Director, SOX Compliance & ICFR Leader

Upwork; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Upwork Inc. seeks a Director of SOX Compliance to own and scale the ICFR/SOX program as a public company.

You will partner with Finance, Legal, and Engineering to maintain a rigorous control environment and lead a team of SOX professionals, driving continuous improvement and effective remediation with executive visibility. You will guide risk assessments, control design, and testing under PCAOB standards, while leveraging AI tools to streamline documentation and evidence collection across

Qualifications

• 10+ years of progressive experience in internal audit, SOX compliance, or external audit.
• 3+ years in a leadership role.
• Deep expertise in SOX 404 program management with PCAOB standards and US GAAP knowledge.
• CPA and Big 4 background are a huge plus.
• Experience at a publicly traded company navigating integrated audits with Big 4 external auditors.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end execution of the annual SOX 404 compliance program, including scoping, risk assessment, control documentation, testing, and remediation.
• Maintain and continuously improve the ICFR framework, including the design and operating effectiveness of key controls across financial reporting processes, in alignment with COSO 2013 and PCAOB standards.
• Lead the SOX steering committee and serve as primary liaison with external auditors, presenting program status, risk findings, and remediation plans to senior leadership and the Audit Committee.
• Direct control design, testing, and remediation efforts, applying professional judgment to evaluate the significance of deficiencies in accordance with AS 2201 and SEC guidance, and use AI tools to help streamline control documentation, issue tracking, and information synthesis while carefully validating outputs for accuracy and audit readiness.
• Lead SOX integration activities for newly acquired entities, including legacy control assessment, gap analysis, and design of new controls aligned with our framework.
• Oversee IT general control scoping and testing across key financial systems, partnering with IT and Engineering to ensure appropriate coverage.
• Build, lead, and mentor a team of SOX compliance professionals, and manage co-source arrangements with third-party service providers.

Skills

SOX compliance

Internal audit

Leadership

AI tools

US GAAP

Education

CPA certification

Big 4 experience

Tools

Oracle Fusion ERP

Job description

Upwork Inc. seeks a Director of SOX Compliance to own and scale the ICFR/SOX program as a public company.

You will partner with Finance, Legal, and Engineering to maintain a rigorous control environment and lead a team of SOX professionals, driving continuous improvement and effective remediation with executive visibility. You will guide risk assessments, control design, and testing under PCAOB standards, while leveraging AI tools to streamline documentation and evidence collection across