Head of Compliance

CHERAN GROUP

JOB DESCRIPTION

Position Title

Head of Compliance

Function

Compliance & Statutory Affairs

Location

Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu

Reports To

Managing Director / Group CFO

Scope

Group-wide — across all Cheran Group entities (real estate, education trust, financial services, tea estate & beverages, aquaculture)

1. Position Summary

The Head of Compliance will own end-to-end statutory and regulatory compliance across all Cheran Group entities. This is a group-level role responsible for ensuring that every entity — companies, the trust, and other group vehicles — meets its obligations under the Companies Act, Income Tax Act, GST law, trust and society regulations, labour laws, and sector-specific regulations, while coordinating closely with statutory, tax, and internal auditors on finalisation of accounts and audit closure. The role is central to the Group's governance, risk, and audit readiness.

2. Key Responsibilities

• Own the statutory compliance calendar across all group entities — ROC filings, board and general meeting compliances, income tax and TDS returns, GST returns, PF/ESI, professional tax, and other regulatory filings — ensuring zero-default compliance.
• Act as the primary coordination point with statutory auditors, tax auditors, and internal auditors for planning, fieldwork, and finalisation of accounts and audit reports across entities.
• Drive timely finalisation of financial statements in coordination with the finance/accounts teams and auditors, ensuring alignment with Companies Act, Accounting Standards, and Trust accounting requirements.
• Maintain and update statutory registers, minute books, and records for all group companies and the trust; ensure timely board and committee meeting compliances.
• Track and ensure compliance for the education trust (Cheran Foundation Trust) under applicable trust, society, and educational regulatory frameworks (UGC/AICTE/state directorate requirements, as applicable).
• Monitor regulatory compliance for Cheran Finance Limited under applicable RBI/NBFC or financial services regulations, as relevant to its licensing status.
• Liaise with external legal counsel, company secretaries, tax consultants, and regulatory authorities (ROC, Income Tax, GST, RBI, labour department) on compliance matters, notices, and filings.
• Build and maintain a compliance tracker/dashboard providing real-time visibility of due dates, filing status, and open items to the Managing Director and CFO.
• Identify compliance gaps and regulatory risk across entities; implement corrective action plans and preventive controls.
• Support internal audit and risk management processes; ensure audit observations across entities are tracked to closure.
• Keep the Group updated on changes in applicable laws and regulations and assess impact on existing structures and entities.
• Support due diligence processes for new transactions, JVs, and acquisitions from a statutory and regulatory compliance standpoint.

3. Qualifications

• Chartered Accountant (CA) — mandatory, completed and qualified.
• Company Secretary (CS) qualification — preferred, in addition to CA.
• Additional certification in taxation, corporate law, or NBFC/RBI compliance will be an advantage.

4. Experience

• 8–15 years of post-qualification experience in statutory compliance, audit coordination, and finalisation of accounts.
• Prior experience handling compliance across multiple group entities or a diversified conglomerate is strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience coordinating directly with statutory and tax auditors through to finalisation.
• Exposure to trust/society compliance and/or NBFC or financial services regulation is a plus.

5. Key Skills & Attributes

• Strong working knowledge of the Companies Act, Income Tax Act, GST law, and applicable labour laws.
• High attention to detail with the discipline to manage multiple entities and overlapping filing deadlines.
• Strong stakeholder management — comfortable interfacing with auditors, regulators, and senior leadership.
• Ability to work independently and take ownership of outcomes across a diversified group structure.
• High personal integrity and discretion, given the sensitivity of statutory and financial information handled.

6. Reporting & Working Relationships

Reports directly to the Managing Director / Group CFO. Works closely with the finance and accounts teams of each entity, external statutory/tax/internal auditors, company secretarial consultants, and legal counsel. Provides periodic compliance status updates to Group leadership.

Pay: ₹650,000.00 - ₹2,000,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Paid sick time
• Paid time off
• Provident Fund

Work Location: In person