Vice President of Finance

International Recruiting LLC•San Jose, CA

About The Position

This role is for the first true finance leader of the organization, responsible for building the finance function from the ground up. The ideal candidate will have experience at both large companies and startups, comfortable being both a strategic executive and a hands-on operator. They will be responsible for establishing financial processes, systems, controls, and reporting infrastructure to support rapid growth, serving as the primary financial advisor to the CEO and executive team, owning the company's budget and forecasts, managing fundraising and investor relations, overseeing accounting and compliance, and developing a long-term roadmap for IPO readiness. The role requires building a high-performing finance organization gradually as the company scales, starting as a hands-on individual contributor.

Requirements

8+ years of progressive finance experience, with 3+ years in senior finance leadership roles.
Experience as a VP Finance, CFO, SVP Finance, or comparable senior finance leader.
Experience working at a large, established company with sophisticated financial processes and systems.
Experience working at a startup or high-growth company, preferably at an early stage.
Demonstrated experience helping a company scale from an early-stage startup toward significant growth, institutional investment, and/or IPO.
Strong expertise in FP&A, financial modeling, budgeting, forecasting, cash management, and corporate finance.
Experience supporting fundraising and working directly with investors.
Experience building financial processes and infrastructure from the ground up.
Strong understanding of accounting, financial controls, audit, tax, and corporate governance.
Ability to operate independently in an environment with limited existing infrastructure.
Excellent communication and business judgment.
Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Business, or a related field.
Has experience at both large companies and startups.
Has worked in an environment where they had to build rather than inherit financial processes.
Is comfortable being both a strategic executive and a hands-on operator.
Can personally build a financial model, review accounting, analyze cash flow, prepare investor materials, and present financial recommendations to the CEO.
Knows when to use external accounting, tax, legal, and financial resources rather than immediately building a large internal team.
Has successfully navigated the transition from startup → growth company → institutional organization → IPO/public company.
Understands what investors, Boards, auditors, and future public markets will expect from the finance organization.
Is comfortable working with incomplete information and creating structure where none exists.
Moves quickly and is willing to get into the details when necessary.
Can build a finance organization gradually as the company scales.

Nice To Haves

Experience at an AI, robotics, SaaS, technology, or other high-growth startup.
Experience at a company that successfully completed an IPO.
Experience directly supporting IPO preparation or public-company transition.
Experience at a company that grew from early-stage startup to significant scale.
Experience working with venture capital and institutional investors.
Experience building a finance function when the company had a small initial team.
CPA, MBA, or equivalent advanced qualification.
Experience with financial systems, ERP implementation, and financial planning tools.

Responsibilities

Establish and own the company's finance function from the ground up.
Develop the financial processes, systems, controls, and reporting infrastructure needed to support rapid growth.
Determine which finance functions should be built internally versus supported by external accounting, tax, legal, and financial advisors.
Implement appropriate accounting, budgeting, forecasting, expense management, and financial reporting systems.
Create scalable processes that can evolve as the company grows.
Establish financial policies and controls without creating unnecessary bureaucracy.
Serve as the primary financial advisor to the CEO and executive team.
Build financial models to support company strategy, hiring plans, pricing, expansion, and capital allocation.
Develop clear financial and operating KPIs for leadership and the Board.
Provide analysis and recommendations for major business decisions.
Help leadership understand the financial implications of growth initiatives and strategic investments.
Balance growth objectives with cash management and long-term financial sustainability.
Own the company's annual budget and rolling financial forecasts.
Develop and maintain short- and long-term financial models.
Monitor cash flow, burn rate, runway, revenue, expenses, and headcount.
Establish monthly financial reporting and management review processes.
Identify financial risks and opportunities early and provide actionable recommendations.
Build scenarios around fundraising, hiring, expansion, and changing business conditions.
Partner directly with the CEO and Board on fundraising strategy and execution.
Prepare financial models, forecasts, investor materials, and due diligence materials.
Manage financial aspects of fundraising rounds, including investor diligence and data rooms.
Develop relationships with investors, banks, auditors, accounting firms, and other financial partners.
Ensure the company maintains accurate and credible financial information for current and prospective investors.
Help establish the financial reporting standards and processes expected by institutional investors.
Oversee the company's accounting and financial reporting, whether handled internally or through external partners.
Manage relationships with external accountants, auditors, tax advisors, and legal professionals.
Establish appropriate internal controls and financial approval processes.
Oversee tax planning, compliance, treasury, and corporate financial administration.
Ensure the company's financial records and reporting remain accurate, timely, and audit-ready.
Establish the foundation for increasingly sophisticated financial controls as the company scales.
Develop a long-term roadmap for the company's transition from early-stage startup to institutional and public-company readiness.
Establish financial reporting, controls, governance, and documentation practices that can scale toward an eventual IPO.
Work with external accounting, legal, and financial advisors to understand and prepare for future public-company requirements.
Ensure that financial systems and processes are designed with future scale and regulatory requirements in mind.
Help leadership understand the financial milestones and organizational changes required to become IPO-ready.
Initially operate as a highly hands-on individual contributor and finance leader.
Determine when additional finance, accounting, FP&A, and operations hires are needed.
Build and manage the finance organization as the company grows.
Establish hiring plans, organizational structure, and responsibilities for the future finance team.
Develop a high-performing finance organization without unnecessarily adding overhead during the company's early stages.