Upendra Kumar Singh
Head of Finance
The industry veteran with more than a decade of experience in both strategic and operational aspects has played a significant role in the evolution of Digital Domain. As the Finance Head he is leading the organization with great efficiency and driving towards the pinnacle of success. CEO Insights is much privileged to engage in an exclusive conversation with Upendra Kumar Singh. Indeed there’s a lot to learn from this maven, kindly peruse the following snippet of valuable nuggets from him.
Throw some light on your professional background and experience. Tell us about your expertise and the leaders and qualities that drives you.
I am a Qualified Chartered Accountant and a Fellow Member of The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and also an Associate Member of The Institute Company Secretaries of India. My educational grounds are in Commerce from St. Xavier’s College and Law from Choudhary Charan Singh University. And also has a qualified professional certification course on International Financial Reporting Standards and Forex and Treasury Management from ICAI. And career spans giants such as Embassy Group, Tata Group, Elken International,DQEntertainment, and now Digital Domain. I have been fortunate to work across industries from real estate to FMCG, ITES and media entertainment.
My core expertise is in accelerating business profitability and driving operational excellence in leadership positions. I enjoy envisioning and enabling superior performance, business restructuring, strengthening control, and optimizing resources. Throughout my journey I have been steering large scale project propositions by managing the end-to-end phase through Strategic initiative, Transformation Leadership, Strengthening Operational Capabilities, Project Controls, and implementing Best Practices. I strongly believe that my leadership is driven by creating a human-first culture and getting to know each employee on a personal level while effectively managing the complexities of the company’s Finance and Accounts Corporate Governance Taxation Domestic and International, Human Capital Commercial, Operation, and more.
As a core management leader, elaborate on your role in Digital Domain’s growth.
I joined Digital Domain in 2017 when the company was newly launched in India. Although the brand had a global presence, I have seen its growth in India from the ground level and have been a part of it.
Throughout my journey here, I focused on introducing innovative ideas and implementing new processes and competitive strategies for market leadership. I ensure to leverage the fullest of my financial knowledge along with rich experience indevising effective communication strategies for the brand. I believe that it is my ability to translate vision into action and provide a tactical business solution that has been driving my success as a leader.
How would you define Digital Domain as an organization and its position in the market?
Digital Domain is an award winning global leader in VFX; worked for films such as Titanic, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Avengers:Infinity War,Transformers, Spider Man, fast and the furious, RRR and K.G.F. Chapter-2. We create immersive experiences that entertain, inform and inspire a strong presence in Los Angeles,
Guided by an ‘Employee First’ attitude and believes in Thinking Out of the Box
As a core management leader, elaborate on your role in Digital Domain’s growth.
I joined Digital Domain in 2017 when the company was newly launched in India. Although the brand had a global presence, I have seen its growth in India from the ground level and have been a part of it.
Throughout my journey here, I focused on introducing innovative ideas and implementing new processes and competitive strategies for market leadership. I ensure to leverage the fullest of my financial knowledge along with rich experience indevising effective communication strategies for the brand. I believe that it is my ability to translate vision into action and provide a tactical business solution that has been driving my success as a leader.
How would you define Digital Domain as an organization and its position in the market?
Digital Domain is an award winning global leader in VFX; worked for films such as Titanic, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Avengers:Infinity War,Transformers, Spider Man, fast and the furious, RRR and K.G.F. Chapter-2. We create immersive experiences that entertain, inform and inspire a strong presence in Los Angeles,
Vancouver, Montreal, Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hong Kong Taipei, and Hyderabad. Specializing in visual effects and media applications, Digital Human Lab, brings artistry and technology to hundreds of motion pictures commercials, video games, music videos, and virtual reality experiences and transforming entertainment.
As the finance head, what are the strategies you have made to manage and improve the cash flow of the company?
Apparently, cash flow management is a critical part of any organization. Indeed, you cannot run and business without funds. The two important aspects here are the inflow and outflow; both of which are critical in time. The best management strategy on the cash side is to focus mostly on reducing the time of the collecting cycle. Less time on the collection path and good commercial negotiation plays a major role. And the basic rule of thumb is to hold any idle funds and be smart at investing them to multiply.
Could you reflect on some of the toughest challenges you have encountered? Going forward, what are the changes in market behavior that you anticipate?
As leaders, we are always ready to tackle or face challenges head-on but when I joined the organization (Digital Domain) we had to start everything from level zero or starch of its operational settingup at Special Economic Zone. At that point, the expectation was very high for the seniors. You can imagine the gravity of building each and everything brick by brick from processes to policies and frameworks everything was challenging. But every challenge was a new opportunity for me, it is a learning journey.
We are in an era of transformation, primarily after Covid, everything has changed from social life to economic dynamics, industry needs, demand supply, customer expectations, technology, innovation, and more. Accordingly, a lot of old things need to be evolved as per the changes. We have to be ready to change, have new approaches, learn from the past, and better the future.
Upendra Kumar Singh, Head of Finance, Digital Domain, India
Upendra has a great flair for adopting modern methodologies for delivering outcomes within schedule time lines by using cross-functional skills
As the finance head, what are the strategies you have made to manage and improve the cash flow of the company?
Apparently, cash flow management is a critical part of any organization. Indeed, you cannot run and business without funds. The two important aspects here are the inflow and outflow; both of which are critical in time. The best management strategy on the cash side is to focus mostly on reducing the time of the collecting cycle. Less time on the collection path and good commercial negotiation plays a major role. And the basic rule of thumb is to hold any idle funds and be smart at investing them to multiply.
Could you reflect on some of the toughest challenges you have encountered? Going forward, what are the changes in market behavior that you anticipate?
As leaders, we are always ready to tackle or face challenges head-on but when I joined the organization (Digital Domain) we had to start everything from level zero or starch of its operational settingup at Special Economic Zone. At that point, the expectation was very high for the seniors. You can imagine the gravity of building each and everything brick by brick from processes to policies and frameworks everything was challenging. But every challenge was a new opportunity for me, it is a learning journey.
We are in an era of transformation, primarily after Covid, everything has changed from social life to economic dynamics, industry needs, demand supply, customer expectations, technology, innovation, and more. Accordingly, a lot of old things need to be evolved as per the changes. We have to be ready to change, have new approaches, learn from the past, and better the future.
Upendra Kumar Singh, Head of Finance, Digital Domain, India
Upendra has a great flair for adopting modern methodologies for delivering outcomes within schedule time lines by using cross-functional skills