---
title: 'Chief of Staff at Workstream'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/chief-of-staff-workstream-san-francisco-tp9w8pzf0tkx'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-13'
---

# Chief of Staff at Workstream

- **Company:** Workstream
- **Location:** San Francisco, CA
- **Posted:** 2026-09-01
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-13
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/workstream/jobs/6178729004

## Job description

Workstream is a mission-driven company building the all-in-one HR, payroll, and hiring platform for managing the hourly workforce. There are 2.7 billion hourly workers, making up 80% of the global workforce, but this market has been heavily underserved by technology and deserves better. Workstream has been purpose-built for the hourly workforce from day one so that these businesses and their employees can thrive.

Our customers include leading brands from multiple sectors, including Burger King, Carl's Jr./Hardee's, IHOP, KFC, and Culvers. We are a high growth series B company and quickly expanding our product portfolio to deliver on our vision. We are backed by legendary VCs and industry experts like Founders Fund, BOND, and Coatue.

Grow With Us

We are looking for a highly analytical, proactive, and execution-oriented Chief of Staff to work directly with our CEO and executive leadership team.

In this role, you will serve as a force multiplier for the CEO and help drive the highest-priority initiatives across the company. You will operate at the intersection of strategy and execution—helping translate company priorities into action, driving cross-functional alignment, and ensuring critical initiatives move forward with urgency and accountability.

This is a high-ownership role for someone who thrives in ambiguity, learns quickly, and is comfortable moving between strategic problem-solving and hands-on execution. You will work closely with the CEO, executive team, and leaders across the organization on everything from company strategy and operating cadence to special projects, business analysis, and organizational priorities.

The ideal candidate is an exceptional generalist who can quickly understand complex problems, structure them clearly, make sound decisions, and drive teams toward outcomes. You should be comfortable operating with limited direction and stepping into whatever problem is most important to the business at a given time.

Day In The Life

- Partner directly with the CEO on company strategy, priorities, and execution
- Drive high-priority cross-functional initiatives from initial problem definition through execution and measurable outcomes
- Translate the CEO’s priorities into clear action plans, owners, timelines, and accountability mechanisms
- Prepare the CEO and executive team for leadership meetings, board meetings, investor discussions, and other critical engagements
- Develop analyses, business cases, and recommendations to support strategic and operational decision-making
- Establish and manage operating rhythms, including company goals, KPIs, business reviews, and executive follow-ups
- Work across Product, Engineering, Sales, Customer Success, Finance, People, and Operations to identify and resolve organizational bottlenecks
- Identify opportunities to improve company performance, efficiency, and organizational effectiveness
- Lead special projects that may span multiple functions and require rapid execution in ambiguous environments
- Conduct market, competitive, and business research to inform strategic decisions
- Help the CEO and executive team prioritize resources and initiatives based on business impact
- Ensure critical decisions and initiatives are followed through to completion
- Act as a trusted thought partner to the CEO and executive team, providing candid analysis and perspective
- Step into operational problems directly when needed rather than simply delegating them to others
- Help build scalable processes, systems, and operating mechanisms as Workstream continues to grow

## Who You Are

- 4–8+ years of experience in strategy, operations, consulting, investment banking, product, or a high-growth technology company
- Proven track record of owning complex, cross-functional initiatives with measurable business outcomes
- Exceptional analytical and structured problem-solving skills
- Ability to quickly understand unfamiliar industries, businesses, and technical concepts
- Strong business judgment and ability to make decisions with incomplete information
- Exceptional written and verbal communication skills
- Ability to influence senior executives and cross-functional teams without direct authority
- High ownership mindset with a strong bias toward action
- Comfortable operating in a fast-paced, ambiguous, and constantly changing startup environment
- Ability to manage multiple high-priority initiatives simultaneously without losing attention to detail
- Strong proficiency with spreadsheets, presentations, and modern productivity tools
- Must be based in or willing to relocate to San Francisco, CA and work onsite 5 days per week

## Nice To Have

- Experience working directly with a CEO, founder, or executive leadership team
- Background in management consulting, investment banking, private equity, or venture capital
- Experience at a high-growth, venture-backed technology company
- Experience leading strategic planning, annual planning, or company operating processes
- Exposure to board and investor relations processes
- Experience in SaaS, HR technology, payroll, workforce management, or marketplaces
- Experience managing or launching 0→1 initiatives
- Strong technical or data background and ability to work closely with engineering teams

## What We Offer

- A mission-driven and value-based company dedicated to empowering deskless workers and local businesses
- An early employee opportunity at a Series B hyper-growth startup with over $120M in funding
- Work directly with the founding team and industry veterans to accelerate your career
- Competitive salary and equity
- Comprehensive health coverage: medical, dental, and vision. We pay 95% of premiums for employees and 85% for dependents
- In-office amenities and stocked kitchen
- 401(k) Plan
- Flexible PTO

Salary Range

The base salary range for this role is $150,000 and $170,000 annually, depending on experience and qualifications. In addition to base salary, this role includes participation in Workstream's stock option program, offering meaningful equity ownership in the company.

Know More About Workstream

- https://www.workstream.us/blog/funding-series-b
- https://techcrunch.com/2021/08/26/workstreams-text-based-recruitment-tool-gets-a-48m-bet-from-bond-and-beyond/
- https://techbuzz.news/buzzworthy-august-27-2021/

Additional Information

Workstream provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.

We are committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals.

## About Workstream

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Workstream provides an all-in-one AI-powered HR, payroll, and hiring platform purpose-built for hourly, multi-location businesses, primarily in the restaurant industry.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Series B)
- **Headquarters**: San Francisco, California, USA
- **Founded**: 2017
- **Founders**: Desmond Lim (CEO), Lei Xu (CSO & Co-founder), Max Wang (CTO & Co-founder)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry/industries**: HR Technology, Payroll Software, Recruiting/Hiring Software, Restaurant Technology
- **Target customers**: B2B; specifically multi-location restaurant chains and other hourly-workforce businesses (e.g., retail, hospitality). Their customers include 46 of the top 50 quick-service restaurant brands.
- **Mission or purpose statement**: "Empowering local businesses and the hourly workforce to thrive" [workstream.us](https://www.workstream.us/about)

## Products & Services
- **AI-Powered Hiring Platform**: An end-to-end solution that includes job posting to hundreds of boards, AI-driven candidate screening, and automated interview scheduling via their "VoiceAI" feature. [workstream.us](https://www.workstream.us/)
- **HR & Compliance Platform**: Tools for managing I-9s, e-verify, time clock violations, meal break alerts, and digital form collection to ensure compliance with labor laws. [workstream.us](https://www.workstream.us/)
- **Payroll Solution**: An all-in-one payroll system designed for hourly workers, featuring custom reports, an AI assistant for error detection, and audit reconciliation. [workstream.us](https://www.workstream.us/)
- **Onboarding & Employee Management**: Digital onboarding workflows and employee management tools designed to reduce time-to-productivity for new hires.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not publicly disclosed.
- **Key Metric**: Total Funding of **$118M** across multiple rounds, including a $60M Series B in 2022 led by Notable Capital (formerly GGV Capital). [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/workstream-us)
- **Annual Revenue**: Estimated at **$14.3M** (based on LinkedIn data). [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/workstream-us)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: GGV Capital (Notable Capital), CRV, Basis Set Ventures, Founders Fund (Keith Rabois), BOND (Jay Simons), Coatue, and individual angels like Tony Xu (CEO of DoorDash) and Eric Yuan (CEO of Zoom). [workstream.us](https://www.workstream.us/about)
- **Growth Signals**: Trusted by 46 of the top 50 restaurant brands (e.g., Burger King, Jimmy John's, Taco Bell, Culver's, Papa Johns) across 30,000+ locations. Launched a first-of-its-kind all-in-one payroll solution for the hourly workforce in 2024. [workstream.us](https://www.workstream.us/)

## Competitive Advantages
- **Deep Vertical Focus**: Purpose-built for the restaurant industry, not a generic HR platform. This allows for highly specific features like tip pooling, shift management, and compliance with complex hospitality labor laws.
- **AI-First Approach**: Integrates AI at every layer—from "VoiceAI" for candidate screening and interview scheduling to an AI assistant for payroll error detection—creating significant efficiency gains for managers.
- **High Customer Concentration & Trust**: 46 of the top 50 QSR brands use Workstream, creating a strong network effect and deep domain expertise that is hard for generalist competitors to replicate.
- **All-in-One Platform**: Combines hiring, onboarding, HR compliance, and payroll into a single system, eliminating the need for multiple point solutions for restaurant operators.

## Strategic Focus
- **Product Expansion**: Deepening the all-in-one platform, particularly with the recent launch of their native payroll solution to compete with legacy providers.
- **AI Integration**: Continuing to leverage AI (VoiceAI, AI assistant) to automate manual tasks for hiring, scheduling, and payroll, driving efficiency for customers.
- **Market Penetration**: Expanding beyond their strong QSR base into other hourly-workforce verticals like retail and hospitality.
- **Global Scale**: With offices in the US, Canada, China, and the Philippines, they are building a global team to support a growing international customer base.

## Why Work Here
- **High-Impact Environment**: Workstream is a growth-stage company (191 employees) with a clear market leader position in a massive industry (restaurant tech). Employees have the opportunity to work on problems that directly impact millions of hourly workers. [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/workstream-us)
- **Culture & Values**: The company emphasizes a culture of "Humble and Hungry," "Direct Feedback is a Gift," and "Everyone does Customer Success." They value transparency, trust, and a beginner's mindset. [workstream.us](https://www.workstream.us/careers)
- **Remote/Hybrid Policy**: They have offices in San Francisco, Lehi (Utah), Shanghai, and Vancouver. Roles vary, with many engineering and strategic roles based in Menlo Park and San Francisco, suggesting a hybrid or in-office preference for certain teams. [workstream.us](https://www.workstream.us/careers)
- **Perks & Benefits**: Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans; generous mental health support (fully-paid therapy sessions); flexible PTO; paid parental leave; and competitive compensation with equity. [workstream.us](https://www.workstream.us/careers)
- **Team & Growth**: A team of ~191 people with backgrounds from top companies (Google, Yelp, Qualtrics, Zoom) and universities (Stanford, MIT, Harvard). The company is well-funded ($118M) and growing, offering significant ownership and impact. [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/workstream-us)

## Sources
1. [workstream.us](https://www.workstream.us/)
2. [workstream.us](https://www.workstream.us/about)
3. [workstream.us](https://www.workstream.us/careers)
4. [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/workstream-us)
5. [greenhouse.io](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/workstream/jobs/6006952004)

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