group accounting policies.

Audit Management

• Act as the primary point of contact for statutory and internal auditors for the assigned regions.
• Manage audit schedules and information requests; resolve auditor queries independently and on time.
• Drive closure of audit observations, implement corrective actions to prevent recurrence, and maintain audit-ready documentation for every close.

Team Leadership

• Lead a regional team of accounting professionals with varied experience; allocate work, set priorities and review output.
• Build team capability through on-the-job coaching, structured review feedback and knowledge sharing.
• Work in tandem with the peer Close Team Lead to ensure consistent processes, templates and quality across all regions.
• Support hiring and onboarding of team members as regions transition into the COE.

Stakeholder Management & Communication

• Serve as the single point of contact for unit and regional finance heads on all closure and reporting matters.
• Report close status, key issues and risks to the Head Reporting COE and finance leadership; escalate early and with solutions.

Governance & Continuous Improvement

• Standardize templates, schedules and review checklists across the units in the assigned regions.
• Strengthen controls over journal entries, provisioning and period-end reviews.
• Identify opportunities for automation and process optimization, and support finance transformation initiatives.

Candidate Profile

• Qualified Chartered Accountant (CA).
• Minimum 5 years of post-qualification experience in book closure, financial reporting, controllership or statutory audit.
• Hands-on experience closing books and finalizing trial balances for multiple entities, units or locations, and preparing financial statements under Ind AS and Schedule III.
• Proven experience handling statutory and internal auditors and resolving audit queries independently.
• Experience leading and reviewing the work of a team of accountants.
• Experience in shared services/finance centralization projects preferred; healthcare or multi-location environments an advantage.
• Working knowledge of Oracle Fusion or an equivalent ERP, and advanced MS Excel.
• Good communication and coordination skills, with confidence dealing with senior finance stakeholders.

Core Competencies

• Book Closure, Trial Balance & Controllership
• Financial Reporting (Ind AS) & Audit Management
• Transition Management & Process Standardization
• Team Leadership & People Development
• Stakeholder Management & Communication