Financial Operations Manager

About the Team Born at X, Google’s Moonshot Factory, Taara is on a mission to connect billions of people lacking abundant and affordable internet today by pioneering the way we use light to deliver faster, cheaper, more reliable connectivity. Lead the charge in bringing our groundbreaking wireless optical communication and photonics chip technologies to the world. Drive our growth story as we scale innovative solutions across the world. Join us to light the way for bridging the digital divide and illuminating the future. About the Role Taara is looking for a hands-on Financial Operations Manager to run the day-to-day engine of its finance function. This is a critical role for a venture-backed hardware startup scaling toward its next phase of growth; you will not just be recording transactions, but actively owning how money moves through the company: who we pay, why we pay it, and whether it matches the plan. From invoice approvals to budget vs actuals, from vendor payments to cash forecasting, and from monthly close to lender reporting, you will serve as the connection point between our operations and our financial statements. You will work hand-in-hand with our accounting partners and our finance leadership, owning the operational cadence and providing the oversight that keeps our books accurate and our reporting on time. You will be responsible for upgrading our processes so that Finance Operations stays ahead of business goals, providing the visibility needed to make the right decisions at speed. How you will make 10x impact Own the Financial Operations: Manage the end-to-end disbursement of payments to vendors and partners, from purchase order verification through approval and payment. You will pressure-test high-ticket spend with our engineering and operations teams before it goes out the door, establishing a framework that drives financial discipline and accountability. Partner With and Oversee Our Accounting Team: Run the day-to-day relationship with our accounting firm. Review their monthly close output for accuracy, own the customer collections follow-up, and serve as the in-house owner who catches what a remote partner can’t see. You will write the playbook for how Taara’s finance operations run, not just follow it. Run Budget vs Actuals: Build and operate the monthly budget vs actuals cycle. Compile department-level spend reports, run variance reviews with every department lead, and keep forecasts honest as the business changes. Keep Cash and Reporting on Track: Track the weekly cash position, maintain a rolling 13-week cash forecast, and assemble the recurring reporting packages for our lender and investors (GAAP P&L, balance sheet, compliance certificate) so those relationships stay strong and on schedule. Drive Compliance: Own the tax compliance calendar across federal, state, and local obligations, coordinate our external tax firms and our international accounting partner, and drive continuous improvement toward US GAAP compliance, ensuring our books become audit-ready. Build Controls That Scale: Establish, implement, and enforce company spend policies, corporate card programs, and approval workflows with tools that provide real-time data insights, protecting the company without slowing R&D down. Grow Into Controller function and Cost Accounting: As the operational core matures, partner with operations to strengthen our cost accounting practice (inventory reconciliation, landed costs, BOM analysis) for accurate unit economics and reliable financial statements. What you should have 4-7 years of experience in finance operations or accounting, ideally within venture-backed or mid-size technology, hardware, or manufacturing companies. Hands-on ownership of an end-to-end accounts payable or procure-to-pay cycle, including vendor onboarding, approvals, and payment execution. Experience working alongside accounting providers, or a finance team whose close and books you reviewed and relied on. Systems Expertise: proficiency with modern accounting and spend management tools (e.g., QuickBooks, NetSuite, BILL, Procurify, Ramp). Operational Mindset: a track record of delivering operational improvements. You don’t just follow the process; you fix it. Integrity: high discretion and trustworthiness with sensitive financial data, banking access, and compensation information. “No task too small” mindset. You are willing to cut the checks, but you also have the strategic vision to improve the process. Ability to work in the Sunnyvale office at least 3 days per week. It would be great if you also had these Active CPA (or path to licensure), or prior junior-controller / assistant-controller experience. Exposure to inventory or cost accounting in a hardware or manufacturing environment. Experience preparing lender or investor reporting packages for a venture-backed company. Experience implementing or migrating an ERP (e.g. NetSuite) or an inventory management system. Location & Compensation Hybrid or onsite setup in Sunnyvale, CA. Relocation assistance can be provided. The US base salary range for this full-time position is $140,000 – $175,000 + bonus + equity + benefits . Our salary ranges are determined by role, level, and location. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your location during the hiring process.