Accounts Payable Accounting Operations Specialist

Accounts Payable & Financial Operations Specialist

Location: Sunnyvale, CA 94086 (Onsite – local candidates only)

Duration: 3–6 month temp-to-perm (based on performance)

Pay Rate: $38–43/hr + Benefits (Medical, Dental, Vision)

Schedule: Onsite Monday–Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM (flexibility with start/end times)

About the Role: Our client is a cutting‑edge research lab focused on building, understanding, and responsibly deploying foundation models. They are a globally focused university offering market‑relevant AI degrees that prepare future leaders to apply cutting‑edge research to real‑world challenges. The team is seeking a hands‑on Finance Operations Specialist to support day‑to‑day financial operations in a fast‑paced, startup‑style environment. This will be the first dedicated finance‑focused hire on the team, supporting a growing organization where many financial processes are still manual and still being built out.

The ideal candidate will be comfortable rolling up their sleeves, handling day‑to‑day financial operations, and helping create more structure as the organization scales.

Key Focus Areas:

• Accounts payable
• Invoice processing
• Expense tracking and reimbursements
• Budget tracking and financial reporting
• Spreadsheet management and financial documentation

The team is looking for someone who is adaptable, proactive, collaborative, and comfortable working in a small but growing environment where processes are still evolving.

• Process vendor invoices, payments, and employee expense submissions accurately.
• Track invoices and payments using Excel spreadsheets and internal trackers.
• Review invoices and reimbursement requests for accuracy, approvals, and supporting documentation.
• Maintain organized accounts payable records and supporting financial documentation.
• Process employee reimbursements including travel and out‑of‑pocket expenses.
• Maintain vendor payment records and finance‑related documentation.

• Maintain and update financial spreadsheets for budget tracking and reporting.
• Support monthly planned spend vs. actual spend reporting.
• Assist with financial reporting, reconciliation activities, and expense tracking.
• Maintain organized, audit‑ready financial records and documentation.
• Support basic accounting and finance operational activities.

• Assist with transaction tracking, payment records, and banking‑related documentation.
• Support company credit card expense tracking and reconciliation.
• Maintain accurate records for vendor payments and financial transactions.

• Support a highly manual, spreadsheet‑heavy finance environment.
• Help improve and organize finance processes as the company grows.
• Maintain organized systems for invoices, vendor documentation, and financial records.
• Collaborate with cross‑functional teams to ensure smooth financial operations.

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business, or related field (or equivalent experience).
• 2–5 years of experience in Accounting/finance operations.
• Hands‑on experience with accounts payable, invoice processing, expense tracking and reimbursements, and financial documentation and reporting.
• Strong experience in Microsoft Excel and spreadsheet management.
• Understanding of basic accounting principles (GAAP).
• Comfortable and experienced working in a manual spreadsheet‑heavy environment.
• Exposure to payroll reimbursements or finance‑related payroll coordination (not HR payroll).
• Experience supporting budgeting, financial tracking, and/or expense reporting.
• Comfortable working onsite five days per week in Sunnyvale.
• Experience working in a small growing company, startup, or fast‑paced environment.
• Humble, collaborative mindset with a willingness to support different teams.
• Comfortable working closely with researchers, scientists, and cross‑functional teams.
• No‑ego, can do attitude and willingness to take ownership of tasks.
• Ability to adapt to evolving processes in a growing organization.
• Experience using collaboration tools such as Microsoft Teams, Outlook, Zoom, Slack.

• Experience…