Office Manager / Bookkeeper

COMPANY INTRO

ARU , founded in 2016, has quickly risen to become the U.S. leader in specialty property insurance underwriting, product development, loss control, and technology.

OFFICE MANAGER / BOOKKEEPER POSITION INTRO

ARU is currently seeking a hyper-organized, numbers-savvy individual to support the company CEO, own the heartbeat of our Chapel Hill office, and help manage certain subsidiary financial operations. This is an in-person role designed for an exceptionally smart, thorough, and curious rising professional who wants to learn fast, shoulder real responsibility, and grow his/her career.

If you love order, details, clean reconciliations, crisp writing, and making a team faster and better—read on.

A few words from ARU's Co-founder Will Johnson:

"I started ARU in 2016 at ground zero, with zero customers, zero revenue, and one big foundational idea: other market participants were operating fundamentally flawed models that were not sustainable . I strongly believed ARU could deliver substantial value by making a clean break from the legacy underwriting methods -- and by building a completely new and innovative approach. But - I must say, believing it and executing it were two very different things, ha!

While it certainly has not been easy, amazing work by the ARU team has generated superlative growth and profitability results, and it continues to be incredibly fulfilling to see ARU's original mission be realized.

I am now seeking the next great addition to our team, a highly-organized individual who will support me at the company HQ, do the best work of his/her career, and help me do the best work of my career!

WHAT WE’RE OFFERING TO YOU:

• You will have a position in a fast-growing, modern, technology-based company, where your contribution will be critical to the company’s success, and where your performance will earn your opportunities for recognition and promotion.
• You will receive a competitive compensation package, with base annual salary, annual bonus, and company-provided benefits. You will have 100% employer-paid health insurance, paid time off, and a 100% vested retirement plan with company match.

PRIMARY DUTIES:

• Help ARU be the best in the world at what we do, and do not ever settle for mediocrity. Actively participate in ARU’s culture of collaborative problem-solving.
• Treat every assignment as an opportunity to: 1) learn and grow as a professional, and 2) prepare for increased responsibilities in the company.
• Perform with a high level of polish and professionalism, in all spoken and written communications. Address internal and external business challenges in a graceful and tactful manner. Complete all duties with a high degree of urgency, thoroughness, and accuracy.
• Office Operations (Own the House)
  
  
  • Be the face and backbone of the office: reception, guest experience, meeting prep, mail/shipping, supplies, and vendor coordination.
  • Keep facilities humming: building access, badges/keys, maintenance tickets, safety/compliance checklists, and tidy, professional spaces.
  • Plan logistics for leadership meetings, broker/carrier visits, trainings, and team events (catering, AV, materials, room turns).
• Bookkeeping & Finance Ops (Own the Details)
  
  
  • AP/AR administration: vendor onboarding (W-9s/COIs), purchase orders, invoices, approvals, payment runs, and customer invoicing.
  • Expense & card management: collect receipts, code expenses, close cards monthly, and chase exceptions to zero.
  • Bank and credit-card reconciliations; help maintain an accurate general ledger and clean monthly closes in collaboration with Accounting.
  • Light payroll coordination and benefits deductions with our providers; maintain files and audit trails with precision.
  • Keep simple reporting current (cash/billings/aging) and escalate anomalies early with recommended fixes.
• Perform as Executive Assistant to Will Johnson
  
  
  • E-mail and Task Management: perform as Will J.'s e-mail surrogate and directly manage the CEO's e-mail inbox, related tasks, and all day to day e-mail correspondence.
  • Internal Communications: draft and disseminate internal communications on behalf of Will J., ensuring clarity, consistency, and alignment with ARU's vision and values
  • Manage calendars, travel, and briefing materials.
  • Draft concise internal notes, follow-ups, and checklists; capture actions and drive them to completion.
  • Coordinate special projects and vendor quotes on behalf of leadership; bring options, trade-offs, and a recommendation.
  • Assist Will J. with incidental personal matters such as calendar management, correspondence, donations, and gift selections.
• HR & Compliance Administration
  
  
  • Partner on onboarding/offboarding checklists (equipment, accounts, handbook acknowledgments).
  • Maintain confidential personnel and vendor records according to policy; keep templates and SOPs current.
  • Track key renewals (licenses, insurance certs, subscriptions); keep reminders and owners tight.
• Perform all duties with the highest levels of discretion and confidentiality, maintaining the privacy of the company and Will J. at all times.
• Master the use of ARU standardized hardware, software programs, third party software, and processing procedures.
• Other, as assigned.

WHAT WE MINIMALLY REQUIRE - YOUR EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE, AND SKILLSET:

• Excellent ability to both: 1) LEARN new information and skills, and 2) APPLY new learnings to your professional setting.
• Demonstrable proficiency in thoroughness, accuracy, organization, resource management, and record-keeping.
• Exceptional customer service skills, with the strong ability to resolve challenging situations with a patient and calm demeanor.
• Excellent professional presentation and polish, in the spoken word and written form.
• Excellent critical thinker and problem-solver under pressure. High intellectual curiosity, with an enjoyment of learning and self-improvement.

REQUIRED LOCATION: 80% IN-PERSON / 20% REMOTE

• The Office Manager role requires an in-person presence in ARU's HQ at UNC's Innovate Carolina Junction in downtown Chapel Hill, NC.
• As a requirement of the position, the Office Manager must live within a 35 minute commute of Chapel Hill, NC . For exceptionally well-qualified candidates who do not currently reside in this geographic area, relocation assistance may be available.
• After the initial training period, some remote / work from home may be acceptable in the normal course of business, to be discussed in good faith between Will J. and the Office Manager hire. Expectation: approximately 1 day per week (20%).

ABOUT ARU’S CULTURE:

We demand excellence from ourselves and those around us; we work accurately and thoroughly, but also with a great sense of urgency; we are excellent critical thinkers and creative problem solvers; we contribute cheerfully to ARU’s environment of collaborative brainstorming and respectful debate; we love to explore and experiment, and we are comfortable occasionally blazing a trail that ends up actually being a “bridge to nowhere” -- just as long as we fail fast, pivot appropriately, and become tougher and smarter as a result; we love to learn, read, and grow as human beings; we believe in science-based truths, and we know there is no such thing as an alternative fact.

MORE ABOUT ARU:

ARU was founded with a goal to use expertise, engineering, and technology to disrupt the legacy marketplace. Our core mission is to deliver a superior experience to our policyholders, while also maintaining sustainability and consistency writing historically-challenging classes of business. To do so, we build and deploy 100% proprietary insurance products, we invest heavily in property loss prevention engineering and research, and we develop home-grown software and other technology. We also focus on collaborative broker and policyholder relationships, which allow us to deliver shared victories for all stakeholders. ARU is part of the Accelerant Insurance family: