Senior Travel & Expense Specialist

Nscale is the GPU cloud engineered for AI, providing cost-effective, high-performance infrastructure for AI start-ups and large enterprise customers. We enable AI-focused companies to achieve superior results by reducing the complexity of AI development, supporting strategic business outcomes like cost management, rapid innovation, and environmental responsibility. Our culture thrives on relentless innovation, ownership, and accountability, where every team member drives excellence and urgency.

About the role

We're hiring a Senior Travel & Expense Specialist in Houston, US, to own the end-to-end travel and expense function while supporting key Accounts Payable operations. You'll serve as a trusted subject matter expert, partnering with senior stakeholders across Finance, HR, Operations, and business leadership to provide guidance, improve processes, and ensure operational execution aligns with company policies, internal controls, and business priorities. This role is central to building accurate, compliant, and scalable travel, expense, and AP operations in a fast-paced, high-growth environment.

Responsibilities

• Own travel and expense operations:
  • Manage the full travel and expense lifecycle, including review, validation, approval workflows, and processing of employee expense reports.
  • Process employee reimbursements accurately and within established service-level timelines.
  • Ensure compliance with company travel and expense policies, internal controls, and applicable tax and regulatory requirements.
  • Provide guidance and training to employees and managers on travel policies, expense submissions, reimbursement procedures, and best practices.
• Lead systems and process improvement:
  • Serve as the primary point of contact and subject matter expert for travel and expense systems.
  • Support system administration, configuration, user management, troubleshooting, testing, and optimization initiatives.
  • Identify, recommend, and implement process improvements and automation opportunities that enhance efficiency, scalability, and control effectiveness.
  • Contribute to finance transformation initiatives in an all-hands-on-deck environment.
• Maintain financial accuracy and controls:
  • Perform and oversee reconciliations of employee expense accounts, corporate credit cards, vendor statements, and related balance sheet accounts.
  • Resolve discrepancies promptly to maintain accurate and complete financial records.
  • Support month-end close activities related to employee expenses, reconciliations, and AP accruals as needed.
  • Prepare documentation, reconciliations, and detailed process explanations for internal and external audits.
• Partner across the business:
  • Work closely with senior stakeholders, department leaders, and Finance leadership to align travel and expense processes with business priorities and internal controls.
  • Build strong cross-functional relationships and communicate effectively at all levels of the organization.
  • Resolve issues, provide policy guidance, and support operational decision-making.
  • Influence stakeholders and communicate complex processes clearly and confidently.
• Support Accounts Payable and team development:
  • Support invoice processing, coding, vendor onboarding, reconciliations, and payment execution.
  • Collaborate effectively within a global finance team while independently managing priorities and deadlines.
  • Mentor and support junior team members where applicable.
  • Help drive best practices across the function.
• Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):
  • Accurate and timely employee reimbursements
  • Travel and expense policy compliance
  • Reconciliation accuracy and discrepancy resolution
  • Process efficiency, scalability, and control effectiveness

Requirements

• 5+ years of experience in Travel & Expense, Accounts Payable, or a related finance operations role.
• Strong understanding of expense management, reimbursement workflows, AP operations, and vendor payment cycles.
• Hands-on experience with ERP and expense management systems; NetSuite experience is strongly preferred.
• Strong experience with reconciliations, variance analysis, and maintaining accurate financial records in a controlled environment.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel proficiency and strong analytical skills.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, including confidence working with senior leadership and cross-functional teams.
• Proven ability to influence stakeholders, manage priorities across departments, and explain complex processes clearly.
• Excellent attention to detail, organization, and problem-solving capabilities.
• A proactive, solutions-oriented approach focused on process improvement, operational excellence, and compliance.
• A bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, Business, or a related field is preferred; equivalent relevant experience will be considered.

Nice to have

• Experience implementing, optimizing, or scaling travel and expense management systems.
• Familiarity with corporate credit card programs and policy administration.
• Exposure to multi-entity, multi-currency, or international expense processing environments.
• Experience in a high-growth, VC-backed, or PE-backed company.
• Experience supporting finance transformation, automation initiatives, or junior team development.

Benefits

• Highly competitive US compensation package (base + bonus + equity), with performance reviews every 12 months.
• Opportunity to join one of the fastest-growing AI infrastructure companies and directly shape how global AI capacity is planned and deployed.
• Dynamic progression plan tailored to your ambitions, with support for leading critical cross-functional initiatives.
• Human-First Flexibility: Trust and autonomy to shape your day around life's moments.

Pay

Salary Range: $80,000—$120,000 USD