Organisation: Aide et Action

Job Title: Director of Finance and Administration

Location: Head Office, Chennai

Reports To: Chief Executive Officer (CEO) & International Finance Director (Paris, France)

Team Structure: A 10-member team, with 3 members based at the Head Office (Chennai) and 7 working across AEA India’s offices nationwide.

Position Overview The position is accountable for overseeing all financial operations in India and providing leadership and support to in-country finance teams. The position will be the primary escalation point for the country programs on financial-related matters and will challenge country offices in budgeting, financial reporting quality and overall financial performance. Theincumbent builds the capacity of in-country teams across financial and operational functions, ensuring alignment with international standards and best practices.

In addition to the core financial responsibilities, the position supports and oversees in-country support functions including logistics, IT and legal, ensuring effective coordination and compliance. The position will participate in the creation, roll-out, and adjustment of international procedures within its scope of intervention. When required, due to consolidation needs or local resource constraints, the role directly prepares financial reports, forecasts and budgets.

The position keeps track of regulatory changes affecting the Non-profit sector, keeps the in-country teams and the International team informed and ensures alignment with global policies on finance and support services. As member of the international Finance Team, the position will participate in developing and implementing the strategic plan of the international finance direction.





Core Accountabilities Compliance

- Guarantee compliance with the organization’s support policies, with local laws and

regulations and with donors' requirements.
- Proactively identify and mitigate financial and operational risks.

Finance

- Contribute to the development, implementation and continuous strengthening of organizationaland financial policies, grant policies, procedures, and other internal control systems.
- Oversee and lead the annual budgeting process: initial budget, revised budget, and year-end closing.
- Coordinate with external statutory auditors to ensure the organization’s accounts are audited onschedule; support in-country teams in planning and executing their audits; and oversee the finalization of audited financial statements for presentation at the Annual General Meeting.
- Support in-country teams to address finance-related issues including partner financial management, risk mitigation actions, and resolution of complex finance queries.
- Assess capacity gaps in collaboration with the Country Director and build capacity of in-country finance teams.
- Advise Country Director on the appropriate structure of the in-country finance teams.
- Analyze procurement efficiencies from a financial perspective and provide technical financial input into procurement plans.
- In line with the projects’ M&E; process,



and in close coordination with the India Programs Coordinator, review and challenge in-country budgets performance to identify gaps, risks and opportunities.
- Ensure in-country finance teams actively participate in project reviews and attend regional project reviews as required.
- Review and validate cashflow requests.

Donors – Institutional funds

- Provide full support to country programs in the development of donor proposals and validate all financial components prior to submission
- Review and validate financial reports submitted to donors for accuracy, compliance and consistency with project budgets.
- Coordinate follow-up actions arising from donor audits and ensure timely closure of audit findings.
- Provide the in-country management team and all relevant budget holders with necessary support and information on donor financial and compliance requirements

Other Support Services

- Facilitate internal, project-based and in-country audits to strengthen systems, processes and compliance mechanisms.
- Enable downward communication by deploying tools that offer real-time financial and operational insights for Country Director and in-country teams.
- Establish and lead a crisis response protocol for financial and support service areas, coordinating with other departments to address emergency funding, resource reallocation, and rapid deployment of support services.
- Ensure consistent application of internal support services processes across in-country teams.
- Organize and lead regular coordination meetings with other functions.

If this role excites you, please apply to [email protected]

📌 Director of Finance And Administration (Chennai)
🏢 Social Synthesis
📍 Chennai