Finance Advisor

About Peepul

6.5 million students. 291,000 teachers. 90,000+ schools. That's the scale of what Peepul is changing — and this role sits at the centre of it. Peepul is an education non-profit working with state governments in Delhi and Madhya Pradesh to drive systemic reform at scale. We've received international recognition — including the Commonwealth Education Award for Innovation — and are backed by India's leading CSR funders and global partners. Our model is simple: embed, deliver, measure anchored in system-level change, in partnership with governments. We are a growing organisation with an ambitious strategy and a strong evidence base. Join us in our mission to create a world where every child has equal access to high-quality education. Learn more about our transformative work at http://peepulindia.org

About the Role

The Finance Advisor will provide financial overight, analysis and advisory support to the organisation and programme teams. The role will strengthen financial planning, budgeting, project financial management, internal controls, compliance, donor reporting and financial decision-making.

The Finance Advisor will work closely with the Finance Team and programme team to ensure that financial resources are planned, utilised and reported effectively, efficiently and in accordance with organisational policies, donor requirements and applicable laws.

Responsibilities would include (but not limited to):

A. Financial Planning & Budgeting • Coordinate the annual budgeting process with programme and support functions. • Review programme budgets, donor budgets and organisational budgets for completeness, reasonableness and alignment with strategic priorities. • Develop budget assumptions and costing methodologies. • Monitor actual expenditure against approved budgets and provide variance analysis.

B. Programme & Grant Financial Management • Provide financial advisory support to programme teams throughout the grant/project lifecycle. • Review donor budgets, financial terms, cost eligibility and reporting requirements. • Monitor project-wise and donor-wise expenditure. • Support preparation and review of donor financial reports and utilisation certificates. • Ensure financial reporting is consistent with donor agreements and organisational accounting policies.

C. Financial Analysis & Management Reporting • Prepare and review monthly/quarterly financial MIS for management. • Analyse expenditure trends, budget utilisation, programme cost structures and variances. • Provide meaningful financial insights. • Develop financial dashboards and management reports.

D. Internal Controls & Governance • Ensure financial policies, SOPs and control mechanisms. • Evaluate adequacy of controls relating to procurement, payments, payroll, assets, advances, travel and programme expenditure. • Identify control weaknesses and recommend corrective actions. • Support implementation of risk-based financial controls. • Ensure compliance with delegation of authority and approval mechanisms. • Support governance reporting to the leadership team, Finance Committee and Board, as applicable.

E. Statutory, Regulatory & FCRA Compliance • Oversee financial aspects of statutory and regulatory compliance. • Review compliance relating to TDS, GST, PF/ESI, Income Tax and other applicable regulations. • Provide oversight on FCRA accounting, utilisation, reporting and documentation. • Ensure proper segregation and tracking of restricted, unrestricted and foreign contribution funds.

F. Audit & Assurance • Coordinate with statutory, internal and donor auditors. • Review audit schedules, financial statements and supporting documentation. • Analyse audit observations and recommend corrective measures. • Monitor closure of audit findings. • Strengthen audit readiness across the organisation.

G. ERP & Finance Systems • Provide functional inputs for ERP implementation and optimisation. • Review finance workflows, chart of accounts, project/cost-centre structures and reporting dimensions. • Identify opportunities for automation and process improvement. • Ensure appropriate financial controls are embedded within ERP workflows. • Support development of finance MIS and dashboards.

H. Team Capacity Building and Advisory Support to Management • Build finance capability among programme and support teams. • Conduct training on budgeting, financial procedures, documentation and compliance. • Promote a culture of financial accountability across the organisation. • Provide financial inputs for operational decisions. • Support management in assessing financial risks associated with new initiatives.

• Coordinate the annual budgeting process with programme and support functions.
• Review programme budgets, donor budgets and organisational budgets for completeness, reasonableness and alignment with strategic priorities.
• Develop budget assumptions and costing methodologies.
• Monitor actual expenditure against approved budgets and provide variance analysis.
• Provide financial advisory support to programme teams throughout the grant/project lifecycle.
• Review donor budgets, financial terms, cost eligibility and reporting requirements.
• Monitor project-wise and donor-wise expenditure.
• Ensure financial reporting is consistent with donor agreements and organisational accounting policies.
• Prepare and review monthly/quarterly financial MIS for management.
• Analyse expenditure trends, budget utilisation, programme cost structures and variances.
• Ensure financial policies, SOPs and control mechanisms.
• Evaluate adequacy of controls relating to procurement, payments, payroll, assets, advances, travel and programme expenditure.
• Ensure proper segregation and tracking of restricted, unrestricted and foreign contribution funds.
• Coordinate with statutory, internal and donor auditors.
• Review compliance relating to TDS, GST, PF/ESI, Income Tax and other applicable regulations.
• Oversee financial aspects of statutory and regulatory compliance.
• Provide functional inputs for ERP implementation and optimisation.
• Build finance capability among programme and support teams.
• Conduct training on budgeting, financial procedures, documentation and compliance.
• Promote a culture of financial accountability across the organisation.
• Support management in assessing financial risks associated with new initiatives.