ABOUT THE FIRM
Steve CPA, Inc. is a boutique tax and advisory firm headquartered in Walnut Creek, California, serving high-net-worth individuals, high-income households, business owners, S corporations, equity-compensated professionals, and clients with complex financial situations throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. The firm focuses on non-standard tax profiles, including equity compensation, multi-state considerations, business sales, S corporation and entity planning, and other high-stakes decisions.
Rather than treating tax as a once-a-year filing, the firm partners with clients year-round to plan proactively, anticipate issues, and build well-documented, defensible positions. The practice spans individual and business tax preparation, quarterly tax planning and projections, estimated tax planning, equity compensation strategy, reasonable compensation analysis, entity structuring, bookkeeping oversight, and year-round advisory engagements. The firm is high-touch and relationship-driven, bringing clarity, strategy, and peace of mind to clients' financial lives.
The successful candidate will work directly with the firm's founder and seniors, and will receive structured training, progressively broader responsibility, and a defined trajectory into more in-depth work.
POSITION SUMMARY
The Tax & Advisory Associate is a development seat inside our tax and advisory practice, built for someone early in their tax career who wants substantive exposure quickly rather than a narrow production role. The associate supports the firm's tax, accounting, and client workflows from day one and takes on progressively more advanced work as proficiency is demonstrated, with direct mentorship from the firm's founder and senior staff.
The early months build fluency in how the firm actually operates: maintaining client financial records, preparing workpapers and supporting documentation against firm checklists, and learning the conventions behind the clear, well-documented files that stand behind the firm's tax positions. From that foundation, the role expands deliberately into tax return preparation, quarterly projections, and supporting work on the firm's advisory engagements, including equity compensation, entity structuring, and multi-year planning matters. The trajectory is explicit: an associate who demonstrates command of the fundamentals will be preparing returns and contributing to planning work well before the 2027 filing season, not waiting for permission to grow.
This role suits a candidate pursuing or holding a Master of Science in Taxation, or on a CPA or EA track, who wants their early reps at a firm where the work is complex, the standards are high, and the distance between them and the interesting problems is one desk rather than three layers of review.
The role begins at approximately 20 hours per week with flexible scheduling and converts to full-time in January 2027 ahead of the filing season. Candidates should apply only if the January full-time conversion is consistent with their plans.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Bookkeeping and Accounting Support
- Categorize and reconcile transactions in QuickBooks Online for closely-held businesses in accordance with firm charts of accounts and categorization conventions
- Perform monthly bank and credit card reconciliations and flag uncategorized, duplicated, or personal-expense activity for senior review
- Assist with QuickBooks Online file cleanups, including reclassification work identified by senior staff
- Maintain supporting schedules and workpapers in firm templates, including updating figures, rollforwards, and tie-outs as directed
Tax Support and Data Entry
- Enter client source documents (Forms W-2, 1099, 1098, K-1, brokerage statements, etc. ) into tax preparation software accurately and completely
- Assemble, paginate, and quality-check filing packages, including verifying attachment completeness against firm checklists
- Prepare and electronically file information returns, such as Forms 1099, as directed
- Track e-file acknowledgments, payment confirmations, and filing deadlines, and maintain the firm's status trackers
Practice Administration
- Maintain client accounts, contacts, document folders, and organizer requests in the firm's practice management platform, ensuring documents are filed to the correct account and engagement
- Send, monitor, and follow up on client document requests through the client portal
- Support scheduling, engagement letter issuance, and onboarding workflows under direction
- Retrieve transcripts, payment histories, and account records from tax agency systems as directed
Development Track
- Complete structured training on firm processes, templates, and review standards
- Progress into preparation of straightforward individual and business returns under supervision as proficiency is demonstrated, with the expectation of an active preparation role during the 2027 filing season
- Build exposure to the firm's advisory work, including equity compensation nuances, entity structuring, and multi-year planning, as a foundation for growth into a broader tax role
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
- An accounting, finance, or related degree completed or in progress, or equivalent bookkeeping experience
- Working familiarity with QuickBooks Online, including transaction categorization and bank reconciliation
- High attention to detail, an analytical mindset, and demonstrated accuracy in data-entry or numbers-heavy work
- Comfort working independently against written checklists and asking questions early rather than guessing
- Reliable availability within the stated weekly hours and the ability to meet deadlines
- Effective written communication appropriate for client-adjacent correspondence
- Authorization to work in the United States
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Coursework or practical exposure to individual or small business taxation, including tax and finance concepts such as equity compensation and entity structures
- Prior experience at a CPA firm, bookkeeping practice, or in a finance operations role
- Familiarity with professional tax preparation software (Intuit ProConnect preferred; UltraTax or similar acceptable)
- Familiarity with a practice management platform
- Enrollment in or completion of a Master of Science in Taxation program, or active pursuit of the CPA or EA credential
COMPENSATION, SCHEDULE, AND LOCATION
- Hourly rate of $30.00 to $36.00, commensurate with experience and credentials
- Approximately 20 hours per week from start through December 2026, with substantial scheduling flexibility suitable for a graduate student or early-career professional
- Conversion to full-time employment in January 2027; filing season involves extended hours consistent with the profession, and the firm caps and compensates those hours transparently
- Primarily remote within the East Bay and greater Bay Area, with occasional in-person collaboration in Walnut Creek; candidates should be located within reasonable proximity
- Structured mentorship from the firm's senior staff and a defined progression into tax work, with a performance and compensation review upon full-time conversion
APPLICATION PROCESS
Interested candidates should apply exclusively through this posting and include a current resume.
Please do not contact the firm directly by telephone or email regarding this posting; all applications are reviewed, and qualified candidates will be contacted promptly.
Steve CPA, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.
Pay: $30.00 - $36.00 per hour
Benefits:
- Flexible schedule
- Opportunities for advancement
- Professional development assistance
- Work from home
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Walnut Creek, CA 94596
