Director of Capital & Emerging Technology Accounting

Position Overview

The Director, Capital & Emerging Technology Accounting is a high‑impact role within the Chief Accounting Officer’s organization. It sits at the intersection of accounting policy and software development, driving proper capitalization of labor and internal‑use software.

The Director will own the operational labor capitalization close, serve as the subject‑matter expert on technical accounting for internal‑use software, cloud computing, and AI development cost accounting, and collaborate with Engineering, CIO, and BU CTOs.

• Technical Accounting – Internal‑Use Software, Cloud & AI
  • Serve as the primary technical accounting resource for ASC 350‑40 (Internal‑Use Software) and ASU 2018‑15 (Cloud Computing Arrangements).
  • Develop and maintain an AI development cost accounting policy covering the model lifecycle, applying ASC 350‑40 by analogy, ASU 2018‑15, and ASC 730 as appropriate.
  • Advise on heightened‑judgment AI cost categories: training compute costs, training data costs, foundation model fine‑tuning, inference infrastructure, and prompt‑engineering pipeline development.
  • Monitor FASB standard‑setting activity on AI accounting and lead readiness for ASU 2025‑06, including impact assessment, process updates, and briefings for the CFO and Audit Committee.
  • Maintain an FAQ and capitalization decision framework; respond to questions from engineering managers, BU Finance partners, and the CIO organization on project eligibility and phase classification.
• Monthly Close – Labor Capitalization Process
  • Own the end‑to‑end monthly labor capitalization close.
  • Convene BU Finance and engineering managers for pre‑close validation; prepare the journal entry package with supporting schedules.
  • Reconcile the capitalized software balance to the fixed‑asset sub‑ledger and deliver the close package to the Controller.
  • Pull and validate the labor capitalization report from Power BI / Sigma; reconcile Tempo‑approved hours by project, phase, and cost center.
  • Serve as the primary Finance contact for external auditors on the capitalized software workpaper package; prepare technical accounting memos and respond to auditor queries on phase classification.
• Hours Tracking & Cross‑Functional Governance
  • Define, publish, and maintain the hours‑tracking standard, including capitalizable vs. expense labor criteria under ASC 350‑40 and logging frequency requirements.
  • Coordinate with IT Finance and Enterprise Architecture to ensure Jira project codes and Tempo configuration reflect capitalization policy before projects are created or modified.
  • Issue a monthly compliance scorecard to BU CTOs and the CIO covering Tempo completion rates, approval timeliness, and project code error rates; recommend corrective actions for non‑compliance patterns.

• Required
  :
  Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or related field; CPA required.
• 7+ years progressive accounting experience, with at least 3 years in a technical accounting or accounting policy role.
• Expertise in ASC 350‑40 (Internal‑Use Software) and working knowledge of ASU 2018‑15 (Cloud Computing Arrangements).
• Experience owning or materially contributing to a software capitalization process in a technology‑intensive organization.
• Strong cross‑functional communication skills with the ability to translate accounting requirements into operational guidance for engineering and technology audiences.
• Experience preparing and presenting technical accounting memos, policy documents, and audit‑support packages.
• At this time, candidates who require visa sponsorship are not considered.
• Preferred
  :
  Public accounting background with technology‑sector client experience.
• Experience with Jira, Tempo, or similar project/time‑tracking platforms in a capitalization context.
• Familiarity with Snowflake, Sigma, or Power BI in financial reporting or close‑process context.
• Familiarity with Workday Financials and HCM.
• Working knowledge of ASU 2025‑06 and its anticipated impact on internal‑use software accounting.
• Familiarity with AI/ML development lifecycle concepts sufficient to engage credibly with ML engineering teams on cost classification.
• Prior experience in a company with both in‑house (CIO)…