Role OverviewAs Assistant Controller at Arbor Energy, you'll be the first team member reporting to the Controller and the person who answers one question every day: are the books right? You'll own day-to-day accounting from end to end, including the close, the general ledger, state and federal grant compliance, and the work of our outsourced accounting partner.
Arbor is moving from R&D toward commercial manufacturing and project deployment. You'll help build the accounting that goes with that move, including a new ERP, manufacturing cost accounting, and multi-year equipment commitments. As the team grows, this role is the path to Controller.
This is an in-person opportunity in our El Segundo, CA headquarters.
Responsibilities- Own the close and financial reporting
- Own the monthly, quarterly, and year-end close, including the close calendar, journal entries, accruals, prepaids, and account reconciliations.
- Prepare board-ready financial statements (income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement) in accordance with US GAAP for Controller review.
- Produce budget vs. actual and flux reports on schedule, and explain the drivers clearly to non-finance leaders.
- Maintain the general ledger and chart of accounts, including department, project, and award tracking.
- Own state and federal grant accounting
- Own financial compliance for Arbor's state and federal awards, including DOE financial assistance awards and SBIR grants.
- Track allowable and unallowable costs by award under 2 CFR 200, 2 CFR 910, and FAR Part 31.
- Prepare drawdowns and reimbursement requests, federal financial reports (SF-425), and cost-share tracking.
- Build and run timekeeping and labor-charging processes that hold up to agency review.
- Support indirect cost rates and rate proposals, working with outside specialists as needed.
- Coordinate with external auditors and agencies on grant audits and reviews, and run award closeouts.
- Manage our outsourced accounting partner
- Manage the daily work of our outsourced accounting partner, including an offshore team that supports payroll, AP, and the close.
- Set standards, review deliverables, and track the partner's quality and timeliness against agreed expectations.
- Bring work in-house or automate it when that is faster or more accurate.
- Run AP, vendor commitments, and AR
- Own AP, including high-volume invoice processing and the weekly pay run.
- Track multi-year vendor commitments for long-lead equipment and materials, including milestone-based accruals and payment schedules.
- Track spend and open commitments against approved budgets.
- Build invoicing and AR processes as commercial revenue begins, and support revenue recognition under ASC 606.
- Account for equipment, leases, and inventory
- Maintain the fixed asset register, asset tagging, depreciation, and construction in progress for equipment, test facilities, and factory buildout.
- Apply Arbor's capitalization policy and track actual CapEx against approved budgets.
- Own lease accounting under ASC 842, including equipment leases.
- Help build inventory and manufacturing cost accounting as production begins, including raw materials, work in process, finished goods, standard costs, and variance reporting.
- Run tax, audit readiness, and internal controls
- File sales and use tax and business property tax returns, manage 1099 reporting, and give outside tax preparers what they need.
- Get the books ready for Arbor's first financial statement audit, including account support, schedules, and documentation that an auditor can rely on.
- Operate and document internal controls, including payment approvals and banking controls, with a view to future SOX readiness.
- Support investor and lender diligence requests with accurate, timely schedules.
- Build the accounting systems
- Play a lead role in the ERP implementation that replaces QuickBooks Online, including requirements, data migration, testing, and new approval workflows.
- Administer Ramp and the accounting systems, and reconcile payroll and benefits (TriNet).
- Write process documentation so the function does not depend on any one person.
- Use automation and AI tools to shorten the close and reduce manual work.
- Partner with finance and operations
- Deliver clean actuals that feed forecasting, planning, and board materials.
- Prepare bank reconciliations and regular cash balance reports for the Controller.
- Partner with engineering, procurement, and program leads on purchasing, award budgets, and cost coding.
Requirements- Bachelor's degree in Accounting.
- Experience in a capital-intensive industry, such as power generation, energy, aerospace, hardware, or advanced manufacturing.
- 7+ years of progressive accounting experience, including at least 2 years in public accounting audit.
- 2+ years of hands-on accounting for federal awards, grants, cooperative agreements, or government contracts, including cost allowability, drawdowns, federal financial reporting, and audit support.
- Experience owning a month-end close end to end, not only parts of it.
- Strong US GAAP knowledge, including fixed assets, capitalization, and accruals for long-term contracts.
- Experience managing or directing the work of others, including outsourced or offshore accounting teams.
- Advanced Excel skills (XLOOKUP, pivot tables, Power Query, or similar).
- Clear written and verbal communication with executives and with engineering, operations, and commercial teams.
- Resourcefulness and comfort moving between detailed execution and building new processes in a fast-moving environment.
Preferred Qualifications- Active CPA license.
- Big Four accounting firm audit experience.
- Experience with DOE financial assistance awards, including DOE for-profit compliance audits.
- Experience with FAR Part 31 cost principles, DCAA audits, indirect rate proposals, or incurred cost submissions.
- Hands-on ERP implementation experience, including data migration and testing.
- Manufacturing cost accounting experience, including inventory, standard costing, and variance analysis.
- ASC 842 lease accounting and ASC 606 revenue recognition experience.
- Startup experience, ideally at a venture-backed company.
- Experience at a company moving from R&D to commercial manufacturing, or with project finance and infrastructure development accounting.
- Multi-entity accounting and consolidation experience.
- A track record of automating close and reporting work, including with AI tools.
Compensation & Benefits- Pre-IPO stock options
- Medical, dental, and vision insurance (Arbor covers 90% for employees)
- Basic life insurance fully covered
- Health savings account (HSA) with matching
- Flexible savings account (FSA)
- Unlimited PTO
- 12+ company holidays, including Earth Day!
- 401(k)
- Commuter benefits
- Annual learning and development stipend
- And more!
Base Pay: $165,000 - $190,000 USD/year. The salary is subject to the applicant's skills, qualifications, experience, and geographic location.
