Durgesh Pandey
CFO, Web Werks – Iron Mountain Data Centers
Durgesh Pandey is chief financial officer, Web Werks – Iron Mountain Data Centers. He has over 21 years of experience across the data centre, telecommunications, real estate and renewable energy sectors, and is a financial leader with a proven track record of delivering profitable growth for various businesses.
In the past, he has worked with organisations such as Aircel, Airtel, Nxtra Data and Emaar MGF in finance function and strategy roles. In his current role, Pandey is responsible for the management of all financial processes in India for all of the company’s legal entities, partnering in the formulation of the overall organisation strategy and facilitating business growth.
He looks after accounting, treasury, financial planning and analysis, tax and investor relations. “I am responsible for reporting, accounts, controls, taxation, audits, and regulatory compliance, including Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and compliance in its entirety,” he adds.
His expertise lies in business partnering, corporate finance, strategy, business and financial planning and stakeholder’s management.
Regarding India’s data centre market, Pandey believes that the country is well poised to reach 4-5 GW of capacity in the next three to four years from the current 1 GW. According to him, data centres constitute a critical infrastructure sector and digitisation is further bolstering its growth.
“However, a huge number of supporting paraphernalia is required to boost the sector’s progress,” he cautions.
“The data centre industry requires unhindered 24×7 power supply, as they host critical customer applications. The sector requires renewable strategy support from the government to boost clean energy usage. Our global clientele also demand this as a vital factor. There is also a need to develop robust fibre infrastructure for connectivity. There is an urgent need to facilitate ease of doing business, as multiple clearances are required currently to operationalise a data centre. Lastly, there is a need to develop the requisite skill set for the sector which can be done through upskilling, reskilling, etc.”
Pandey holds a bachelor’s degree from Ramjas College, Delhi University, and has pursued an MBA in finance from K. J. Somaiya Institute of Management, Mumbai. Currently residing in Mumbai, Pandey is a native of Dhanbad, Jharkhand, where his family has their own business.
When not at work, he enjoys spending time with his wife and their two children – a son and a daughter. He is also fond of learning about history, mythology and Ayurveda.
