Chief Operating Officer

WANTED: One of the BEST Chief Operating Officer (A Player only) At Shah & Associates CPAs PA, we don t just prepare tax returns-we partner with clients year-round to deliver proactive tax planning strategies that create measurable savings and long-term wealth. Our mission is to elevate our clients financial position through collaborative advisory services designed to increase revenues, profits, and overall net worth. This role exists because the firm is growing rapidly, and we need a senior operations leader who can bring structure, accountability, and execution discipline to support the next stage of scale. If you thrive in fast-paced environments, enjoy building systems, holding people accountable, and turning vision into execution, this role is for you. We Live by Our Core Values • Client Success - Our clients success is the foundation of everything we do. • Communication & Collaboration - Open communication and teamwork are central to our culture. • Accountability - We hire professionals who own their responsibilities and deliver results. • Adaptability & Flexibility - We welcome change and thrive in an evolving industry. • Transparency - Knowledge flows openly; informed teams make better decisions. • Innovation - We re forward-thinkers always seeking better ways to serve clients. • Growth - We invest in your professional and personal development. • Aligned & Intentional - Clear goals, deliberate action, and consistency lead to big wins. • Results-Oriented - Success is measured by outcomes, not just effort. • Gratitude, Integrity & Empathy - High integrity, empathy for people, and accountability for performance Primary Goal of the Role The Chief Operating Officer owns everything related to delivery, people, process, and capacity-so the CEO never has to. Your mandate is to drive operational excellence, accountability, and efficiency to support firm growth to $4M in Annual Recurring Revenue with a 50% profit margin. You will serve as the firm s day-to-day execution leader, allowing the CEO to focus exclusively on vision, strategy, and R&D. You will directly manage a team of approximately 8 team members (including administration and marketing) and will be responsible for scaling the organization to 15+ people while maintaining performance, culture, and profitability. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) • Achieve and maintain a 50% profit margin on ARR • Successfully scale the team from 8 to 15+ A-players • Improve systems documentation from 6/10 to 8/10 • Reduce qualified client churn by 50% • Implement firmwide utilization and billable-time tracking via Karbon • Reduce CEO time spent on operational and managerial tasks • Improve system integration across core platforms • Implement and adapt the firm s SCALE operating model quarterly • Eliminate last-minute scrambles and seasonal chaos • Maintain strong performance without losing A-players Tasks Core Responsibilities 1. Leadership, People Management, & Accountability (The "Will" Driver) • Serve as the direct manager for all department leaders and managers • Execute a consistent, non-emotional accountability framework • Define and Track KPIs: Work with the CEO to define and track Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for all staff roles to drive desired outcomes ("the will"), not just tasks ("the skill"). • Drive a high-performance culture focused on ownership and execution • Run daily huddles, weekly planning, and monthly reviews 2. Operational Execution & Systems Management • Document and consolidate SOPs into a firmwide Operations Manual • Lead software transitions, automation, and AI initiatives • Convert CEO decision-making into repeatable workflows • Own the P&L and partner with finance to improve margins, pricing, and cost control • Manage vendor and referral-partner relationships and lead negotiation of terms/fees. • Balance delivery capacity across tax strategists • Improve Compliance and Manage the existing team that own client delivery - tax plans, tax return extension filing deadlines, tax return filing deadlines, 3. Scaling & Organizational Design • Build scalable org charts for 15- and 50-person firms • Create a predictable recruiting and onboarding system • Run quarterly planning to replace reactive execution • Identify and solve operational bottlenecks How You ll Contribute 1. 30 Days • Shadow CEO heavily, map processes, understand systems and design, own a weekly ops meeting. • Meet 1:1 with every team member • Map hidden dependencies on the CEO • Understand technology stack that the firm uses along with AI tools we re rolling out. • Complete the training on our client's journey, how we deliver more value, how the firm plans to improve client retention, how to get client referrals from existing clients and how to install the upsell revenue streams • Meet with key stakeholders (Tax Planners; Sales Rep, Marketing Manager, Fractional HR, Fractional Recruiter, Fractional Legal Team, Existing R...