A Finance Controller\'s Handbook written by Krish Srinivasan.

1. Controller’s
Handbook
written by Krish Srinivasan
June 2011

2. About the Author
Krishnamachari (Krish) Srinivasan is a Commerce graduate, a
qualified Chartered Accountant and a Cost Accountant from India.
He has worked in various organizations like SAIL, Xerox, Greaves,
Stahl group, & Bilcare and has over 28 years of corporate experience.
He has held positions at the CFO VP Finance levels for the past
14 years in the Specialty Chemicals and Pharmaceutical packaging
industries, in India, Gulf & Singapore. Currently he is the Director
and Head of Biz Consulting division at Global 9 Resources Pte
Ltd, Singapore. Global 9 provides CFO-level expertise in sourcing
banking facilities, MIS structuring, Strategic Financial Planning,
Working Capital and Cash flow review system, profit improvement
reviews, turn around strategies among other services like payroll
processing, accounting, secretarial services, personal and corporate
tax support etc. The firm aims to leverage Krish’s rich wealth of
knowledge and experience to help SMEs & budding entrepreneurs
build a professional and profitable organization.

3. Preface
During my career, while moving up the ranks to become a CFO,
I always had this desire to put down my ideas, suggestions, best-
practices and thoughts into a, so others may benefit from my
experience. In the hustle and bustle of corporate world, I noticed
not many have the time or patience to train young Controllers.
The ambitious learn through trial and error, while others seek
assistance from coaches and consultants who in most cases do not
have the first hand knowledge of having moved up from being a
Controller to the top. This led me to write this handbook through
which I hope to ease the stress of having to figure things out your-
self and make the whole experience a lot more enriching.
Please keep in mind that whatever I have stated below is from
my own personal experiences and may or may not be immediately
applicable to your situation. So adapt the message as you see fit
and stay abreast of latest trends in the practice. Note: The male
form HE has been used throughout this book purely for convenience.
The content is applicable to both men and women alike.

4. To my parents,
and in particular my Dad,
my mentors and colleagues,
and my wife and sons.
Thank you for your support through my career.

5. Contents
I. Role . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
II. Responsibilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
III. Attitude . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
IV. Leadership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
V. Conflict Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
VI. Functional Key Strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
VII. Team Building and Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
VIII. Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
IX. Tax Laws and Cross-Border Transactions . . 32
X. Commercial Awareness and Business Sense . 34

6. XI. Crisis Prevention and Management . . . . . . . . . . 38
XII. Supporting Other Functions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
XIII. Control. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
XIV. Do’s & Dont’s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
XV. Financial Projections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
XVI. Management Expectations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
XVII. Time Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
XVIII. Relationship Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
XIX. Career Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
XX. Fitness & Stress Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
XXI. Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

7. I
Role
It is important at the outset to define the role of a con-
troller in todays corporate world. Long gone are the
days where he was expected to be a mere book keeper.
The role has evolved to that of a business manager,
participating in the day to day management of the

8. I. Role Controller’s Handbook
company along with the CEO/Unit Head. He must
look to facilitate business growth rather than just
being a spoke in the wheel. As an enabler, he must
balance between aggressive business strategies and
corporate governance. Thus the role of a Controller
has changed from transaction processing to decision
support. He has to be the business conscience of the
company and help to grow corporate values.
The controller must take responsibilities in, (a) con-
trolling and reporting and (b) strategic planning and
decision support. With respect to the former, he has
to adopt a systematic, organized and structured ap-
proach to ensure that controlling and reporting are
qualitative and consistent with the policies of the
company and reporting standards. As for the latter,
wearing the strategic hat, he has to evolve ideas, par-
ticipate in business meetings, sales & logistics reviews
and facilitate market development.
Today’s fast changing world demands a controller
possess acute knowledge about the business, market
situation, competitors, products & services, and re-
sourcing.You may have observed Finance Controllers

9. I. Role Controller’s Handbook
limiting themselves to pure number crunching and
book keeping in many companies; while this may
partly be due to the company’s culture, the main rea-
son ought to be how the Finance Controller draws the
boundaries of his role. You are what you project your-
self to be. By redefining your role to that of a matured
business manager, you change how people perceive
you and your job scope . This benefits your employer
but more importantly helps accelerate your career
as well. Like Einstein said, a mind that has been
stretched will never return to its original dimension!

10. II
Responsibilities
While the controller plays an active and participa-
tive role in running the business, his responsibilities
keep growing in today’s complex business situations.
Financial Accounting, Management Accounting, Tax-
ation, Secretarial, Legal and Treasury are some of

11. II. Responsibilities Controller’s Handbook
the areas where primary responsibility rests with the
controller. In addition, he has to ensure that financial
accounting is strictly in accordance with the local
laws/accounting standards and is accurate through
appropriate reconciliations. He is also responsible for
drafting the chart of accounts, policies and procedures
for business processes, developing control systems to
monitor day-to-day transactions, developing systems
to monitor & manage exceptions, recruiting qualified
& competent staff, developing control mechanisms to
adhere to corporate governance standards such as
the Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) act etc.
A controller is also responsible for preparing budgets
which include a well structured sales budget by prod-
uct, region and business group, an operations budget
to meet with the sales budget to ensure smooth and
uninterrupted supplies and a cash flow budget. He
then must summarise them in a financial document
to show the budgeted profits by division and country
to cover a rolling 3 year period. This would allow him
to estimate the capital required to grow the business
and evaluate the alternatives for financial viability
before presenting the same to the Board for approval.

12. II. Responsibilities Controller’s Handbook
His responsibility also extends to ensuring that the
actual capital spending is within the approved budget
and monitor cost/time overruns.
He is also expected to make sure that the company’s
cash flow for short, medium and long terms are suffi-
ciently arranged through bank loans or other financial
products. If the company has a separate Corporate
Treasury department the Controller may work closely
with them to make sure that the business is funded
properly to meet the budget/financial plans. He is
also directly responsible for preparing management
accounts/reports and reviewing the same by com-
paring the actual with those of budgeted numbers.
He has to drive a systematically run Sales & Opera-
tions review for financial planning every month for a
rolling 24 month period and identify the decisions to
be taken by the senior management team to enable
the company to achieve their long term plans in a
proactive manner. Financial planning, funding, tax
planning, cost management and control are other key
responsibilities of the Controller. All audit, tax and
legal matters have to be carefully handled to ensure
that the laws of the land are complied with.

13. III
Attitude
It is important that the Controller nurture a posi-
tive orientation to the business while maintaining
financial stability and enforcing control mechanisms.
Making sure the latter is kept up to date and the staff
are well trained on the subject is of importance as

14. III. Attitude Controller’s Handbook
well. Critical review of the processes is required to
prevent financial incidents by willful offenders. Where
controls inhibit a timely response to market, a logical
via-media solution needs to be found.
In the event of a process lapse, evaluate the reasons
and make sure concerned persons receive additional
training to fill knowledge gaps. Avoid personal re-
marks at all costs. An environment that encourages
people to be honest and highlight issues upfront needs
to be fostered. For instance, finance team members
must refrain from opinionated remarks on abnormal
claims while reviewing expense claims. Instead such
issues may be confidentially highlighted to the em-
ployee’s superior who can evaluate the situation be-
fore deciding on whether it can be approved. If time
permits, sensitive issues need to be handled by the
Controller himself. Being the conscience keeper of the
company, the Controller has to be on top of all ethi-
cal matters, maintain personal integrity, and monitor
& control integrity issues working with HR and the
functional managers.

15. IV
Leadership
A controller is expected to lead from the front, when
it comes to professionalism, ethics and adherence
to best-practices. Based on the company situation,
he has to alternate between transformative and con-
trolling styles of leadership. Under the former, staff

16. IV. Leadership Controller’s Handbook
may be encouraged to innovate and own initiatives
while the latter, to be adopted in more trying times, is
needed in project management situations to achieve
tough deadlines and targets.
The focus may be on working smart as against work-
ing hard. Staff need to be encouraged to ask questions
and duly recognized for good deliveries. Private discus-
sions can be had with under-performing staff to help
them overcome impediments to their performance.
Encourage a “NO SURPRISE” culture by asking peo-
ple to share good and bad news boldly upfront. Be
an impartial leader, treating all staff equally and on
their merits. This in turn will earn you their respect
and help avoid personality conflicts within the team.
Be proactive in resolving conflicts amongst staff and
promote an environment of mutual respect. Lead your
team by demonstrating how to make improvements
at work by simplifying the work process, by automa-
tion and by eliminating unwanted or duplicate control
measures.

17. V
Conflict Management
In every company functional conflicts are inevitable.
This is caused by the individual view points and per-
spectives of the respective functions on the same
subject or transaction. However, for the benefit of the
organization the conflict needs to be resolved as soon

18. V. Conflict Management Controller’s Handbook
as possible with a business view point.
For example, air lifting of raw material is a restricted
transaction in most organizations. However, in or-
der to service a specific customer order or to meet
a supply-chain emergency, import of raw materials
by air may be necessary. Instead of getting hung
up on the topic, the concerned department heads –
say Finance and Supply Chain heads can analyze
the cause and make sure that symptoms pointing
to systemic errors are attended to in order to avoid
repeating the mistake. In order to get the business
going, they need to listen to each others view point
and once convinced proceed to release the order for
import of raw material by air. Steps need to be taken
to ensure such conflicts are only exceptional and do
not become a regular feature. This is possible if and
only if the respective functional heads look into fix-
ing the root cause of the problem and make sure that
the customer ultimate gets the finished goods on time.
There are times when on the basis of good corpo-
rate principles one of the functions may not agree
with the other. What is important in this scenario is

19. V. Conflict Management Controller’s Handbook
to explain the reasons for the disagreement instead
of holding personal grievances against each other.
Please note that it is better to resolve conflicts face
to face than exchanging emails/over a phone call un-
less geographically the two persons are located apart.
Email exchanges in such a situation may be avoided
as the tone can be misread and the real substance
may not explained properly when an argument begins.
Always trust your colleague unless you have reasons
to believe otherwise.
I will share one such event which I experienced. One of
the operations head was willing to sign off for writing-
off certain quantity of a key component as the system
was showing that stock was available but physically
not traceable. As the value was high and also be-
cause enough effort had not been taken to reconcile
the stock, I temporarily allowed for fresh issue of
material without write-off for finding out the real prob-
lem. Upon investigation, it was found that as scrap
accounting was not properly done the system was
showing availability of stock which stopped further
issue of material. This was explained to the opera-
tions head who understood the importance of making

20. V. Conflict Management Controller’s Handbook
sure that material issues are documented properly
and instructed his team accordingly.

21. VI
Functional Key Strings
The controller must at all times be completely focused
on the key elements of business: Sales, margins, costs,
profits, taxes and cash. Key reports on sales by coun-
try, product group, and month need to be reviewed
regularly alongside budgeted numbers. Margins by

22. VI. Functional Key Strings Controller’s Handbook
products, business group and sales mix by country
need to be understood with variances analysed. Costs
must be controlled at the point of expenditure and
staff may be instructed to highlight any abnormal
& unbudgeted expenditure before they are incurred.
Costs need to be analysed by cost centre for better
control. Taxation rules whether direct or indirect have
to be well understood for compliance and better tax
planning. It is important to be abreast of all changes
in local tax laws and international taxation.
Owners and stakeholders look for EBITDA, net profit
and cash. Much focus is required on working capital
management – viz inventory control, collection of re-
ceivables and managing payables. Working capital is
one single large area where the Controller can play a
very vital role in ensuring that company’s funds are
not blocked too much in inventory and receivables.
Even the best managed companies constantly chal-
lenge their inventory turns and credit management
processes to improve their bottom line. Regular in-
teraction with marketing is required to know about
business trends with large customers and also dis-
cuss credit exposures for large accounts as along for

23. VI. Functional Key Strings Controller’s Handbook
evaluating credit risks for new customers.
Fixed assets and capital expenditure control may be
reviewed each time any capital expenditure is made.
A proper Capital Expenditure approval process and
procedure may be established to make sure that the
company evaluates the project from cash, profitability
and business growth angles. A good controller is ex-
pected to be thorough with the financial information
of the company pertaining to the past, present and
future in comparison with budgets/projections.

24. VII
Team Building and
Management
The success of any organization or a leader depends
on the team. As the saying goes, “The strength of
a chain is only as much as that of its weakest link”.

25. VII. Team Building Controller’s Handbook
Hence it is important that the Controller builds a good
team with qualified, competent, positive-thinking and
enthusiastic staff. It requires a lot of effort manage
such a bubbling team and care may be taken to en-
courage questioning, idea generation, accountability
and creative thinking. People may be empowered and
allowed to experiment with ideas. Failures may be
seen as lessons and it shall be shown at all times
that that the buck stops with the leader. This puts
additional responsibility on the individual staff to be
more cautious but still keep innovating. Every em-
ployee has a different mode of expression and has
varying capabilities. Comparisons need to be avoided
but good work can be appreciated in front of other
staff. Employees have different motivation triggers
and most people look for recognition in the form of
appreciation. Monetary rewards may be given only
for exemplary performance to make sure they earn
it. It is important for every controller and manager
to spend time with each staff reviewing his/her work
on a monthly basis. Firstly, this will foster better
relations with the team member, and secondly, the
staff gets feedback on a regular basis to help improve
his/her performance in line with the expectations of

26. VII. Team Building Controller’s Handbook
the management. Normally staff can be at four levels,
e.g. Tell, Sell, Consult or Delegate.
1. Tell: The employee has to be given clear instruc-
tions to “Tell” the Manager when faced with an
issue
2. Sell: “Sell ideas and alternatives” to the em-
ployee to solve his issues by himself
3. Consult: The employee has reached a stage
wherein you are able to consult him for solutions
to your issues
4. Delegate: The employee is now able to manage
issues for you.
Have a personal target to move each employee one
level up at a time and contribute to his/her growth
in the corporate ladder. Constructive criticism is fine
with an open mind for ideas. Staff need be given
job rotation at least once in 3 years to improve their
knowledge and competencies. While every care has
to be taken to retain good competent staff, do not
fret when they leave for better growth opportunities
elsewhere. Set key objectives for each employee and

27. VII. Team Building Controller’s Handbook
allow them to contribute their own. Discuss with
each employee to help align their individual functional
objectives with the company’s overall objectives.

28. VIII
Technology
Today’s world is filled with gadgets and software. The
role of a Finance professional has changed largely
from a book keeper to a business manager on account
of the numerous integrated ERP software in the mar-
ket which takes care of most entire business functions

29. VIII. Technology Controller’s Handbook
like Sales accounting, inventory, purchases, financial
accounting, production etc.
The success of a Controller depends on how much tech
savvy he or she is and how update is his knowledge
on business management related technology. The
use of Microsoft products like Excel, Word and Power
Point have become so important, it will be difficult
to achieve efficiency without these products of tech-
nology. The Controller need to develop skills to be
able to use gadgets like computers, net works, video
conferencing gadgets, black berry, Iphones etc to max-
imize performance in his role. These are only tools to
achieve excellence in our work and cannot substitute
our functional competence & skills.
Automating processes help the controller in ensur-
ing that internal controls are in place, transactions
are consistently & accurately recorded and above all
gives the edge to analyse the data in a dynamic envi-
ronment. Apart from the software that is being used
in the company, a good understanding of the product
technology is very important for making an impressive
pitch with the bankers who can relate the financial

30. VIII. Technology Controller’s Handbook
information with input from your product knowledge.
In countries like India where excise duties are de-
pendent on the nature and category of the product,
product knowledge is a must to make sure that we
take advantage of the concessions given by law for
specific products.

31. IX

32. IX. Tax & Cross-Border Controller’s Handbook
Tax Laws and
Cross-Border
Transactions
As a Controller one need to be fairly conversant with
both local and international tax laws particularly
those regarding related party transactions, transfer
pricing and maintaining arms length dealings. This
area is very vital as tax authorities in most countries
meticulously look at related party transactions and PE
(Permanent Establishment) issues. The Controller has
to be very cautious about PE issues as it would mean
a big blow to the company’s bottom line if the cross-
border transactions are not properly documented and
handled in a professional way. It is best recommended
to consult experts in this field who will be able to use
data -base engines like PROWESS to compare the
related party compensation arrangements with those
of similar transactions of unrelated parties.

33. IX. Tax & Cross-Border Controller’s Handbook
It is advisable to review all the transactions with
related companies every quarter as to whether the
transactions are in line with the agreed terms as per
professionally validated documents. The Controller is
also expected to keep himself updated with the local
law changes by attending seminars and reading rel-
evant journals periodically. Operations department
need to be informed to check with the Controller on
the implications of all changes to the way related party
transactions are handled. This will ensure that all
transfer pricing regulations are followed in spirit and
the impact of changes in product, business process
are taken care of.

34. X
Commercial Awareness
and Business Sense
Controllers are expected to have a good knowledge of
commercial law and be able to advise the company on
the obligations and rights on each business transac-

35. X. Business Sense Controller’s Handbook
tion. It is important for long term arrangements to be
properly documented with a proper agreement detail-
ing the scope, terms and conditions of the commercial
transaction. Purchase/service contracts, confidential-
ity agreements, guarantees, rental agreements, non-
compete agreements, sub-contract, capital purchase
and erection contracts, labour contracts etc are some
of the key commercial agreements signed by many
organizations.
Though the controller may not be expected to draft
these agreements, he would be expected to review the
same before they are signed by the CEO/Unit Head.
It is therefore important for the Controller to be com-
pletely familiar with the underlying contract, review
the key clauses of scope, obligations and duties, make
sure that the clauses are mutual and fair, provides
exit and arbitration clauses and last but not the least
a validity clause if the contract is for a specific period.
The controller may necessarily consult a specialist
for all major contracts and lead the meeting with the
contracting party to make amendments wherever nec-
essary. Please note that contracts provided by the
suppliers or service providers would have been com-

36. X. Business Sense Controller’s Handbook
pletely vetted by their legal support and so it is the
responsibility for the Controller to make sure that the
company’s interests are protected.
Please remember the standard phrases - “let the buyer
beware” and “ignorance of law is no excuse”. When
in doubt consult the specialists. Similarly, every con-
troller must have complete business sense essential
for his success as a professional. The following abili-
ties are necessary to be on top of your job with com-
plete business sense:
1. Excellent knowledge of the product, market
share, competition, technology, market expecta-
tions for a new/modified product etc.
2. The potential business risks and identified risk
mitigation strategies are in place
3. Are clear and firm in their decisions and com-
pletely focused in their tasks
4. Will not hesitate to make suitable modifications
along the way to their plans
Thus, developing stronger business acumen means
a more thoughtful analysis, clearer logic underlying

37. X. Business Sense Controller’s Handbook
business decisions, closer attention to key dimen-
sions of implementation and operation, and more
disciplined performance management.

38. XI
Crisis Prevention and
Management
Avoiding a crisis is of course the best way in every
function. However, the Controller must be fully com-
petent to manage a crisis after it has landed. While a

39. XI. Crisis Prevention Controller’s Handbook
crisis can happen in any area, the best way to avoid
it is by regular & systematic review of business oper-
ations, risks and proper financial planning. Prepare
a checklist of important key areas that need to be
under control at all times and fix a schedule for re-
viewing them with the concerned person in your team.
Wherever senior management is involved, fix up a
scheduled meeting, send agenda points and share the
financial information and actions required to achieve
the budgeted numbers. Develop a culture to have a
NO SURPRISE culture within the organization. This
means that you need to share with your team and
the management of any important findings that they
need to know. Blowing the whistle unnecessarily will
only cause panic and also lead to people not believing
your words. However, when you are in doubt, please
share the topic with the concerned and state that the
outcome is not conclusive. Please remember to keep
them posted of the final outcome. This will ensure
that the concerned colleague is aware of what is hap-
pening around in their areas. Management may be
particularly informed of financial implications of any
crisis & a Controller is expected to play a positive role
in solving problems and totally avoid being part of

40. XI. Crisis Prevention Controller’s Handbook
the problem. Maintain your calm and ensure proper
& complete analysis of the issue on hand. Once the
crisis is handled to the complete satisfaction of the
concerned, take necessary steps across the company
to ensure that the risk factors are well monitored for
effective control.

41. XII
Supporting Other
Functions
The role of a Controller does not stop with Finance
function alone in the current days of competition. It
is therefore important for the Controller to interact

42. XII. Support Controller’s Handbook
with the heads of other functions like production,
purchase, marketing, maintenance etc to know their
views relating to costs, efficiency and sensitivities of
business. The Finance Controller must necessarily
visit the shop floor regularly to know about the prod-
ucts that are being manufactured, production process,
productivity, material accounting, and efficiencies of
business. This will help in first getting a proper un-
derstanding of the company’s business nuances and
also help in identifying areas of cost reduction. The
Controller may give a helping hand to other functions
and interact in such a way to offer help and solicit
the support of the other functions in cost reduction,
waste elimination and improving other operational
effectiveness.
The Controller has to be able to understand and evalu-
ate the functions from an internal control angle while
at the same time be an enabler to smoothen the busi-
ness process. Efficiency cannot remove controls but
at the same time controls shall not be an impediment
to the business process. There needs to be a good
balance between the two and the Controller has to
play a vital role in this review process.

43. XII. Support Controller’s Handbook
The more the controller spends time with people from
other functions like marketing, Supply chain, pro-
duction etc, to have an in-depth understanding of
their processes. This will help for internal control
reviews, process improvements, and compliance mat-
ters. Colleagues from these functions will be happy
to cooperate with you as you have a complete under-
standing of their difficulties to solve inter-functional
issues.

44. XIII
Control
It is a known fact that the Controller is the conscience
keeper of the stake holders and is expected to monitor
the business processes from a Corporate Governance
angle. The expectations of the public, stake holders
and the owners from a Controller is that he or she

45. XIII. Control Controller’s Handbook
needs to have immaculate credibility and track record.
Hence a Controller can at no point of his career afford
to be lax in his conscience keeper role. Apart from
the expectations, laws have been enacted to punish
and even imprison the defaulting Controllers whose
dereliction of job causes the owners, stake holders
and the Govt to lose money.
In order to have better control, the Controller needs
to have a thorough knowledge of business, business
processes and have a good foresight into the future of
the company. His eyes, ears and antenna need to be
always receptive to important information and efforts
shall be taken immediately to fix control weaknesses.
The Controller need to regularly review internal con-
trols either on his own or with the help of internal
auditors for taking prompt & necessary action. Within
Finance function, regular review of the reports is a
must along with review meeting with the individuals
within the organization.

46. XIII. Control Controller’s Handbook
Wherever, the Controller suspects something illog-
ical, he must probe into the subject deeply to convince
that things are in order.

47. XIV
Do’s & Dont’s
A Finance Controller has to maintain a clean track
record and maintain high integrity. No employer will
be keen to have a tainted person particularly as the Fi-
nance Manager/Controller. As we are the conscience
keepers of organizations, our activities will be under

48. XIV. Do’s & Dont’s Controller’s Handbook
constant scrutiny and we have to live up to what we
say. The Controller will be expected to be impartial
and objective both within and outside of the depart-
ment. Please follow the principle to criticize ideas and
not the persons. Always provide your feedback in a
positive manner and build your revised suggestion
around the original. Please remember to give credit
to the originator to make sure that your points are
well taken in an objective manner. Be friends with the
functional heads and reach out to them when they
need help in resolving issues.
As you will have all the confidential info about the
company, maintain high level of secrecy and be dis-
creet with your sharing of key information. Maintain
good relations with bankers, auditors and consultants
on a professional count and maintain a distance. Be
free with your team members but always remember
that will look at you as their role model in the com-
pany and so be cautious about what you say & do.
As you will be handling lots of confidential and busi-
ness critical documents, please keep your desk and
computer organized to ensure safety of the documents.

49. XIV. Do’s & Dont’s Controller’s Handbook
With each email communication you can build or spoil
your image. Hence be very objective in your writing
and DO NOT write emails when you are in an aggres-
sive mood and upset with some of the happenings
in the company. Even if you have to communicate,
please keep the HOT MAIL in the draft box and review
after an hour or two before you press the send button.
Write emails in simple language and make sure that
the person receiving the mail sees the “subject” and
not pushed to be defensive.

50. XV
Financial Projections
As the Finance Manager/Finance Controller you will
be involved in preparing some financial projections for
the bankers and on a monthly basis the Latest View
of the current financial year to the management. In
both the scenarios, you need to maintain the financial

51. XV. Financial Projections Controller’s Handbook
information is shareable (as generally approved by
the management) and also please make sure that you
discuss with your functional head first before you
send to the Unit Head or the Business Group Head.
Always follow a NO SURPRISE culture and share the
info in advance with your functional head so that he
can take appropriate action and also share with the
unit head as may be necessary.
The financial projections shall reflect the current busi-
ness trend and the strategic business plans of the
organization. While making the projections, please
write down all the assumptions, validate them with the
concerned functional heads and get their concurrence
on the numbers & underlying facts. A well docu-
mented financial plan, particularly the annual budget
will help in proper analysis of the actual business per-
formance vs the budget at all controllable areas and
provide risk mitigation strategies for non-controllable
areas. Notes on fixed cost assumptions will make
the relevant functional heads to manage costs better
within budget and assumptions on sales by region
will help manage the market risks. Always spend
time to review your numbers from the view point of

52. XV. Financial Projections Controller’s Handbook
the recipient and discuss with your functional head
before sending it to others in a presentable format.

53. XVI
Management
Expectations
Management everywhere is always looking for 100% in-
tegrity and commitment from the Finance Controller,
especially owing to the role, as it involves cash &

54. XVI. Management Expectations Controller’s Handbook
sensitive aspects of the business. The management
will expect the Finance Manager/Controller to be com-
pletely hands-on, and in full command of the financial
numbers. As the management always will first reflect
their business plans with the Finance Controller to
know the financial impact, it is naturally expected
of the Controller to be completely proactive in his
thought process.
Keep yourself abreast of all the compliance require-
ments for the business and always be upfront if you
are not sure but quickly revert to the management
upon getting the right inputs. The management would
also like to have a sensitivity analysis both financial
and otherwise of the different options. Good knowl-
edge of MS Excel and Power point presentation will
be required to summarize the discussion so that a
well considered management decision can be taken.
Finance function is the hub of all activities in the
company and therefore the Controller need to have
good knowledge of the Finance related areas including
commercial laws, knowledge of our product, knowl-
edge of the business plans & proposals, good IT skills
and communication capabilities.

55. XVI. Management Expectations Controller’s Handbook
You are what you project yourself as. People rec-
ognize brilliance and brilliance will be rewarded. Be
patient and you will get the management attention.

56. XVII
Time Management
As you might have observed from the above para-
graphs, a Finance Manager/Controller is expected to
be handling plenty of areas across the business func-
tions both knowledge wise and be able to do things
hands-on where required. Hence Time Management

57. XVII. Time Management Controller’s Handbook
skill is very important to juggle with all these expecta-
tions and within the given time. Prioritizing work is of
utmost importance within Time Management.
Delegation of work is also very important to get things
done as planned and need to be timely apart from
being accurate. It is highly recommended that you
spare some time to save time by attending a training
program on time management. It is a well known fact
that Finance department staff in each company burn
midnight oil each year for annual accounts closing
and even for month end reporting. I feel this can be
very well avoided provided we manage time during
the day, week, month and year. First is to plan and
set a target of what we want to do. List down the
activities, whether it is for month end reporting or
annual closing work. Prepare a time table working
backwards from the target date. Then you will know
when to start each activity so that we achieve our
target date even if some unplanned activity comes up.
Identify critical activities and gear up your team to
work in their respective areas to do things daily like
for example – update customer collections daily in
the ERP system, file papers then and there, update

58. XVII. Time Management Controller’s Handbook
vendor invoices daily as and when received, review
work constantly with a view to clear bottlenecks and
improve smoother flow of work. As the head of finance
department help your team members to achieve their
time plan by talking to purchase, marketing, produc-
tion and other functions from whom the papers and
information flow into finance.
Similarly talk to banks to get info on transactions on
a daily basis so that you can manage your collections,
payments and cash much better. Have frequent meet-
ings with your team to discuss issues and help clear
them asap. Have daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly
info updated in your data bank or MIS reports. Work
SMART than working HARD. Most important, have
the habit of getting back home like your colleagues
in Marketing, Production, Purchase and HR. A good
work-life balance is important for being effective and
efficient.

59. XVIII
Relationship
Management
We all have seen that every organization has grown
because of nurturing “Relationship “ with investors,
bankers, customers, vendors, employees and all the

60. XVIII. Relationship Management Controller’s Handbook
general public. As a Finance Controller, we also need
to learn the art of developing and growing the Rela-
tionship. Many Controllers spend lots of time in their
cabin churning reports, crunching numbers and writ-
ing emails to all others. Though this may be part of
their job, they have to understand that others inside
& outside the organization are also human beings.
Please walk up to the various departments (including
your own Finance department) to spend time with
them to understand their pains, issues & view point.
Most of the organizational issues can be solved by
taking those few steps out of our cabin to meet peo-
ple, going for lunch with other department heads or
colleagues, keep smiling, and most important listen
to what others say. If we have the habit of going to
the other departments only to argue or fight out an
issue, then people will avoid talking to you. So please
do not do that. Go and meet people when there are
no issues and help resolve their issues if you can.
Promise something which you can handle and deliver
on time.
Great CFOs are made by small gestures in their career

61. XVIII. Relationship Management Controller’s Handbook
path to a majority of their colleagues. Kindly remem-
ber that as the Controller you may be having lots of
confidential information and so be very discrete while
talking about those sensitive topics. Employees and
colleagues go that extra mile for anyone who strikes a
chord with them and so focus on Relationship Man-
agement. My request to you is please do not start with
the result in mind while building relationship. Trust is
a very key factor in Relationship and if that is broken
then it takes long time to rebuild it. A Controller main-
taining good Relationship with bankers is very key to
the company as apart from the strong financials of the
company it is many a times the Controller who has
earned the trust of the bankers over a period of time
is able to get the bankers’ nod in time for funding and
at the most cost effective terms. Similar is the need to
earn that trust & respect from regulatory authorities
by maintaining good compliance track record.

62. XIX
Career Planning
Each one of us is interested to grow and expect the
company to recognize our performance & contribu-
tion. During the early years in a company at all levels
we have to take initiative to not only manage our re-
spective functional roles but also be helpful to other

63. XIX. Career Planning Controller’s Handbook
functions to play a key role in the growth of the orga-
nization. We have to do our career planning to work
towards a goal to grow into the next position in the
company.
In large organizations there can be lots of peers at
the same level competing for a position that may fall
vacant. As only one person can be chosen for that po-
sition, the person with good knowledge demonstrated
through his work, and also is very pleasant to work
with will get his chance against others who may also
be equally deserving. Please do not take it to your
heart and suffer within yourself. You have to openly
discuss with your superior to find out how you could
have qualified for that position and take the feed back
in your stride. It is very easy to say this but as an
ambitious person, very difficult to accept. We have
two choices here, one is to stay back without grudging
and the second is to move on gracefully to another
organization.
I am not suggesting that you become complacent
and stay put accepting things as it is, but would like
to say that you chalk out what you want to do. Do

64. XIX. Career Planning Controller’s Handbook
some introspection (a SWOT) and plan your career
moves by yourself. Ask the question, what I want to
do three to five years down the line. Write down what
you need to do to achieve that and make it happen.
As the saying goes, ‘Plan your work” and “Work your
plan”. People who spend long years in one company
tend to have a comfort zone and are reluctant to take
new challenges outside of the organization. New orga-
nizations will help you learn different work cultures,
approaches to business and your ability to adapt to
new environment. You can meet new colleagues, expe-
rience challenging tasks and more importantly could
learn to look at things from a different perspective.

65. XX
Fitness & Stress
Management
Our role in an organization is that of a support func-
tion and it is purely a desk job. With long hours
in front of the computer, we tend to develop health

66. XX. Stress Controller’s Handbook
issues – obesity, back aches, eye related problems,
headaches and many more. As a Controller, there is a
likelihood of excessive stress, and this just builds up,
leaving people with ill health at the age of 35 these
days. Hence physical fitness plays a very vital role in
our life.
Break the monotony by exercising in the morning,
play an active sport like soccer or table tennis and
you will be surprised to find it helps manage both
physical fitness and stress. Make physical activities
a routine and you will look forward to weekends and
will be seen smiling your way to work each day. Our
families reflect will also reflect this mood.
Any person under excessive stress and with poor
physical activity tends to be negative, less optimistic
and generally not preferred as company by colleagues.
A healthy body has a healthy mind and a healthy
mind brews positive thoughts which can spread and
benefit others around you. Stay fit and add value to
others.

67. XXI
Conclusion
The views expressed in this document are based on
my personal experience and I hope you’ve benefited
from it. Kindly adapt the points mentioned here to
suit your needs. I wish you the best in becoming a
great Controller and more importantly a successful

68. Controller’s Handbook
corporate executive. Success is defined differently
by each of us; in my opinion, you are successful if
you have been able to add value to the organisation
you work for and your colleagues by sharing your
knowledge. Monetary gains and designation are used
as measures of success by some, but these are con-
stantly in flux and do not reflect your true value. I
would appreciate your constructive feedback on this
handbook. I also invite you to visit our company’s
website regularly for such documents. I am sure many
of you have similar ideas and the ability to spread
your knowledge. Please do pen your thoughts down
and share it with the world.
Best regards.
Krish