OpenAI

Technical Revenue, Senior Manager - Strategic Commercial Deals

OpenAI$130K — $180K *
Enterprise Technology
8 - 10 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 10+ years of technical revenue accounting or advisory experience
  • Deep expertise in ASC 606 with complex workstream leadership
  • Experience with large, bespoke commercial deals and multi-party transactions
  • Strong background in emerging revenue models like advertising and marketplaces
  • Proficient in principal-versus-agent analysis and performance obligation assessments
  • Excellent executive communication skills to convey complex issues simply
  • CPA preferred, ideally with Big 4 and tech industry experience.

Responsibilities

  • Own technical revenue accounting for non-standard commercial deals
  • Serve as primary revenue advisor for strategic collaborations and emerging structures
  • Partner with cross-functional teams to influence deal economics and contract terms
  • Evaluate complex transactions under ASC 606 and related accounting standards
  • Translate technical conclusions into practical guidelines and decision-making frameworks
  • Define operational requirements for new commercial models to support revenue recognition
  • Draft audit-ready accounting memos and lead discussions with external auditors
  • Manage team development and prioritize high-value deals effectively.

Benefits

  • Hybrid work model with 3 days in office each week
  • Relocation assistance for new employees
  • Opportunities for professional development and team growth.
  • Engagement with innovative commercial structures and advanced accounting challenges.
  • A dynamic work environment at a cutting-edge tech company.
Full Job Description
About the Role

We're looking for a Senior Manager of Technical Revenue to lead revenue strategy and technical accounting for OpenAI's strategic commercial deals.

Reporting to the Head of Technical Revenue, you will serve as the primary revenue advisor for large, bespoke, and non-standard deals outside OpenAI's standard product and service offerings. Your portfolio may include strategic collaborations, cloud marketplaces, platform and distribution deals, licensing and revenue-share models, joint go-to-market initiatives, research collaborations, and other emerging commercial structures.

You will engage early in the deal lifecycle to help shape commercially viable, accounting-compliant, and operationally scalable outcomes. You will establish the accounting posture, identify required contract and product terms, define reporting and control requirements, and ensure that deal economics, billing flows, and revenue recognition remain aligned as the business evolves.

This role requires strong technical accounting judgment, commercial fluency, executive communication, and the ability to create clarity and ownership in areas where precedent may not yet exist.

This role is based in San Francisco, CA. We use a hybrid work model of 3 days in the office per week and offer relocation assistance to new employees.

In this role, you will:
  • Own technical revenue accounting for strategic commercial deals, including large, bespoke, and non-standard transactions outside OpenAI's standard product and service offerings.
  • Serve as the primary revenue advisor for strategic collaborations, cloud marketplaces, platform and distribution deals, licensing and revenue-share models, and other emerging commercial structures.
  • Partner early with Strategic Partnerships, Product, GTM, Strategic Finance, Legal, Deal Desk, and Tax to understand and influence deal economics, pricing, contract terms, and operational design.
  • Evaluate complex and ambiguous transactions under ASC 606, including principal-versus-agent considerations, gross-versus-net presentation, performance obligations, variable consideration, contract combinations, commitments, credits, incentives, and related-party considerations.
  • Translate technical conclusions into practical commercial guardrails and establish clear intake, escalation, and decision-making frameworks for material deals and amendments.
  • Define the data, reporting, billing, settlement, reconciliation, and control requirements needed to operationalize new commercial models and support accurate revenue recognition.
  • Draft audit-ready technical accounting memos and policies, lead discussions with external auditors, and clearly communicate conclusions and trade-offs to senior stakeholders.
  • Manage and develop team members and external resources, prioritize concurrent high-value deals, and strengthen the team's ability to influence commercial decisions proactively.

You might thrive in this role if you have:
  • 10+ years of technical revenue accounting or related advisory experience, with deep ASC 606 expertise and experience leading complex workstreams or teams.
  • Significant experience supporting large, bespoke commercial deals, strategic collaborations, cloud marketplaces, platform distribution, licensing, revenue-share models, or other multi-party transactions.
  • A track record of influencing commercial strategy, pricing, product design, and contract terms before launch or signature.
  • Experience navigating emerging monetization models such as advertising revenue, marketplaces/commerce platforms, or other multi-sided ecosystems is a strong plus.
  • Strong command of principal-versus-agent analysis, gross-versus-net presentation, variable consideration, consideration payable to a customer, contract combinations, and complex performance-obligation assessments.
  • A track record of influencing commercial strategy, pricing, product design, and contract terms before launch or signature.
  • Experience translating evolving commercial models into scalable billing, accounting, reconciliation, reporting, systems, and control requirements.
  • Strong commercial judgment and executive communication skills, with the ability to explain complex accounting issues and practical trade-offs to senior non-accounting stakeholders.
  • Demonstrated success establishing ownership, governance, and repeatable processes in ambiguous, rapidly changing environments while developing team members and managing external resources.
  • CPA strongly preferred; a mix of Big 4 (or accounting advisory) and tech industry experience in high-growth environments is highly valued.

About OpenAI

OpenAI is an artificial intelligence research laboratory consisting of the for-profit corporation OpenAI LP and its parent company, the non-profit OpenAI Inc. The company was founded in 2015 by a group of technology leaders, including Elon Musk, Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, Ilya Sutskever, and John Schulman. OpenAI's mission is to develop and promote friendly AI for the betterment of humanity. The company has developed a number of cutting-edge AI technologies, including GPT-3, a language processing system that can generate human-like text. OpenAI has received funding from a number of high-profile investors, including LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and venture capitalist Peter Thiel.
Learn more about OpenAI
Size
100 employees
Industry
Founded
2015

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