Summary

The Corporate Finance Lead will report to the Chief Operating Officer and oversee both company-wide corporate accounting and corporate finance activities, unifying the firm’s financial operations, reporting, and planning disciplines. This leader will build a scalable, accurate, technology-enabled financial foundation while shaping decision-making through forward-looking insight, rigorous analysis, and trusted business partnership.

Beyond accounting and planning, this leader will own and drive key firmwide operational programs including contractor workforce governance, T&E policy management, and international expansion infrastructure, serving as an operational finance lead across the firm, not just within the corporate finance function.

The successful candidate brings deep technical accounting expertise, mature financial judgment, and the ability to architect systems and processes for a rapidly scaling, structurally complex organization. 

This role will be based out of Menlo Park / San Francisco and our firm’s in-office expectations align with what each primary business partner requires. A reasonable assumption for now is 2 days per week. 

Core systems used by a16z: Workday, Navan, Planful, Ironclad, Deel

To join our team, you should be excited to: 

1. Responsible for corporate accounting
2. Own and maintain the firm's accounting policy framework, including technical accounting determinations for non-standard transactions
3. Coordinate closely with fund accounting and tax on shared workflows, reporting, and period-end processes
4. Own all management company accounting, including GL, AP, payroll, and consolidated reporting
5. Build scalable processes, controls, and multi-entity structures
6. Lead and execute timely month-end and quarter-end close with strong data integrity
7. Lead firmwide planning, forecasting & consolidation
8. Manage annual budgets, in-year forecasts, and multi-year planning
9. Set firmwide targets for fees, expenses, margins, and cash
10. Deliver consolidated P&L, cash flow, and margin reporting to senior stakeholders
11. Provide variance analysis, scenario modeling, and tradeoff insights for senior leadership on major financial decisions
12. Partner across central teams & verticals
13. Support G&A teams with budgeting, forecasting, and resource decisions
14. Align vertical finance teams on fees, hiring plans, and margin targets
15. Collaborate closely with stakeholders (e.g. HR, Legal) to drive initiatives and programs
16. Lead firmwide operational programs
17. Own the firm's contractor management program: establish governance, policy, vendor classification, and controls across all teams and verticals — not just within the finance function
18. Design, communicate, and evolve the firmwide T&E policy, partnering with Legal, Compliance, and HR to ensure it is clear, current, and consistently applied
19. Lead international expansion at a firmwide operational level: coordinate entity setup, local compliance, banking, payroll infrastructure, and cross-functional readiness (HR, Legal, Tax, Finance) as the firm expands its global footprint
20. Act as the COO's operational finance lead on any other firm-level projects requiring financial governance or cross-functional coordination
21. Build & scale financial systems
22. Lead corporate finance system design, forecasting templates, and automation across the firm
23. Raise the quality, speed, and consistency of financial data across accounting, corporate finance, HR, Tax, and other partner functions 
24. Lead the modernization and automation of accounting and corporate finance activities, with the goal of building a best-in-class, technology-forward finance function  
25. Develop the team
26. Build, develop, and retain a high-performing team across accounting and corporate finance, with a culture of accountability, precision, and continuous improvement

Minimum Qualifications

1. 12+ years of experience across Corporate Accounting, Corporate Finance, and/or Strategic Finance, with deep technical accounting expertise
2. Demonstrated success leading both accounting and financial planning functions in a complex, high-growth environment
3. Public accounting experience and CPA strongly preferred
4. Experience leading the planning and execution of large, operational, cross -functional initiatives/programs 
5. Experience managing multi-entity, multi-jurisdiction accounting structures and consolidated financials
6. Strong accounting and finance capabilities: forecasting, modeling, scenario analysis, long-range planning, and executive reporting
7. Proven track record of system implementations (ERP, payroll, expense, and FP&A tools)
8. Experience leading cross-functional decision-making and influencing senior leadership
9. Demonstrated ability to build, lead, and develop high-performing teams
10. Low ego, high empathy, and the capacity to collaborate effectively with diverse teams

Capabilities

1. AI-curious: interest in, and experience with, using cutting edge AI tools in creating automated, real-time, self-service capabilities
2. Services mindset: highly responsive, proactive, and helpful; sets the standard for operational excellence
3. Strategic thinking: develops a long-term roadmap for financial reporting and operations
4. Analytical rigor: ability to pressure test assumptions and drive insights from complex data
5. Project management: leads large-scale, cross-functional initiatives with precision and clarity
6. Collaboration, leadership and stakeholder management: builds strong relationships across the organization; trusted by executives
7. Thrives in ambiguity: navigates complexity and designs structure where none exists
8. Commitment to systemization and scale: prioritizes automation, repeatability, and data integrity
9. Judgment & discretion: brings balanced, thoughtful decision-making in time-sensitive or high-impact situations

The anticipated salary range for this role is between $322,000 - $376,000, actual starting pay may vary based on a range of factors which can include experience, skills, and scope.

This role is eligible to participate in the a16z carry program and various discretionary bonus programs as well as benefit and perquisite plans including health, dental, vision, disability, life insurance, 401K plan, vacation, and sick leave.

Skills

• Accounting
• Analytical Thinking
• Communications Skills
• Financial Modeling
• Strategic Thinking
• Team Collaboration