Procurement & Finance Operations ManagerWe're an AI and physical sciences company building state-of-the-art models to accelerate breakthroughs across materials, energy, and beyond. Backed by world-class investors and growing rapidly, we operate at the pace the frontier requires. Our team brings deep expertise, genuine ownership, and an insatiable drive to push the boundaries of what's scientifically possible.About the RoleWe are seeking a highly analytical, systems-oriented Procurement & Finance Operations Manager to own procurement, inventory strategy, operational finance, and purchasing systems across our laboratory and R&D environments.This role sits at the intersection of scientific operations and finance.
You will help build the operational infrastructure required to scale experimentation volume dramatically while maintaining financial discipline, inventory reliability, and operational efficiency.You will own the full lifecycle of lab procurement and financial operations — from vendor management and inventory forecasting to purchase order workflows, budgeting, spend analytics, and experiment cost modeling. A key responsibility of this role will be developing systems and processes that enable the company to understand and optimize the true cost of experimentation across materials, compute, capital equipment, and operational overhead.This is not a traditional procurement role. We are looking for someone who can think deeply about operational systems, financial rigor, automation opportunities, and scalable workflows in a rapidly evolving technical environment.What You'll DoOwn purchasing operations across lab consumables, specialty materials, gases, chemicals, equipment, and operational suppliesDevelop inventory forecasting systems and consumption tracking processes to prevent stockouts and support rapidly scaling experimental throughputBuild systems to analyze and track the true cost of scientific experiments across materials, compute, equipment utilization, and operational overheadOwn purchase order generation, invoice reconciliation, and three-way matching workflows across procurement and accounting processesTrack operational and capital expenditures against budgets and support forecasting, reporting, and cost optimization initiativesDesign and implement scalable procurement, inventory, and operational finance systems as the organization growsImprove workflows through automation, tooling, inventory tracking systems, dashboards, and process optimization initiativesPartner closely with scientists, engineers, lab operations, finance, and leadership teams to support evolving experimental needsManage supplier and vendor relationships, including pricing negotiations, lead times, and purchasing agreementsIdentify operational bottlenecks and help build the infrastructure and processes required to scale high-throughput R&D environmentsEspecially Strong Candidates May Also HaveExperience in advanced materials, hardware, robotics, biotech, semiconductor, or scientific lab environmentsExperience building procurement or inventory systems from scratchExperience implementing inventory tracking systems (QR/barcode workflows, inventory software, etc.)Experience with operational finance, manufacturing finance, or COGS analysisExperience supporting high-throughput R&D or experimental environmentsFamiliarity with automation workflows, reporting systems, or operational toolingBasic financial modeling and analytics skillsQualifications5+ years of experience in procurement, operational finance, lab operations, supply chain, or related operational rolesExperience supporting technical, scientific, manufacturing, hardware, or R&D environmentsStrong understanding of budgeting, forecasting, spend tracking, and operational analyticsExperience owning procurement workflows, purchasing operations, and vendor managementExperience with PO, accounting, and spend management systems (e.g., Ramp, QuickBooks, NetSuite, SAP, Coupa, Quartzy, etc.)Strong systems-thinking mindset with demonstrated process improvement experienceComfortable operating in ambiguous, fast-changing startup environmentsHighly organized with exceptional attention to detailStrong cross-functional communication skills and ability to work closely with technical teamsMechanicsMinimum education: Bachelor's degree or an equivalent combination of education and training or experienceLocation: Our lab is located in Menlo Park, CATerm: 12-month fixed-term position with potential to convert to full timeCompensation: The annual compensation range for this role is $80-$150 an hourVisa sponsorship: Yes, we sponsor visas and will do everything we can to assist in this process with our legal support.We're building a team of the world's best — the scientists, engineers, and problem-solvers who don't just follow the frontier, they define it.
If you're driven to bring AI to life in the physical world and make discoveries that have never been made before, you belong here.