Manager- Project Costing

Role & responsibilities

Key Responsibilities

1. Project Costing & Budgeting

• Develop detailed project cost estimates and project-wise cost budgets.
• Prepare project cost sheets covering material, labour, subcontracting, engineering, procurement, logistics, overheads and other project costs.
• Establish cost baselines and monitor actual expenditure against approved budgets.
• Review project cost assumptions and identify potential cost overruns at an early stage.
• Support project teams in preparing financial feasibility and cost-benefit analysis.

2. Project Cost Control

• Take end-to-end ownership of project cost control from project initiation to completion.
• Monitor project-wise actual costs against budget, commitments and revised estimates.
• Track material consumption, procurement costs, labour costs, subcontracting expenses and project overheads.
• Identify cost leakages, inefficiencies and areas for cost optimisation.
• Establish effective cost-control mechanisms and ensure adherence to approved project budgets.

3. Variance Analysis

• Conduct detailed budget vs. actual and estimated vs. actual variance analysis.
• Analyse the root causes of cost variances and recommend corrective actions.
• Monitor cost-to-complete and prepare Estimate at Completion (EAC).
• Highlight potential cost overruns and profitability risks to management.

4. Project Profitability & Financial Analysis

• Analyse project margins and profitability on a periodic basis.
• Prepare project-wise profitability statements and contribution analysis.
• Evaluate changes in project scope, specifications and commercial terms and their financial impact.
• Support management in project pricing, commercial decisions and cost optimisation initiatives.

5. MIS & Management Reporting

• Prepare periodic project costing MIS, cost dashboards and management reports.
• Present key project cost indicators, variances, risks and corrective actions to senior management.
• Develop project-wise cost tracking and reporting formats.
• Provide actionable insights to management for improving project profitability.

6. Cross-Functional Coordination

• Work closely with Project Management, Engineering, Procurement, Commercial, Production, Stores and Finance teams.
• Validate project-related purchase commitments, work orders, subcontracting costs and expenses.
• Ensure timely and accurate capture of all project costs.
• Participate in project review meetings and provide financial and costing inputs.

7. Process & Controls

• Develop and strengthen project costing and cost-control processes.
• Ensure proper allocation and accounting of project-related costs.
• Establish standard costing methodologies and project cost-control benchmarks.
• Support internal and statutory audits related to project costing.
• Ensure compliance with company policies, accounting standards and costing principles.

Key Skills & Competencies

• Hardcore Project Costing & Cost Control
• Project budgeting and cost estimation
• Project profitability analysis
• Budget vs. actual variance analysis
• Cost-to-complete / EAC analysis
• Standard costing and cost accounting
• Cost optimisation and cost reduction
• Project MIS and management reporting
• Commercial and procurement cost analysis
• Strong Excel / MS Office skills
• ERP/SAP experience preferred
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills

Educational Qualification

Mandatory:

• CMA / ICMA Qualified

Preferred:

• Additional qualification in Finance, Costing or Management Accounting.

Experience

• 10–15 years of overall experience in Finance / Costing / Project Finance.
• Hardcore hands-on experience in Project Costing and Project Cost Control is mandatory.
• Candidates should have substantial experience handling large-scale projects, capital projects, manufacturing projects or engineering projects.
• Experience in project profitability, cost variance analysis and management reporting is highly desirable.
• Candidates whose experience is predominantly in routine accounting, taxation, audit or general finance without strong project costing exposure should not be considered.

Preferred Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate should be:

• A qualified CMA with 10–15 years of relevant experience.
• Strongly hands-on in end-to-end project costing and cost control.
• Experienced in handling multiple projects and large project budgets.
• Strong in analysing numbers and identifying cost overruns and profitability risks.
• Commercially oriented with the ability to challenge project teams on cost implications.
• Comfortable interacting with senior management and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Experienced in ERP/SAP-based project costing and reporting.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• Project cost variance against approved budget
• Project gross margin / profitability
• Accuracy of project cost estimates
• Cost overruns identified and controlled
• Forecast accuracy / EAC accuracy
• Timeliness and accuracy of project MIS
• Cost-saving and cost-optimisation initiatives
• Compliance with project costing and financial controls

Critical Requirement: The position requires a CMA-qualified professional with genuine, hands-on project costing experience. Candidates with only general costing/accounting experience should not be considered.