RAJESH KUMAR IYER

Role: Hired to provide financial expertise for the UAE Federal Government public education entity post-separation from UAE Ministry of Education (MOE). Manage a budget of AED 11B, overseeing end-to-end budgeting and allocation across 20+ departments. Direct annual business planning, create financial reports, and liaise with key stakeholders including the Ministry of Finance, Education and Human Resources Council (EHRC) and other Government Authorities. • Instrumental in the comprehensive implementation of an enterprise-wide cloud ERP (Oracle Fusion), primed for deployment pending government approvals. • Devised and implemented a streamlined method for calculating cost per student and conducting complex analyses with limited data infrastructure. • Effectively managed the transition of ESE from MOE, preparing and finalizing opening financials with Ministry of Finance, ensuring compliance with UAE’s Federal Government Accrual Accounting Standards (FGAAS). • Transformed ESE's accounting from cash basis to accrual basis, aligning with FGAAS (UAE's Accrual Accounting Standards), akin to International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS), enhancing financial reporting accuracy. • Meritoriously formulated and submitted a comprehensive draft budget for the initial year within two weeks despite limited financial data availability, earning commendation from ESE's leadership.

Role: Spearheaded the demerger of community malls ownership and management from Aswaaq Retail LLC, establishing Aswaaq Properties LLC. Developed strategic business models, delegation of authority levels, and new banking relationships. Automated banking transactions and developed ERP for financial and non-financial controls. Led the entire finance function of the company with over 250 tenants across 11 community malls. • Established a robust finance structure, bolstering capabilities for sustained regional growth. • Strategically recruited and onboarded a proficient team, fostering a skilled workforce to drive organizational success. • Administered the implementation of IFRS relevant to the Real Estate Lease Management business to ensure proper classification of revenue, operational and capital expenditure. • Evaluated the functionalities of Yardi Property Management Software to match with strategic business objectives of Aswaaq Properties LLC. • Efficiently automated operations by deploying MS Dynamics D365 Cloud ERP, facilitating a seamless transition. Conducted comprehensive team training for proficient system adoption. • Analysed mall-wise profitability to identify areas for cost savings and efficiency improvements. • Developed financial models to evaluate the feasibility and profitability of investments in potential upcoming projects of community malls, in collaboration with the Management and leasing team. • Formulated tenant evaluation and credit scoring criteria by collaborating with the leasing team. • Improved the functioning of Risk Management committee of Aswaaq LLC (the holding company of Aswaaq Properties LLC, owned by Investment Corporation of Dubai), by being appointed as the Secretary of the committee.

Role: Recruited to establish an outsourcing company in India for optimizing back-end operations, including claims processing and administrative functions within finance and accounting. Responsible for long-term management of outsourced finance and accounting functions. Oversee shareholder agreements, corporate secretarial tasks, UAE VAT compliance, Insurance Authority regulations, and collaborate with IT on implementing controls and process improvements. • Proposed transformative outsourcing strategies, reducing employee costs by 40%. Also provided solutions for tax savings and controls. • Implemented strategic controls in ERP systems, enhancing receivables collection, VAT reporting, payables management, and other critical reporting functions in collaboration with the IT team. • Established a continuous automated monitoring of receivables from 5,000 customers, resulting in a rapid 25% improvement in collections efficiency.

Role: Hired to optimize annual budgeting processes and oversee accurate MIS reporting across multiple business units and locations. Responsible for implementing and managing Value Added Tax (VAT) compliance across all countries of operation. • Championed the streamlining and automation of the financial reporting process to improved data accuracy, efficient reporting and quicker decision-making. Presented weekly sales progress reports to the senior executives, and suggested areas of improvement. • Collaborated in the implementation of UAE VAT and the related internal control aspects.