5-7 years of experience in finance, management consulting, or private equity
Strong financial and analytical skills with a solid grasp of accounting concepts
Proficient in Excel/Sheets for building and stress-testing financial models
Self-starter with a builder mentality, able to create structure from scratch
Excellent communication skills, capable of presenting to the board
Low ego, willing to dive into details and support team efforts
Genuine interest in automotive, energy, or defense sectors
Responsibilities
Model new market opportunities to assess viability and potential returns
Analyze significant deals, focusing on pricing structures and margin sensitivity
Guide capital and headcount allocation decisions for R&D and hiring
Establish forecasting, budgeting, and long-range planning functions
Act as the finance representative in key strategic discussions
Engage in detailed financial tasks when necessary, supporting accounting efforts
Benefits
Opportunity to join a rapidly growing company in a transformative industry
Collaborate with top experts to tackle pressing global issues
Potential for career advancement based on impact
Competitive compensation with stock options
Flexible time off and paid holidays
Central location in vibrant downtown Redwood City with easy access to transport
Comprehensive medical, dental, vision, and life insurance
401(k), HSA, FSA benefits, and commuter perks
Full Job Description
About the role
You'll be our first dedicated finance hire and the person leadership turns to for framing the company's most important decisions. Some of that is model-driven strategy: should we chase this new market, what should this deal actually cost the customer, where does the next dollar of headcount or R&D spend do the most good. Some of it is infrastructure: forecasting, budgeting, the long-range plan, the basic financial hygiene a company our size doesn't have yet.
This role is high-ownership and high-ambiguity. There is no playbook here. You will write it.
What you'll do
Model new markets. When we're deciding whether to go after energy, datacenters, or defense, you build the model that tells us if it's a real opportunity or a distraction: market sizing, unit economics, what it would actually take to win.
Model the deals that matter. Build the models behind our large automotive deals: volume ramps, multi-year pricing structures, cost curves, margin sensitivity, and how different pricing structures play out for us and the customer.
Shape how we allocate capital and headcount. Help leadership decide where the next dollar of R&D spend or the next hire goes, and make the tradeoffs explicit instead of political.
Build the planning function and the infrastructure it runs on. Stand up forecasting, budgeting, and the long-range plan, and get to a P&L view leadership trusts, a forecast that updates, and the basic financial hygiene that lets everyone move faster.
Be the finance voice in the room. Sit in on the big decisions, including fundraising prep, build-vs-buy, and new market entry, and be ready to present the analysis and recommendation directly to the board, not just the CEO. You'll work across sales, engineering, and ops as the decision requires.
Get into the details when they matter. Occasionally that means sitting with accounting on a close question or a reconciliation. It's not the job, but you don't treat it as beneath you either.
Who you are
We care less about how many years of experience you have, and more about what you've done and in what context. You may come from management consulting or private equity, or comparable growth-stage strategic finance/FP&A experience. You've built real models under real time pressure and defended them to people who'd poke holes in them.
Strong financial and analytical foundation, with a solid grasp of accounting concepts. You think in numbers instinctively and translate them into clear, actionable recommendations.
Fast and fluent in Excel/Sheets. You can stand up a credible model quickly and stress-test it under scrutiny.
A builder. Energized, not paralyzed, by a blank page. You create structure where none exists and don't wait to be told to move. We'd rather tell you to slow down than speed up.
Board-ready communicator. You can walk into a board meeting and present your own analysis and recommendation, and hold your own on the questions that follow.
Low ego. You'd rather be right than be senior about it. If a number needs checking or a spreadsheet needs cleaning up, you do it yourself instead of waiting for someone more junior.
Excited by the space. Genuine interest in automotive, energy, and/or defense, and the willingness to learn the operational details that make the models real.
Nice to have
Exposure to capital-intensive or hardware/manufacturing businesses, or to energy or defense markets specifically. Either is equally attractive.
Experience with complex, multi-year commercial deals or novel pricing structures.
Familiarity with the systems a growing company runs on: CRM, BI/dashboarding tools, accounting systems.
Tau is committed to paying competitive compensation that is fair and equitable. Your experience, qualifications, training, critical skills, and/or business considerations determine your compensation. We also offer a comprehensive benefits package that may include an annual performance bonus, equity, and other incentive compensation plans considered part of Tau's total compensation package. To learn more about our top-tier benefits, please visit www.taumotors.com. The level will depend on the candidate's experience. Our ideal candidate exhibits a can-do attitude and approaches his or her work with vigor and determination. Candidates will be expected to demonstrate excellence in their respective fields and possess the ability to learn quickly within a fast-paced environment.
Perks
Become part of an emerging company during a rapid growth phase-within an industry undergoing dramatic transformation for a global imperative.
Work with some of the smartest and most talented experts from different fields to: (1) attack some of the most pressing issues of today while (2) contributing to technically demanding and deeply innovative solutions.
Growth potential-we advance team members who have an outsized impact.
Competitive compensation based upon experience level, including stock options-we believe in capturing value in the future we create together.
Flexible time off and paid holidays.
Centrally located in the Bay Area on the Peninsula in vibrant downtown Redwood City
Blocks from the Caltrain
Walking distance to food and entertainment
Easy access to both the 101 and 280
Excellent medical, dental, vision & life insurance
Comprehensive benefits including 401(k), HSA and FSA benefits, commuter benefits and more
