Senior Manager, Internal Controls & SOX

This is a consumer fintech startup, and you will be working with serial entrepreneurs who have built strong consumer brands and innovative products. We value extreme ownership, clear communication, a strong sense of craftsmanship, and the desire to create lasting work and work relationships. Yes, you can build an exciting business AND have real-life real-customer impact.

As the SOX Senior Manager you will report to the CFO and play a central role in building and maintaining Kikoff's internal controls infrastructure as the company scales toward a public offering. You will serve as the primary owner of Kikoff's SOX program, coordinating across our teams to ensure the company maintains a well-controlled environment. You will also provide regular updates to Kikoff's Audit Committee, giving this role meaningful visibility at the board level. Much of Kikoff's financially relevant data are derived from various systems and applications, so a meaningful part of this role is assisting management identify the material risks and advising management on what good controls look like when the process is code & AI driven. Kikoff will work also with third-party SOX consultants who provide capacity and specialist depth. This role is the accountable owner of the program: you will set scope, make the judgment calls, and own the outcome with the auditors.

The position will initially be an individual contributor role and will be located in our San Francisco office (in office 3 days/week). 

• Scope, build, own, and manage Kikoff's end-to-end SOX program. You will oversee the full process from risk assessment to design, implementation, testing of key controls, identification of key deficiencies, and remediation. This will require you to…
• Partner with finance, legal and ops to document, test, and maintain internal controls over financial reporting.
• Partner with engineering and data to identify and test ITGCs in a modern stack: change management over CI/CD deployments, access defined in code, service account risk, and controls over automated reconciliations and data pipelines.
• Work with process owners to develop and maintain SOX documentation including risk and control matrices (RCMs), process narratives, and flowcharts.
• Coordinate with external auditors on SOX-related matters, including walkthroughs, testing support, issue resolution, and defending established program scope boundaries when necessary
• Prepare and present SOX program updates to the CFO, C-suites,  Audit Committee, and external auditor including status reporting, deficiency summaries, and remediation progress.
• Build SOX awareness across the organization by educating control owners on their responsibilities and the importance of a well-controlled environment.
• Identify opportunities to streamline and automate controls as Kikoff's systems and processes evolve.
• Direct third-party SOX consultants while ensuring quality of output. and ensuring that all decision making is owned internally.

• 8+ years in internal controls, SOX compliance, or external audit.
• At least 3 years in-house at a public or pre-IPO company as the accountable owner of some or all of ICFR. You have been the auditor through at least one external audit, and you have lived with controls you designed for more than one cycle.
• Experience in an environment where financially relevant data flows through automated pipelines, with a practical view on ITGCs in a modern data stack.
• Demonstrated judgment on right-sizing. You can point to controls you simplified/removed and had to successfully defend against pushback from external auditors.
• Able to move cross-functional stakeholders without formal authority.
• Comfortable presenting to senior leadership and audit committee members.
• Strong documentation skills: clean, auditor-ready narratives and control matrices.

• Big 4 or equivalent risk advisory foundation.
• Was in-house through an IPO transition and has seen both sides of the process.
• Experience in fintech, lending, or payments.
• CPA license; working knowledge of PCAOB standards, COSO, and SOX 302/404.
• Has used AuditBoard or Workiva, and/or is comfortable enough with SQL to review evidence directly.