Role Overview:

The role is a mix of strategic leadership and hands-on execution. The preferred candidate can both lead and roll up their sleeves - comfortable getting into the details of an IT services delivery organization, building and implementing processes, and managing day-to-day operations, while credibly engaging with engineering and technical delivery teams.

The Director ensures operations are sustainable, continuously optimized, and competitive in the marketplace, in alignment with market best practices for HR and Finance operations.

This individual partners closely with the CEO and executive leadership team to shape the trajectory of India operations as a core pillar of our delivery model, and engages directly with our US and global clients.

Must-Have Requirements:

These are hard, non-negotiable criteria. Candidates who do not clearly meet all of the following will not be considered, regardless of overall operations tenure.

1. IT / software services delivery leadership:

- A demonstrable track record leading a technical or software services delivery organization (client project delivery, engineering, or IT services) at comparable scale (100+ FTE). BPO, contact-center, or shared-services operations experience alone does not satisfy this requirement.

2. Technical fluency:

- Ability to lead, credibly engage, and set standards for software engineering / technical delivery teams, and to converse fluently on delivery, quality, and technology decisions with architects and engineers.

3. Full P&L ownership:

- Direct, hands-on ownership of a business-unit or delivery P&L - including margin, utilization, cost structure, and profitability - not solely project-level budget management.

4. External global-client engagement:

- Proven experience owning relationships with external clients (ideally US-based), including delivery accountability, escalation handling, and executive-level client engagement - not internal-stakeholder management only.

5. Pre-sales and growth support:

- Hands-on experience supporting sales pipelines and pre-sales activities (scoping, staffing, estimation, solutioning) alongside delivery.

6. Transformation with measurable outcomes:

- Evidence of leading process / capability-maturity transformation end-to-end, with quantified before/after results.

7. Education:

- Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Technology, or a closely related technical field. MBA or advanced management degree preferred.

Key Responsibilities:

Operational Leadership:

- Provide executive oversight for all functions of the India delivery center.

- Establish governance frameworks, decision-making structures, and performance accountability mechanisms.

- Ensure operational alignment with our global strategy and business objectives.

- Build a scalable, disciplined operating model that supports both growth and efficiency.

Technical Service Delivery:

- Ensure effective and on-time delivery of all software and technical services provided from India to global clients.

- Monitor delivery performance across engagements for adherence to quality standards, timelines, and client expectations.

- Partner directly with solution architects and delivery leads to drive successful client engagement execution and technical delivery excellence.

- Define and maintain operational and delivery metrics (quality, utilization, velocity, SLA/KPI) and reporting cadences.

Client Engagement & Pre-Sales Support:

- Own and strengthen relationships with external US and global clients, serving as a senior delivery point of contact.

- Handle escalations, protect client satisfaction, and act as a credible executive counterpart to client leadership.

- Engage with sales and marketing to understand the pipeline and provide hands-on pre-sales support - scoping, estimation, staffing, and solutioning - with delivery associates.

Workforce Planning & People Management:

- Oversee workforce planning and resource allocation across client-facing and internal functions.

- Maintain appropriate staffing across billable and non-billable roles relative to project demand.

- Develop and execute hiring strategies aligned with company growth and project pipelines.

- Partner with HR to build a high-retention culture, develop a leadership bench, and drive succession planning for critical roles.

- Monitor and maintain adequate bench strength in high-demand technologies to support delivery.

Financial Management & P&L Ownership:

- Own the P&L for the India center - including revenue enablement, margin, utilization, cost structure, and profitability - with disciplined spend management.

- Implement financial governance, including approval workflows for unplanned expenditures and budget variances.

- Oversee monthly invoicing for services delivered from India.

- Provide clear financial reporting and cost transparency to executive leadership on a regular cadence.

- Establish a competitive rate card for all billable technical roles and optimize overhead to maintain a market competitive cost structure.

- Monitor project-portfolio profitability and delivery to ensure effective management across scope and schedule, driving individual project profitability.

- Act as Director and legal fiduciary - steering strategic vision, executing day-to-day operations, managing finances, ensuring regulatory compliance, and safeguarding stakeholder interests.

Strategic Planning & Growth Enablement:

- Develop and execute the India operations strategy in alignment with our global growth roadmap.

- Ensure the India center maintains the capabilities needed to support an expanding portfolio of client engagements.

- Build scalable infrastructure that enables rapid capacity expansion or contraction based on business demand.

Transformation, Training & Capability Building:

- Foster a culture of continuous improvement, operational excellence, and service innovation.

- Lead capability-maturity and process-improvement initiatives end-to-end, with measurable before/after outcomes.

- Design and implement training and development programs to strengthen technical delivery capabilities.

- Drive collaboration across delivery teams, architects, support functions, and leadership to evolve service offerings and internal processes.

Governance, Compliance & Reporting:

- Implement governance frameworks encompassing performance metrics, management reporting, and structured operational reviews.

- Ensure full compliance with company policies, local regulatory requirements, and financial controls.

Key Success Metrics:

Success will be measured by:

- Delivery performance and on-time fulfillment across client engagements.

- Operational efficiency and cost management relative to the approved budget.

- Delivery margin, utilization, and project-portfolio profitability.

- Workforce utilization and staffing effectiveness.

- Budget discipline and financial reporting accuracy.

- Employee engagement, retention, and leadership-bench development.

- Client satisfaction and strength of external client relationships.

- Operational scalability in support of business growth.

- Adoption and effectiveness of governance and reporting frameworks.

Preferred Qualifications & Experience:

(In addition to the Must-Have Requirements above.)

Professional Background:

- 12 - 18 years of progressive operations leadership in IT services, technology consulting, or software/technology-enabled services.

- Prior experience with founder-led organizations in the US and managing India-based delivery centers or Global Capability Centers (GCCs) for technical/software delivery.

- Demonstrated success overseeing multi-function operational teams across delivery, HR, finance, and support functions.

- Established track record with international clients and cross-border service delivery models.

- Exposure to CCM, document/omni-channel, or comparable enterprise software domains is an advantage.

Leadership & Management:

- Proven experience leading teams of 50 - 200+ professionals in a global, delivery-driven environment.

- Strong background in operational governance, resource planning, and performance management.

- Ability to align cross-functional teams around shared business strategy and outcomes.

- Ability to travel domestically and internationally on a regular cadence.

Financial & Operational Acumen:

- Hands-on experience managing operational budgets and P&L in a services context.

- Familiarity with cost management, intercompany invoicing, and executive financial reporting.

- Strong organizational planning and process management capabilities.

Education:

- Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Technology, Business Administration, or a related field (required; technical field strongly preferred).

- MBA or advanced management degree preferred.

Leadership Competencies:

The ideal candidate combines strategic thinking with hands-on operational execution. We are looking for a leader who:

- Operates with a strategic mindset while maintaining rigor in day-to-day execution.

- Leads by example and builds a culture of accountability.

- Influences team members and peers without relying on formal authority.

- Communicates with crisp, structured, concise executive presence - clear and to the point with clients, staff, and leadership.

- Demonstrates strong financial and business acumen in a services environment.

- Builds and scales high-performing technical teams in fast-growth organizations.

- Communicates effectively with global stakeholders across cultures and time zones.

- Holds themselves and their teams to high standards of accountability and delivery.

- Drives process excellence without sacrificing organizational agility.