Senior Accountant & AI Specialist

Branch Financial, LLC•Columbus, OH

1d•$77,760 - $86,400•Remote

About The Position

Branch is looking for a senior accountant who wants to change how the work gets done. Roughly 70 to 80 percent of this role is core accounting: month-end close, reconciliations, investment accounting, state compliance filings, and the reporting that goes with them. The remaining 20 to 30 percent is finding the recurring work that should not be manual anymore and rebuilding it with AI. We are building a technology-first and data-driven finance organization while eliminating traditional structural inefficiencies. This role sits at the center of that. You will pair a foundation in accounting with hands-on AI experience to identify, design, and implement improvements across close, reporting, compliance, and investment workflows, and you will do it in a way that keeps GAAP, statutory, and regulatory requirements fully intact. Building the automation is half the deliverable. The other half is teaching it. When you rebuild a process, you hand it to the person who runs it every month so they can own it without you. That is how the whole team gets faster, not just your corner of it. You will work alongside a team of accountants supporting an expanding set of insurance programs, each of which arrives with its own way of doing things. Making them consistent is part of the job, and the work grows as the programs do. The ideal candidate is not afraid to roll their sleeves up to ensure we are achieving the industry's best outcomes, all while making sure we are delivering on our promise to our members. Branch is remote first. If you are near our Concordia, Missouri office you are welcome to work hybrid from there. Fully remote is equally welcome.

Requirements

5+ years of corporate accounting experience, with month-end close, reconciliations, and compliance reporting owned independently.
Investment accounting experience, or clear evidence that you can pick it up quickly.
A four-year degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field.
Hands-on experience applying AI to real work. Whether that came from a previous role, formal training or a certification, or teaching yourself matters less than having built something. You should be able to walk someone through what you built in enough detail that they could do it themselves.
A track record of automating your own work. You found something repetitive, removed it, and can say what it saved.
The ability to teach what you build, including the documentation and handoff that let someone else run the process.
Excellent understanding of AI tools and concepts and the ability to apply them to real processes.
A proactive and creative thinker who challenges the status quo.
Ability to make decisions with incomplete information.
Excellent analytical skills.
Proven track record of managing multiple projects and prioritizing work.
Ability to work independently and handle ambiguity. You will be handed outcomes rather than instructions.
Strong written and oral communication skills.
An instinct for identifying opportunities and creating data-supported solutions.

Nice To Haves

Insurance or statutory accounting experience is a plus, not a requirement.

Responsibilities

Own month-end close, reconciliations, and recurring reporting, delivered on deadline.
Own investment accounting: journal entries, investment schedules, and the reconciliations behind them.
Prepare and support state compliance filings, including the forecasts and calculations that feed them.
Support the accounting for new insurance programs as they come onto the platform, standardizing how each one is handled rather than inheriting how each one was done before.
Maintain compliance with GAAP, statutory, and regulatory requirements, including internal controls and documentation.
Identify recurring accounting work that should not be manual, and rebuild it using AI tools.
Map current-state processes, prototype AI-enabled alternatives, and lead the implementation.
Hand off every automation you build to the person who runs the process, with the documentation and training they need to own it without you.
Evaluate and pilot AI tools for the accounting and finance team, and train team members to use them effectively.
Ensure AI-enabled processes hold up under GAAP, statutory, and regulatory requirements, with appropriate internal controls, documentation, and human review.
Apply AI to investment-related accounting and reporting workflows to improve data quality, analysis, and turnaround time.
Keep the accounting team's AI work aligned with Branch's enterprise AI direction, standards, and governance.