Financial Accountant

At Blackbird, our mission is to be a generational owner of the most ambitious tech companies founded by Aussies and Kiwis. To match this ambition as we grow, we are building a world-class Finance function to empower the wider Blackbird team to deliver on key initiatives and to ensure that we are a transparent and fully-compliant financial services organisation.

We are looking for a high-performing, detail-oriented Financial Accountant to supercharge Team Blackbird! In this role you will assist with Blackbird’s management entities month-end processes, tax compliance, payroll function and annual audit.

This role is full-time, based in our Sydney or Melbourne office with the flexibility to work from home.

Position Requirements

Ideally, you would have proven hands on experience in a Financial Accountant or Public Accounting role, with a demonstrable ability to manage tax obligations, a month-end close and the payroll function. Experience with Xero helps, though not essential. If you have strong commercial acumen, are resourceful and enjoy operating in a fast pace, high energy environment - this role is for you!

Key skills:

• Accounting knowledge: Strong understanding of GST, FBT and income tax with either CA/CPA qualification (or working towards).
• Ownership: The ability and resourcefulness to take ownership of tasks and continuously improve the way we do things.
• Time management: Excellent time management skills, with a proven ability to prioritise/ re-prioritise your day.
• Accounting systems & processes: Familiarity with accounting and payroll systems (eg Xero, Dext, Hubdoc) and Google Sheets/Excel.
• Attention to detail: Being detail-oriented, including self-review of work.
• Compliance: Consistently ensuring that you are compliant with Blackbird’s internal control policies and procedures.
• Humility/low-ego: Has a humble, low-ego attitude with empathy in spades. We’re a small team and we all take out the trash (literally and figuratively!).
• Hospitality Mindset: In our dealings with founders and investors, we take a hospitality mindset. We serve our founders, not the other way around. We are about people, not companies. Similarly, we treat our colleagues with generosity and respect. One team, one dream!
• Communication & relationship management: Excellent communication skills, with an ability to coordinate, motivate and influence team members and other key stakeholders.
• Position Requirements
• Reporting to our Head of Management Finance, Rebecca McCallum, here is what success could look like in your first 6-12 months:
• Month-end close: Preparing journals and inter-company recharges with supporting workpapers, preparation of balance sheet reconciliations, and adequately communicating any discrepancies.
• Tax compliance: Prepare Blackbird’s payroll tax returns, FBT returns, BAS’s, NZ GST returns and income tax instalments.
• Audit: Assisting with our annual audit and preparing the draft financial statements.
• Carbon accounting: Taking ownership of Blackbird’s carbon accounting by preparing annual reconciliations to calculate our office emissions and working with Blackbird’s Impact Team to analyse year-on-year results.
• Team Management: Leading Blackbird’s Assistant Accountants who are responsible for the Accounts Payable & Receivable and day-to-day cash management functions of Blackbird’s entities.
• Process improvement: We will be introducing new applications to streamline and automate our financial accounting function, where you will be responsible for liaising with stakeholders and assisting with the implementation of these platforms.
• Assisting Operations: Where required, assisting the Operations team with ad hoc tasks.

If this sounds like the role for you, please submit your application via Applied: https://app.beapplied.com/apply/wrqtyqitsx

Working at Blackbird

We believe that building a diverse and inclusive team is critical to Blackbird’s success. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, national origin, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, or marital, veteran, or disability status. We use Applied to ensure every applicant gets an equal chance of success.

We offer:

Flexible working: Whether it’s working from home or leaving early to pick up the kids from daycare or school.

Generous parental leave: We know family comes first, and we are proud to offer 20 weeks of parental leave for all parents (an additional 4 weeks for the birth parent), with no minimum tenure. In addition, we offer IVF, adoption and surrogacy leave. We also continue to pay superannuation and vest carried interest for up to 12 months of parental leave, and offer a supportive return-to-work policy to help with the ramp back.

Learning & Development Budget: Our team is hungry to continuously learn and you’ll receive a budget to spend on books, conferences, training, coaching and courses relating to your profession.

Wellbeing: We think in decades not days. To support our Blackbirds over the long haul we offer a range of holistic wellbeing benefits including a monthly healthy living allowance, 24/7 access to wellbeing support, a home office allowance, personal kit-kat days, and more!

Unplugged weekends: We work hard without letting work get in the way of life. We’ve implemented no Slack or emails on weekends, so you can switch off and enjoy yourself.

Connection: While being big fans of a fully distributed workforce, we value our vibe and time to connect online and IRL through team and company offsites, monthly social activities, weekly lunches and our many social clubs (#fun-manis, #fun-fantasybookclub, #bb-craft just to name a few!).

A share of Blackbird’s success: We think it is important to share successes with the whole team. All Blackbird employees receive carry in funds raised and ownership in management companies formed while they are at the firm.

Blackbird is a Pledge 1% member —  we pledge 1% of our time, equity and profits to help not-for-profit causes in our community. Through Pledge 1%, we established the Blackbird Foundation to supercharge the creative capabilities of young people.

We are also very proud to have won the 2023 AFR Best Place to Work award in three categories including Overall winner. In 2022, we became certified as one of Australia’s Great Places to Work.

About Blackbird

Blackbird is Australia's biggest venture capital fund whose mission is to supercharge Australia and New Zealand’s most ambitious founders. We do this by raising venture capital funds, investing into the best startup companies and helping them succeed. We have a portfolio valued at over $7B, including some of the most successful Australian and Kiwi startups such as Canva, Safety Culture and Culture Amp.

We are inspired by investment firms such as Berkshire Hathaway and Bridgewater Associates. Like the companies we back, we want to build a business that lasts for decades and produces excellent returns for our investors. Most of all, we want to support our region’s most talented founders build category-defining technology companies.

We’ve written a lot about what we love at Blackbird, so check out our blog if you want some more information about us. In particular, you should read about our mission and values, our Blackbird’s Operating Principles (BOPs) and what we look for in founders.