Senior Associate Commercial Finance (Wholesale)

Position Title: Senior Associate Commercial Finance (Wholesale)

Reports to: Assistant Manager Finance and Accounting

Location: Bangalore

Position Summary:

• To manage a business unit for PUMA India and work closely with the Business Head to achieve KPIs for the business unit
• P&L and working capital management
• Business Partnering
• Control, compliance, process automation
• Strategy for future growth

Key Objectives:

1. Business Performance & P&L Management

• Own and manage the complete Profit & Loss (P&L) for the assigned business unit.
• Partner closely with Business Heads and Sales teams to drive achievement of revenue, margin, and EBIT targets.
• Monitor business performance through regular financial reviews and provide actionable insights to improve profitability.
• Identify risks and opportunities impacting financial performance and proactively recommend corrective actions.

2. Financial Planning & Analysis

• Lead annual budgeting, periodic forecasting, and long-range planning processes for the business unit.
• Conduct variance analysis against budgets and forecasts, highlighting key business drivers and recommending interventions.
• Support strategic decision-making through financial modelling, scenario analysis, and business case evaluations.

3. Working Capital & Receivables Management

• Drive working capital optimization with a strong focus on Accounts Receivable and Days Sales Outstanding (DSO).
• Collaborate with Sales and Customers to ensure timely collection of receivables and resolution of payment-related issues.
• Monitor credit exposure and escalate risks impacting cash flow and collections.

4. Customer Reconciliation & Commercial Governance

• Partner with reconciliation teams to ensure timely closure of customer reconciliation issues.
• Engage directly with customers to resolve complex finance-related disputes, deductions, and outstanding issues.
• Ensure accurate accounting and commercial compliance across customer transactions.

5. Business Partnering & Strategic Support

• Support Business Heads on strategic initiatives, growth opportunities, pricing decisions, customer negotiations, and profitability improvement projects.
• Provide financial insights and recommendations to enhance operational and commercial effectiveness.
• Act as the primary finance contact for business teams and customers on finance-related matters.

6. Controls, Compliance & Risk Management

• Work closely with Internal Audit, Loss Prevention, and Control teams to strengthen financial governance and minimize leakages.
• Ensure compliance with accounting policies, internal controls, statutory requirements, and company SOPs.
• Drive process improvements, automation initiatives, and standardization of finance processes.

7. Performance Reporting & Management Review

• Develop, track, and review business KPIs on a daily and periodic basis.
• Proactively identify and escalate potential risks or performance gaps.
• Prepare and present business reviews, financial performance reports, and management dashboards to senior leadership.

Key Performance and Indicators:

• Achievement of Sales, Gross Margin, and EBIT targets
• Working Capital performance and DSO management
• Account Receivable ageing and collection efficiency
• Timely closure of customer reconciliations and dispute resolution
• Forecast and budget accuracy
• Reduction in commercial leakages and control gaps
• Process improvement and automation outcomes

Organizational Relationship:

• Internal: CFO & finance leadership, business heads, sales teams, supply chain & planning, operations & warehouse teams, legal team, merchandising team and Internal audit & loss prevention teams
• External: Key Customers, Channel Partners and Distributors (where applicable)

Eligibility Criteria And Functional Competencies Required:

• Chartered accountant with 1-2 years of experience
• Similar experience in Business finance and commercial role
• Self-motivated, Great people skills to manage and work with internal and external stakeholders
• Ability to think innovatively and provide quick solutions to business problems
• Ability to bring changes to current processes through robust SOPs and automations
• Good managerial skills and ability to lead a team
• Good understanding of accounting standards and GST
• Excellent working knowledge of excel is a must
• Ability to handle and comprehend huge data
• Experience in retail industry and working knowledge of SAP would be an advantage
• Open to domestic travel and ability to close issues with the customer independently

Technical Skills Required

• Advanced Microsoft Excel and financial analytics
• Ability to analyse and interpret large data sets
• Experience with SAP preferred
• Knowledge of automation (SQL, Python, AI tools) and reporting solutions is an added advantage.