Director, Finance Operations

The Medicare Chief; New York (NY); On-site; USD 205,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity compensation

Health care (dental & vision)

Flexible work location; co-working

401k

Paid Time Off

Monthly remote work stipend

Paid parental leave

Sabbatical opportunities

Holidays

Wellbeing programs

Job summary

Spark Advisors in New York City is hiring an owner for the finance operating system, end-to-end controls, and accounting integrity. You will re-architect brittle, spreadsheet processes into scalable, auditable systems for commissions, marketing co-op, and reconciliation, with a path to expanding in-house controllership over time.

You will directly handle AR/AP/payroll standards, oversee outsourced accounting, and ensure timely, accurate financial reporting for leadership and lenders.

Qualifications

• 8–12+ years in finance/accounting operations, designing systems for high-volume transactions.
• GAAP expertise with close, controls, and ability to own controllership over time.
• Experience managing outsourced accounting/finance providers.
• Strong data/analytical skills with Excel; collaboration with data teams on SQL/data warehouses.

Responsibilities

• Design and re-architect the finance operating system for commissions, marketing co-op, and reconciliation.
• Own financial accuracy end-to-end from data to reporting and ensure timely, auditable processes.
• Direct AR/AP/payroll standards and outcomes; scale in-house controllership capability over time.
• Manage outsourced accounting relationships and progressively shift work internally.
• Ensure reporting integrity, including lender/debt facility reporting and leadership data rooms.

Skills

Finance ops design

Accounting fluency

Outsourced accounting

Excel

SQL/Data warehouse

Education

CPA certification

Bachelor's in Accounting

Tools

Tipalti

Airtable

Snowflake

Hex

Job description

About Spark AdvisorsWe're building healthcare tech for a system that desperately needs it. Each year, millions of Americans deal with confusing changes to their Medicare plans that impact their prescriptions, access to care, and pocketbooks. These aren’t just inconveniences – they are potentially life-altering changes that leave seniors medically and financially vulnerable. Independent Medicare advisors play a crucial role in guiding seniors through this complexity and helping them find the right coverage for their needs. But their ability to be effective healthcare advocates has long been hamstrung by broken tools and outdated systems. Spark is fixing that. We’re the fastest-growing Medicare platform in the country, combining AI, an industry-leading CRM, and client services to transform how 10,000+ brokers acquire, enroll, and support clients in their local communities. Join a talent-dense team from Square, Ramp, Yext, Oscar, and Cedar — backed by Primary Ventures and Viewpoint Ventures — that is serious about building technology to expand access to quality healthcare. We offer remote work, sabbaticals, company retreats, and other generous benefits that earned us recognition as one of Inc. Magazine’s Best Workplaces of 2025. Healthcare is overdue for innovation. Let’s redefine what its future looks like — together.

SummaryWe\'re hiring an owner for Spark\'s finance operating system end to end — the systems, standards, and controls behind accurate commissions and agency-finance, and increasingly, the accounting and controllership built on top of them. The role starts as a systems-and-standards owner, re-architecting brittle, spreadsheet-based processes into scalable, auditable systems for commissions, marketing co-op, and reconciliation — with authority to set and enforce the standards behind them. It\'s explicitly a step toward bringing more accounting and controllership in-house over time, including sharper ownership of AR, AP, and payroll standards. Today, agency-finance owns day-to-day payment execution, Data builds the commissions tooling to this role\'s spec, and an outsourced firm runs the GAAP close, which this role directs and reviews. As the function matures, expect that outsourced relationship to shrink and this role\'s in-house scope to grow. This is a hybrid role based at our Broadway office in NYC, with in-office days expected Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

What You\'ll Own

• Design & build the finance operating system (the re-architecture): turn brittle, manual, spreadsheet/Airtable-based processes into scalable, auditable systems for commissions, marketing co-op, rate/override source-of-truth, and reconciliation. Set the finance requirements for the Data team\'s commissions database/calculator, and own build-vs-buy decisions.
• Own financial accuracy end to end: set and enforce the standards, controls, and reconciliation framework that make payments — and the financials built on them — correct, from upstream data through reconciliation to accounting and reporting.
• Own accounting & controllership more directly than a pure systems role, including AR, AP, and payroll standards and outcomes. Standards and accuracy accountability start day one, with direct execution of AR/AP/payroll potentially following as the function matures.
• Own and evolve the outsourced controllership relationship: direct, review, and accept the external accounting firm\'s monthly close and statements today, and help build the internal capability to bring close/controllership in-house over time, with the outsourced firm\'s role shrinking accordingly.
• Own reporting integrity: keep financials and reporting trustworthy and on time, and own recurring and bespoke deliverables like lender/debt-facility reporting, diligence data rooms, and leadership requests.
• Hands-on commission processing, disbursement (Tipalti), and banking runs stay with the existing agency-finance team — this role gives their work an owned, well-designed system rather than replacing them.
• GAAP close mechanics and statement production stay with the outsourced accounting firm today, with an explicit path toward this role absorbing more of that function in-house.

What We\'re Looking For

• 8–12+ years in finance/accounting operations, having designed and built the systems behind a complex, high-volume transaction or payments engine (commissions, payouts, marketplace/settlement, revenue operations, or similar) — not just operated a clean one.
• Systems/process design (you\'ve rebuilt messy finance ops), real accounting fluency (close, controls, GAAP — enough to eventually own more controllership directly, not just manage a vendor), and enough operational depth to set and enforce standards for AR/AP/payroll.
• Track record building from scratch in a fast-scaling, still-messy environment (post-remediation or Series A→C stage).
• Strong data/analytical chops — fluent in Excel; comfortable partnering with a data team on SQL/warehouse-backed reconciliation.
• Experience managing outsourced accounting/finance providers, ideally including having transitioned work in-house before.

Nice to Have

• Multi-entity accounting; QuickBooks; Tipalti; Airtable; Snowflake/Hex.
• Automation / AI-enablement instinct for finance workflows.
• CPA and/or prior Controller title.

CompensationOur salary ranges are based on paying competitively for our company’s size and industry, and are one part of the total compensation package that also includes equity, benefits, and other opportunities at Spark. In accordance with New York City, Colorado, California, and other applicable laws, Spark is required to provide a reasonable estimate of the compensation range for this role. Individual pay decisions are ultimately based on a number of factors, including qualifications for the role, experience level, skillset, geography, and balancing internal equity. A reasonable estimate of the current salary range is listed below. We expect most candidates to fall in the middle of the range. We also believe that your personal needs and preferences should be taken into consideration, so we allow some choice between equity and cash. Base Salary $205,000 - $240,000 USD

Why you should join our teamBy joining Spark, you will get in on the ground floor of a fast-moving, well-funded, and mission-driven startup where you will have a profound impact on the brokers and beneficiaries we serve. And you\'ll learn, grow, be challenged, and have fun with your team while doing it.

BenefitsWe strive to help you and your family thrive. We\'re committed to supporting your happiness, healthiness, and overall well-being by providing a comprehensive benefits program. In addition to your base salary, we also offer:

• Equity compensation
• Health care, including dental and vision through our PEO Sequoia
• Flexible work location; co-working available
• 401k
• Paid Time Off
• Monthly Remote Work Stipend (help cover costs of home-office needs)
• Paid Parental Leave
• Up to 14 weeks for birthing parents
• Up to 8 weeks for non-birth parents
• 11 paid holidays
• 2 week sabbatical at 5 years of employment
• Wellbeing Perks through SpringHealth, OneMedical, PerkSpot, and SoFi

ComplianceSpark is a proud participant in E-Verify. As part of our commitment to compliance, we use the E-Verify program to confirm the employment eligibility of all employees working in the United States. For more information about E-Verify, please visit www.e-verify.gov. Furthermore, for security and compliance requirements, we’re unable to accommodate international remote work. While we fully support travel and time off, all work must be conducted from an approved location within the U.S.

At Spark, we are committed to hiring the best team to serve our clients regardless of their background. We need diverse perspectives to reflect the diversity of our problems and the population we serve. We look to hire people from a variety of backgrounds, including, but not limited to, race, age, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, national origin, religion, disability, and veteran status.

AI Notice: We may use AI-enabled tools to assist with certain aspects of our hiring process. These tools do not replace human decision-making, and all employment decisions are made by qualified team members in compliance with applicable laws.