Tax Associate

At Aardvark Tax Advisors, the client comes first. We’re a full-service tax, accounting, and advisory firm serving small businesses and entrepreneurs. Our people are uniquely enabled to spend more of their time understanding clients, solving complex problems, and building lasting relationships.

Technology helps make that possible. As the accounting and client services practice of Cynch AI, we use proprietary AI to reduce routine tasks and free up time for higher-value client work. Our tools support the work. Our people remain accountable for the outcome.

We’re building an expanding practice with clear paths for career advancement. We're a fast-growing practice with clear paths for advancement. We grow organically and through strategic acquisitions, and as we grow so does our team's scope of responsibility. Each level has defined expectations and advancement criteria, with performance-based opportunities for greater responsibility and equity over time.

We’re looking for a Tax Associate to prepare returns, do the research behind them, and build the technical foundation that carries a career in tax. That means working across entity types from day one, learning to find the answer rather than waiting for it, and treating accuracy as the baseline rather than the goal.

You’ll work directly with senior practitioners who review your returns and tell you what’s right, and what needs correction. Expect specific feedback. Expect to become the very best at what you do.

The role is hybrid, based out of our Pleasanton, Cupertino, or Santa Cruz offices, with additional potential work locations in the North Bay.

To ensure your application reaches the right team, please apply online rather than calling or visiting our offices.

What You'll Do

Tax Preparation & Compliance

• Prepare federal, state, and local returns for individuals, corporations, partnerships, and other entities.
• Gather and organize client financial information, and notice when something is missing before it becomes a problem at review.
• Build workpapers, supporting schedules, and documentation that others can pick up and follow.
• Hit filing deadlines for returns and extensions. Deadlines are not a negotiation.
• Research federal, state, and local tax issues — regulations, open questions, and savings opportunities — and be able to show your source.
• Track changes in tax law and apply them to the engagements in front of you.
• Maintain client files and records to a standard that holds up under audit.

Client Support

• Handle client questions on returns, notices, and general tax matters, and escalate what’s above your level rather than guessing.
• Collect what’s needed from clients to keep filings on schedule.
• Communicate professionally, protect confidentiality, and be someone clients are glad to hear from.

Learning & Development

• Build real depth in tax law, regulations, and how the work actually gets done.
• Use internal training and professional development to close the gaps you and your reviewer identify.
• Turn what you learn into better ways of working for everyone.

Requirements

Core Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, or a related field.
• 0–3 years in tax, accounting, or a related field.
• Working understanding of federal, state, and local tax laws and regulations.
• Attention to detail, and the organizational discipline to hold several returns at different stages at once.
• Fearless about asking the right questions and getting to the right answers.
• Clear written and verbal communication with clients and colleagues.
• Proficiency in Excel and Word.

Helpful additions

• Actively pursuing CPA or EA.
• Internship or entry-level experience in a public accounting firm or an accounting department.
• Familiarity with professional tax software (UltraTax, Axcess Tax, Drake, Lacerte, or similar).
• Strong research skills and the ability to read a regulation and interpret its meaning.

Work Environment

• Hybrid: Cupertino, Santa Cruz, or Pleasanton, CA.
• Extended hours during peak tax season and as needed to meet client deadlines.
• Occasional travel for client meetings or practice events.

Salary range: $70,000 - $95,000

Benefits

• Medical
• Dental
• Vision
• 401k with match
• Basic Life
• LTD