Controller

Diligent Robotics builds socially intelligent robots that work alongside healthcare teams so clinicians can focus on patient care. Our flagship robot, Moxi, operates in hospitals across the United States and takes on non-clinical tasks like delivering supplies, running labs, and relieving the burden on nurses and staff.

Headquartered in Austin, Texas, Diligent is a subsidiary of Serve Robotics (Nasdaq: SERV), a leader in autonomous delivery. We’re a mission-driven team building hardware and Embodied AI at the intersection of robotics and healthcare. We’re scaling commercial deployments and, as part of a publicly traded parent, we are raising the bar across our finance and accounting function.

The Role

We are hiring a Controller to own the accounting function at Diligent Robotics. Reporting to the Head of Finance, the Controller will lead monthly and quarterly close, own revenue and inventory accounting, and serve as the day-to-day point of contact with our external auditors. The role translates a scaling RaaS business into clean, GAAP-compliant financials on a public company calendar.

This is a high-visibility role for an experienced public company Controller who wants to apply their playbook to a fast-growing subsidiary, build a best-in-class accounting org, and partner directly with the Head of Finance, CEO, and parent company leadership.

Responsibilities

Revenue Recognition (ASC 606)

• Own revenue recognition across all Diligent commercial offerings & robotics-as-a-service (RaaS) arrangements.
• Review customer contracts to identify performance obligations, determine SSPs, allocate transaction price, and document recognition methodology in technical memos.
• Evaluate lease components under ASC 842 within customer arrangements and coordinate with legal and sales on contract structure.
• Establish and maintain revenue policies, controls, and workflows that scale with contract volume and deal complexity.

Inventory, Robot Fixed Assets & Cost Accounting

• Own inventory accounting across raw materials, WIP, finished goods, service parts, and customer-deployed units, including capitalization, standard costing, and revaluation.
• Lead physical inventory counts, cycle counts, and reconciliations across contract manufacturers and internal locations; investigate and resolve variances.
• Determine and defend COGS methodology, purchase price variance analysis, capitalized variances, and excess and obsolete (E&O) reserves.
• Partner with Operations, Supply Chain, and Engineering to ensure BOMs, routings, and landed costs flow correctly into the general ledger.
• Own fixed asset accounting for the deployed Moxi fleet and other PP&E, including capitalization policy, useful lives, depreciation methodology, and related disclosures.
• Monitor for impairment triggers, oversee asset retirements and disposals, and ensure accurate tracking of fleet movements between inventory, capitalized fixed assets, and customer sites.

External Audit & Public Company Interface

• Serve as the primary point of contact for the parent company’s external auditors during interim, quarterly review, and year-end audit procedures.
• Coordinate with internal audit (Serve or co-sourced) on SOX walkthroughs, testing, and remediation at the subsidiary level.
• Own the PBC (prepared-by-client) process. Deliver complete, well-supported schedules on time and defend technical positions in auditor meetings.
• Draft and present technical accounting memos on revenue, inventory, leases, and other judgment areas.
• Support Serve Robotics’ external reporting, including quarterly and annual filings, by delivering accurate, well-documented subsidiary financials on the parent’s close calendar.

Close, Controls & Reporting

• Own the monthly and quarterly close, including journal entries, account reconciliations, flux analysis, intercompany activity, foreign currency, and consolidation deliverables to the parent company.
• Establish, document, and operate a SOX-ready control environment appropriate for a public company subsidiary, in coordination with the parent’s SOX program.
• Maintain accounting policies, process narratives, and control documentation that support SOX, external audit, and operational scaling.
• Oversee AP, AR, payroll accounting, fixed assets, equity, and tax provision support in partnership with internal team members and external providers.
• Deliver timely, accurate GAAP financial statements and management reporting with clear variance commentary to the Head of Finance and leadership.

Team & Systems

• Lead, mentor, and develop the accounting team; build scalable processes, clear ownership, and a strong close calendar as the team grows.
• Support our transition from QBO to NetSuite, then drive continuous improvement and automation across NetSuite and connected systems (billing, expense, AP automation, procurement, equity).
• Partner cross-functionally with FP&A, Operations, People, Legal, and Tax to ensure accounting implications are considered in key business decisions.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting.
• Combination of Big 4 or national public accounting firm experience and industry experience.
• 10+ years of progressive accounting experience, including 3+ years as a Controller (or equivalent functional leader) at a U.S. publicly traded company.
• Demonstrated ownership of the external audit relationship at a public company, including direct experience defending technical positions with Big 4 or national firm auditors.
• Deep, current expertise in ASC 606 revenue recognition across complex, multi-element arrangements.
• Deep expertise in inventory and cost accounting in a hardware, manufacturing, or similar physical-product environment.
• Strong working knowledge of GAAP.
• Experience operating within or implementing SOX 404 controls.
• Hands-on proficiency with NetSuite and advanced Excel.
• Excellent written and verbal communication; able to produce audit-quality technical memos and present to senior and external stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications

• Controller experience at a hardware, robotics, medical device, or other asset-heavy technology company.
• Experience supporting a subsidiary of a publicly traded parent, including parent company consolidation and reporting calendars.
• Familiarity with healthcare customer contracting (hospital systems).