Senior Accountant

Activate; Salt Lake City (UT); Hybrid; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid holidays

PTO 18 days

Medical/dental/vision coverage

401(k)

Job summary

Activate in Salt Lake City, UT seeks a Staff Accountant to own month-end close, reconcile accounts, and support audits in a hybrid setup. You will partner with FP&A and engineers to drive cost control and accurate reporting.

The role emphasizes leveraging AI to automate workflows, maintain US GAAP compliance, and provide clear financial insights to leadership and regulators. A strong attention to detail is essential.

Qualifications

• 2+ years of hands-on GL accounting experience with US GAAP.
• CPA or CPA candidates strongly preferred.
• Experience leveraging AI tools to draft, review and validate work.
• Extreme attention to detail in reconciliations.
• Ability to turn messy spreadsheets into streamlined workflows (NetSuite, Excel automations).
• Strong business partnering and communication with scientists, project managers, and executives.
• Self-directed in a fast-changing, high-growth environment.

Responsibilities

• Own the month-end close calendar, posting journal entries and help with delivering consolidated financial statements.
• Prepare and reconcile all balance-sheet accounts (cash, fixed assets, prepaid, accruals, land leases, etc.).
• Manage the accounts payable inbox and daily cash matching in NetSuite.
• Support the controller in our year-end audit.
• Partner with FP&A to refine departmental budgets and provide variance analyses.
• Identify and automate repetitive workflows using AI-enabled tools for time savings and accuracy.
• Provide leadership with clear, current financial insight for investors and regulators.

Skills

GL accounting

AI & automation fluency

Attention to detail

Process improvement

Business partnering

Self-direction

Education

CPA or CPA candidate

Tools

NetSuite

Excel

Job description

Role Overview

Title: Staff Accountant

Hours: Full-time; Salaried

Location: Salt Lake City, UT, Hybrid

Benefits Eligible: Yes

Manager: Controller

Mission – Why we exist and why we need you

Geothermal energy is the most abundant renewable energy source in the world. There is 2,300 times more energy in geothermal heat in the ground than in oil, gas, coal, and methane combined. However, historically it’s been hard to find and expensive to develop. At Zanskar, we’re using better technology to find and develop new geothermal resources in order to make geothermal a cheap and vital contributor to a carbon-free electrical grid

As we scale, a rock-solid accounting function is critical. The Staff Accountant will ensure our books are accurate, timely, and audit-ready—providing the financial clarity that lets our scientists, engineers, and field teams focus on revolutionizing geothermal exploration.

Outcomes-- Within 6 months you will...

• Own the month-end close calendar, posting accurate journal entries and help with delivering consolidated financial statements.
• Prepare and reconcile all balance-sheet accounts (cash, fixed assets, prepaid, accruals, land leases, etc.)
• Manage the accounts payable inbox and daily cash matching in NetSuite.
• Support the controller in our year-end audit.
• Partner with FP&A to refine departmental budgets and provide variance analyses that drive cost control.
• Identify and automate repetitive workflows (e.g., invoice coding, bank rec matching, expense categorization) using AI-enabled tools, delivering measurable time savings and improved accuracy.
• Success means our leadership team always has clear, current financial insight and can confidently report to investors and regulators.

Competencies -- What we're looking for

• Fundamental accounting skills – At least 2 years of hands-on GL accounting experience (public or private), eager to learn and gain a stronger understanding of US GAAP, and the ability to research and resolve accounting issues independently. CPA or CPA candidates are strongly preferred.
• AI & automation fluency – Comfortable leveraging AI assistants (e.g., ChatGPT/Gemini) to draft, review, and validate work. Are eager to learn how to incorporate the latest AI tools to streamline processes.
• Extreme attention to detail – You spot the one-dollar out-of-balance entry before anyone else, and you won’t rest until every reconciliation ties out.
• Process improvement mindset – You enjoy turning messy, manual spreadsheets into streamlined workflows (e.g., via NetSuite, Excel automations).
• Business partnering & communication – You can translate debits and credits into clear insights for scientists, project managers, and executives alike.
• Self-direction under fast change – Comfortable setting priorities, hitting deadlines, and asking for clarification in a dynamic, high-growth environment.

Location & Benefits

• The position is located in Salt Lake City, UT
• Paid holidays, and 18 days PTO
• Medical, dental & vision coverage
• 401k
• A direct impact in displacing carbon emissions, and growth opportunities in a growing startup environment

Equal Opportunity Employer

Zanskar is an equal-opportunity employer and complies with all applicable federal, state, and local fair employment practice laws.