Finance Manager — Chartered Accountant

Location: HSR Layout, Bengaluru
Work mode: Full-time, work from office
Experience: 2–3 years in Finance or Accounts after qualification
Compensation: ₹10–13 lakh per annum (flexible) + ESOPs
Qualification: Chartered Accountant

About the Role

We are looking for a qualified Chartered Accountant to build and lead the finance function of a fast-growing, YC-backed AI education startup.

This is not a conventional accounting role. You will work closely with the founders and take ownership across three interconnected areas:

1. Finance and business reporting
2. People and workplace operations

The objective is to create reliable systems across these functions so that the founders can focus on product, growth and company-building without having to repeatedly follow up on operational matters.

As the company grows, this role can develop into a broader finance leadership and CFO-track position.

What You Will Own

1. Finance and Reporting

You will take end-to-end ownership of the company’s finance operations, including:

— Monthly closing, financial reporting and management MIS
— Profit and loss, cash-flow and balance-sheet visibility
— Budgeting, forecasting and financial planning
— Accounting processes, reconciliations and payment operations
— Taxation, audits and statutory compliance
— Payroll, reimbursements and vendor payments
— Revenue, payment-gateway and customer-invoice reconciliation
— Financial controls and documentation
— Coordination across Indian and international entities

You will be expected to improve existing processes and gradually build a finance function that is accurate, automated and scalable.

2. Financial Planning and Treasury

You will help the founders make better financial decisions by managing:

— Cash-flow planning and runway visibility
— Budget versus actual reporting
— Cost and subscription tracking
— Banking relationships and banking operations
— Fixed deposits and short-term deployment of surplus funds
— Company credit cards, debit cards and payment controls
— Intercompany fund movements and related documentation
— Automation of recurring banking and finance workflows

3. Investor, Cap Table and ESOP Operations

You will coordinate finance-related investor and ownership matters, including:

— Maintaining the company’s cap table
— Supporting share issuances and related documentation
— Preparing information required for investor reporting and due diligence
— Coordinating with external advisers during fundraising
— Maintaining ESOP records and supporting ESOP grants
— Handling ESOP-related communication with current and former employees
— Helping improve and administer the company’s ESOP policy

You will not be expected to personally provide specialised legal advice. However, you should be able to coordinate external lawyers, company secretaries, auditors and consultants and ensure that work is completed accurately and on time.

4. People Operations

Since we will not have a separate full-time HR team, you will also own essential employee operations, supported by the founders and external HR or legal partners where required.

This will include:

— Employee and intern onboarding
— Employment documentation and joining formalities
— Payroll coordination and employee records
— Leave and probation records
— Employee benefits administration
— Offboarding and full-and-final coordination
— Experience, relieving and other employment certificates
— Maintaining salary, ESOP and employee documentation
— Communicating and maintaining internal policies
— Coordinating employee-related operational queries

The objective is not to function as a traditional recruiter or culture manager. The role is to ensure that every employee has a professional and well-managed experience from joining to exit.

5. Workplace and Asset Management

You will ensure that company-owned resources are properly managed, including:

— Laptop, device and SIM allocation records
— Device handovers during onboarding and offboarding
— Company asset tracking
— SIM, subscription and recurring bill management
— Coordination of device transfers, repairs and replacements
— Maintaining clear accountability for company-owned equipment

6. Founder’s Office and Special Projects

You will act as a trusted member of the Founder’s Office and help execute important matters that do not neatly belong to one department.

This may include:

— Managing sensitive follow-ups across internal and external stakeholders
— Supporting investor, partner and leadership visits
— Ensuring meetings, documents and visit logistics are professionally managed
— Supporting high-priority documentation
— Representing the founders in operational follow-ups where appropriate
— Making sure important tasks do not fall through the cracks

The role will provide visibility into how an early-stage company is built and scaled. You will work directly with the founders on decisions that span finance, people, operations and company strategy.

Who We Are Looking For

You should be:

— A qualified Chartered Accountant
— Experienced in Accounting, FP&A, Reporting, Audit and Taxation
— Someone with approximately 2–3 years of relevant professional experience
— Comfortable setting up processes rather than only operating established systems
— Highly organised and dependable
— Strong at written and verbal communication
— Comfortable working directly with founders, investors and external professionals
— Willing to remain hands-on while also building systems and leading execution
— Capable of handling confidential financial and employee information
— Comfortable working full-time from our HSR Layout office

Articleship experience at a Big Four firm or professional experience at a high-growth startup would be preferred.

What Success Looks Like

Within this role, success would mean:

— Founders have clear and timely visibility into the company’s financial position
— Monthly reporting and closing happen predictably
— Cash, investments and banking operations are actively managed
— Finance processes become increasingly automated and scalable
— Employee onboarding, payroll and offboarding run smoothly
— Investor, ESOP and ownership records remain accurate and updated
— Important external advisers are coordinated without repeated founder involvement
— Sensitive operational matters are handled with maturity and discretion
— Founders can rely on one accountable person to drive important cross-functional work

Why This Role Is Exciting

This role sits at the intersection of finance, people and company-building (if you are interested in startups, this is for you)

You will not be limited to preparing reports or managing compliance. You will help build the internal operating system of a growing startup, work closely with its founders and gain exposure to fundraising, financial planning, people operations, cross-border structures and strategic company decisions.

For the right person, this role has the potential to grow into a senior finance leadership or CFO-track position as the organisation scales.

Shortlisted candidates will get a Whatsapp message. Please don’t forget to state your Whatsapp Number in CV/application