Lead, Special Projects

Cynch AI•Pleasanton, CA

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

Aardvark Tax Advisors is a full-service tax, accounting, and advisory firm serving small businesses and entrepreneurs. As the accounting and client services practice of Cynch AI, it uses proprietary AI to reduce routine tasks so employees can focus on client work. The practice is growing organically and through strategic acquisitions, with defined advancement expectations and performance-based opportunities for greater responsibility and equity over time. Reporting to the Managing Director and supporting the executive team, the Lead, Special Projects helps keep the practice running smoothly by taking ownership of problems and driving them through to resolution. The role combines a chief-of-staff perspective with hands-on execution, and the work varies week to week. The successful candidate is expected to take on unfamiliar problems, find solutions, and document processes to make similar work easier in the future. The position is hybrid in Cupertino, Santa Cruz, or Pleasanton, California, and is full-time. The preliminary California salary range is $95,000–$125,000.

Requirements

3–7 years of experience in a fast-paced role such as operations, consulting, banking, a startup, or a professional services firm.
A track record of owning messy, ambiguous projects from start to finish.
Strong analytical skills and comfort using AI tools in day-to-day work.
A bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience.
Driven, proactive, and motivated to resolve loose ends without waiting for direction.
Highly organized, able to manage multiple concurrent tasks and maintain reliable notes, trackers, and follow-ups.
Curious about unfamiliar work, quick to learn, and able to ask good questions.
Resourceful in finding people, documents, and answers, and comfortable picking up the phone.
Clear communicator who writes concise summaries and gives direct answers, including when the news is bad.
Discreet and careful in handling confidential deal, client, and company information.

Nice To Haves

Experience at a CPA, tax, or accounting firm.
Exposure to M&A, due diligence, or post-acquisition integration.
Experience with business insurance, vendor management, or HR operations.

Responsibilities

Translate team priorities into written plans with owners, milestones, and budgets, and track progress through completion.
Investigate practice needs involving capacity, staffing, systems, workflow, and client experience; gather data and team input and provide clear recommendations.
Run the operating rhythm by preparing agendas and pre-reads, recording decisions and action items, and following up until items are complete.
Work with practice managers to unblock projects and turn one-off fixes into documented, repeatable processes.
Take ownership of special projects that matter to the business, including potential acquisitions, data analysis, vendor contracts, licensing and registrations, and policy and procedure development.
Maintain a running list of priorities and resolve outstanding operational issues.
Help manage projects independently and lead long-term planning efforts end to end.