Zato is the agentic compliance engine for accounting firms, built by trusted, successful operators who have processed over one million jobs and ledgers. We did not improve the old model. We replaced it.
Accounting firms have run on manual processes, fragmented tools, and traditional outsourcing for decades. Zato ends that. Our platform automates the actual end-to-end work: questionnaires, GL scrutiny, workpapers, query management, and sign-off. One platform. Job done.
We are rapidly scaling across New Zealand and Australia, tens of thousands of ledgers are live on the platform, and we are becoming the category-defining system for how accounting firms deliver work. The integrations are deep, the traction is real, and the pipeline is large.
This is not a company finding its feet. It is a company in full flight, with the funding, the product, and the momentum to own this category.
If you want to be part of something that will genuinely change an industry, this is where you do it.
The Role
This is not a traditional Chief of Staff role. It is not administrative. It is not a strategy advisory seat.
It is a high-agency operating role. You will own the execution layer of the business, enforce accountability across every function, and serve as the CEO's right hand with real authority. Your job is to make the business run without the CEO as the bottleneck.
You will report directly to the Group CEO.
What You Will Own
* The company priority list and whether things actually get delivered
* The operating rhythm: leadership syncs, cross-functional check-ins, delivery reviews
* Accountability across product, commercial, and operations
* Cross-functional projects from brief to delivery
* CEO calendar and meeting prioritisation with strategic intent
* Coordination across NZ, Australia, and India operations
What Success Looks Like
At 90 days, the CEO is no longer required for day-to-day coordination. Teams are moving without being chased, and there is a consistent delivery cadence across the business.
At six months, the CEO's time is primarily on strategy, capital, and growth. You are a trusted member of the leadership team, with your own credibility and internal relationships. The CEO considers you indispensable.
Who We Are Looking For
* 5 to 10 years in high-performance environments: top-tier consulting, investment banking, high-growth startups/scale-ups, or a combination
* Proven ability to execute in fast-moving, ambiguous environments without a playbook
* High agency. You identify what needs to happen and make it happen
* Strong ownership. You do not hand problems back
* You are here to make the business and the people around you successful
* Sharp commercial awareness and product literacy
* Clear, direct communicator in writing and in person
* Comfortable with intensity, frequent travel, and competing priorities across time zones
Why Zato
* You will be in the room for decisions that shape how a category-defining company grows, raises capital, and expands across ANZ and beyond
* You will have genuine authority
* You will work directly with a founder-CEO who moves fast, thinks big, and expects the same from the people around them
* The work you do here will be visible, consequential, and fast-moving in a way that most roles at this level never are
* Zato is at an inflection point. The people who join now will define how the company scales
* You will be positioned for a senior operating or functional leadership role as the business grows
Practical Requirements
* Based in Sydney or Auckland. This is not a remote role
* Frequent travel between both cities and across all Zato markets
* Responsive and available when it matters
To Apply
Email team@zatohq.com with the subject line: CoS Application | [Your Name]
Include your CV and a cover note that tells us what you have built, fixed, or delivered. Not what you are interested in. We will send screening questions to candidates who progress.
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