This is a build role. You will write and own the policies and SOPs your team operates against, design the controls framework, and continuously improve the processes underneath it, including using Claude and other tools to automate work that doesn't need to be manual.

Responsibilities:

Close Operations

• Own a portfolio of accounts through month-end and quarter-end close, including reconciliations, journal entries, and variance commentary
• Drive close acceleration by identifying bottlenecks and implementing process changes that reduce cycle time without sacrificing accuracy
• Ensure all close deliverables are consistently audit-ready, with clear documentation of positions and supporting evidence
• Oversee SOX control preparation and execution across your accounts; review control evidence and own timely remediation of any gaps

Technical Accounting & Policy

• Write, own, and maintain technical accounting policies and SOPs across your domain, drafting, evolving, and operationalising them as the business changes
• Review technical accounting memos prepared by your team; ensure conclusions are well-supported and consistent with US GAAP
• Collaborate with Technical Accounting on new or evolving standards and translate guidance into procedures the team can execute
• Own external audit responses within your domain; ensure timely delivery of supporting schedules and audit-ready workpapers

Process Improvement & Automation

• Identify repetitive, rules-based tasks across the team's workflows and build scalable solutions, including leveraging Claude, to automate or replace them
• Document workflows and controls in a way that supports knowledge transfer, audit evidence, and system scalability
• Contribute to ERP and systems implementations, translating accounting requirements into clear specifications and test criteria

Cross-Functional Partnership

• Partner with Finance & Strategy, Tax, People Operations, Procurement, and Facilities to keep accounting aligned with business activity in real time
• Translate complex accounting positions into plain language for non-finance stakeholders
• Support new entity setup and geographic expansion by establishing accounting processes for new jurisdictions as Anthropic grows

Team Leadership & Review

• Coach and develop a team of highly agile performers, providing timely, specific feedback that raises the technical and operational bar over time
• Hire and onboard accountants as the team grows; set clear expectations and build a culture of precision and continuous improvement
• Serve as the first escalation point for complex transactions and accounting judgments across your team's workstreams

Areas of experience include:

• Close management and acceleration; process improvement; SOX control design and operation
• Real estate and lease accounting (ASC 842); fixed assets, capitalisation policy, and depreciation
• Payroll accounting; stock-based compensation (ASC 718); commissions (ASC 340-40); contingent worker accounting
• Cash and investments; debt accounting; IDSE, Intangibles, prepaids, accruals, and period-end cut-off controls

You May Be a Good Fit If You

• Hold an active CPA license
• Have around 10 years of progressive accounting experience, combining public company experience (in audit or in-house) with time at a high-growth or startup environment
• Have a Big 4 audit background – a strong signal of technical depth and audit-readiness standards
• Have managed or meaningfully coached more junior accountants and are ready for a role with direct reports
• Are comfortable owning accounting policies and SOPs end-to-end: writing them, maintaining them, and being accountable for how the team applies them
• Can move fluidly between reviewing your team's work and doing the work yourself – equally comfortable in a reconciliation spreadsheet and a review meeting
• Have experience designing and operating controls in a SOX environment
• Thrive in ambiguity and can structure work, reach defensible conclusions, and document them clearly even when the answer is not obvious
• Are energised by building from scratch rather than maintaining what already exists
• Have a clear point of view on how AI tools can eliminate low-value accounting work – and want to put that into practice
• Communicate clearly with non-accounting partners and can explain a complex position in plain language

Strong Candidates May Also:

• Have public company accounting experience, including exposure to financial reporting cycles
• Bring deep expertise in two or more specialty areas: ASC 842 lease accounting, ASC 718 stock-based compensation, commissions accounting, payroll accounting, or fixed asset accounting
• Have led or played a significant role in an ERP implementation – particularly in a high-growth environment where accounting requirements were evolving mid-project
• Have experience building accounting infrastructure from the ground up: chart of accounts design, allocation methodology, or close cadence structure
• Bring familiarity with AI or infrastructure-heavy business models where cost attribution and capitalisation decisions are complex
• Have managed accounting through significant organisational change – new entity setup, geographic expansion, or business model evolution

Annual compensation range for this role is $190,000-$230,000 USD.

XML job scraping automation by YubHub