The opportunity
At Gusto, we're on a mission to grow the small business economy. We handle the hard stuff — payroll, health insurance, 401(k)s, and HR — so owners can focus on their craft and their customers.
What you'll do
Establish Operational Architecture: Author and implement the foundational operational objectives, policies, and procedures for our carrying broker-dealer. You will design the "0-to-1" work plans for money movement and trade clearing that will scale as we grow.
Strategic Escalation & Decision Making: Serve as the final authority on operational exceptions. You will apply sophisticated judgment to resolve unusual circumstances where no precedent exists, understanding that your decisions directly impact Gusto’s results and long-term regulatory standing. Examples are complex stop-and-reissue checks, manual payment releases, ACH reversals, securities settlement breaks, net-capital calculation discrepancy),
Controls & Audit Governance: Architect and maintain an operational control environment that meets the rigorous standards comparable to publicly traded companies. You will ensure that Gusto broker-dealer entity’s Internal Controls Over Compliance (ICOC) are robust, evidenced, and audit-ready by design for every customer transaction, setting a high bar for operational excellence. You will ensure that the transaction data produced is of the highest integrity, as it serves as a critical upstream feed into Gusto’s consolidated financial statements. You recognize that the quality of your team's work product directly affects our annual audits conducted by an independent PCAOB auditor, and has far-reaching implications to Gusto’s overall corporate governance.
Cross-Functional Collaboration, Influence & Impact: Orchestrate complex partnerships with Engineering, Product, Legal, Compliance, FinOp, Accounting and FP&A to build Gusto’s first-of-its-kind carrying broker-dealer. You are an expert at building consensus in sensitive regulatory environments, using data and operational insight to convince cross-functional stakeholders of the necessary balance between product innovation, execution velocity, uncompromising financial integrity and compliance requirements. You own the operational foundation that unlocks Gusto’s opportunities to expand our investment product offerings in 401(k), IRA and more diverse investment account types for Gusto’s member community to build wealth
Fiscal Responsibility, Direction & Empowerment: Although you will start with building a small but mighty AI-native team, you’re responsible for establishing the team’s strategic direction, managing costs and demonstrating high ROI on the combination of headcount and AI agents. You’re also responsible for performance management and professional growth of the team, setting high bars for excellence and providing the coaching necessary to meet them.
+ years of experience in a financial operations, treasury, compliance: operations, process optimization or back-office role, with at least 5 years in a project leadership or managerial capacity, within financial services or fintech companies.
What they're looking for
- Required Licensing: possessing FINRA SIE + Series 7 + Series 24 currently; or ability to obtain FINRA SIE + Series 7 in two months and Series 24 in four months from the first date in the role.
- Some knowledge in SEC Rule 15c3-1 (Net Capital Rule), SEC Rule 15c3-3: (Customer Protection Rule), SEC Rule 17a-3 and 17a-4 (Recordkeeping Rule).
- Some knowledge of cash and securities handling, settlement processes, and: regulatory reporting requirements is a plus.
- Proven ability to perform and oversee complex reconciliations and transaction research.
