---
title: 'Contracts Manager at Kaizen Labs'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/contracts-manager-kaizen-labs-new-york-km5sza47r7ft'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-11'
---

# Contracts Manager at Kaizen Labs

- **Company:** Kaizen Labs
- **Location:** New York, NY
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** hybrid
- **Posted:** 2026-09-10
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-11
- **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/kaizenlabs/51a613ac-63e7-4d36-8df9-fbcc33cfcac3

## Job description

Government technology has failed citizens, public servants, and service members for decades.

Kaizen powers America’s application layer. We replace the legacy systems federal agencies run on with modern software, built with craft. The ticketing platform a resident uses to visit a presidential library. The marketplace DoW uses for counter-drone procurement to protect lives and critical infrastructure. The system a Veteran uses to access benefits. We build systems of record, of national consequence. Our AI-native modules and harness allow us to do so in weeks and months, not years.

This year, our revenue has grown 35x. Next year, our software will serve over 100 million Americans across dozens of federal agencies.

Founded in 2022 and based in New York City and DC, Kaizen has raised $35 million from NEA, a16z, Accel, 776, and Carpenter Capital.

## The Role

Federal software companies run on contracts, and most manage compliance through a mix of inboxes, spreadsheets, and hope. Kaizen holds work across civilian agencies and DoD: FAR-based, subcontracts, IDIQ vehicles, BPAs, DoW agreements. Training deadlines, labor postings, OCI requirements, VETS filings - this role builds the function that keeps all of it current. It's the first contracts hire at Kaizen, reporting to the Head of Business Operations & Corporate Affairs and working daily with IT, security, the FSO, and the deployment team. The BD team brings you deals in progress. You advise on structure, flag compliance risks, help with pricing justification, and get it to signature. Turnaround is hours, not days. If a standard teaming agreement takes you a week, this isn't the right seat. You work with outside counsel on interpretation when needed, but the turnaround is yours to own.

## What You'll Do

- Build and own the obligation register across every federal agreement, keeping it current through mods and change orders
- Run the compliance calendar: training certificates back to the AOR, required notices and postings, annual filings including VETS-4212A
- Make applicability calls on thresholds, commercial-item carve-outs, and what actually applies at our size
- Administer federal portals: SAM reps and certs, PIEE and WAWF for invoicing
- Review flowdowns on new subcontracts and agreements before signature and flag what we'd be taking on
- Onboard new subcontractors: program context, systems access, security requirements, and operating expectations; hold them to committed scope, timelines, and deliverables
- Route execution to People Ops, IT, and security and hold the map of who owns what
- Serve as the primary interface with government COs and AOs on active contracts
- Support BD and capture teams with contract strategy, pricing input, and T&C risk assessment on proposals
- Manage clause interpretation with outside counsel

## What You'll Bring

- 5+ years of federal contracts or subcontracts administration on the contractor side, where the follow-through was yours
- FAR and DFARS fluency, including flowdown matrices and applicability thresholds
- You've built a compliance register or calendar, not just worked from one someone else built
- DoD contract experience, including FAR-based awards or other transaction agreements
- GSA Schedule administration: catalog maintenance, pricing justifications, BPA setup and updates, SIN and SKU modifications, option year reporting, and price reduction clause compliance
- Direct submissions into federal systems: SAM, PIEE or WAWF
- Comfortable on a small team with no department behind you, able to assign your own week
- Experience managing subcontractors or teaming partners against committed scope, milestones, and deliverables, including escalating when they slip
- Negotiation experience on federal contracts, not just post-award administration
- Familiar with data rights and IP provisions in federal software contracts
- Eligible to work with CUI

Strong Candidates May Also...

- Primed on subcontracts with flowdown obligations
- Managed relationships with major defense prime subcontractors
- Managed subcontractors delivering software, data, or AI capabilities
- Hold an NCMA certification
- Carry an active or recently lapsed clearance

Don't Apply If...

- Your contracts background is commercial. The federal compliance context here is the whole job.
- You want to write policy rather than close obligations.
- You need a system to step into. There isn't one yet.
- You want the security and technical compliance work. That lives on a different team.
- The agencies Kaizen serves run essential public services. The obligations matter.

If you want to build the compliance infrastructure behind software that reaches tens of millions of Americans, reach out!

What Kaizen Offers Health & Insurance

- 100% coverage across the board: medical through Oxford/United (Gold and Platinum PPO plans), dental through Guardian PPO, and vision through Beam — all fully covered for employees, with 100% coverage for dependents.
- $100,000 in fully paid life insurance. FSA and Dependent Care FSA.
- One Medical membership, on us — same-day primary care, 24/7 virtual visits, and offices all over the city.
- Fertility and family-building support through Carrot.
- 401(k) through Guideline, with a 2% company match.

Family & Time Off

- 16 weeks of fully paid parental leave for birthing parents. 10 weeks fully paid for non-birthing parents.
- Unlimited PTO, with a two-week minimum (we mean it when we say take time off!)
- Closed for all federal holidays.
- Company-wide winter break the week of Christmas.
- Company offsites throughout the year.

Office & Remote Setup

- Up to $750 one-time home office or desk setup stipend for NYC-based employees. $500 for remote employees.
- $50/month commuter benefit (company contribution).
- Expensed lunch while in the office.
- Company-provided laptop of your choice.

Wellness

- Fully covered gym membership at [Grindhouse](https://grindhousemhttn.com/) — right across the street from our office at 47 W 17th St (and in Williamsburg). A $225/month value, on us. For remote employees, $100/month dedicated to gym or physical fitness reimbursement.

Stipends

- $100/month utility stipend.
- $500/year professional development.
- $250/year recreation.
- $300/quarter pet care stipend.

## About Kaizen Labs

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Kaizen Labs provides a modular, AI-native software platform that helps local, state, and federal government agencies modernize public services like recreation management, permitting, parking, transit, and payments.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Series A)
- **Headquarters**: New York, New York, USA
- **Founded**: 2022
- **Founders**: Nikhil Reddy

## Core Business
- **Primary industry/industries**: Government Technology (GovTech), Civic Technology, Public Sector Software
- **Target customers**: Local, state, and federal government agencies in the United States
- **Mission or purpose statement**: To strengthen trust in American public services by building technology that residents and public servants are proud to use.

## Products & Services
- **Kaizen Platform**: A modular, AI-native operating system for public services. It replaces legacy systems with a unified platform covering recreation management (reservations, memberships, point of sale), permitting and licensing, parking management, transit and fare management, tolling infrastructure, digital billing and payment collection, and case management. The platform is designed to be adopted in phases.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not publicly disclosed
- **Key Metric**: Total Funding of $35M raised across 2 rounds (Seed and Series A)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: NEA, a16z (Andreessen Horowitz), Accel, 776, and Carpenter Capital
- **Growth Signals**: The platform already reaches 40 million residents across 50+ agencies in 17 states. The company has grown to 42 employees as of April 2026. It raised a $21M Series A in October 2025, signaling strong investor confidence and growth trajectory.

## Competitive Advantages
- **AI-native platform**: Kaizen embeds AI into every interaction (from permit applications to benefits enrollment), differentiating it from legacy government tech vendors.
- **Modular, phased adoption**: Agencies can start with one service (e.g., recreation) and expand over time, lowering the barrier to entry for cash-strapped governments.
- **Design-first philosophy**: The company believes beautiful, intuitive software is how government technology earns trust, a stark contrast to the clunky, 90s-era systems residents are used to.
- **Breadth of coverage**: Already serves 40 million residents across 50+ agencies in 17 states, spanning local, state, and federal levels.

## Strategic Focus
- **Expansion across government levels**: Moving from its roots in outdoor recreation to a full-stack platform for local, state, and federal services.
- **AI-native development**: Embedding AI into every product interaction to make public services smarter and more efficient.
- **Scaling the platform**: Continuing to add modules and agency partners to become the "operating system for America’s public services."

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: Described as a team of "builders, designers, and operators" who are "change-seekers." The company emphasizes "Design is Everyone's Job" and "Collective Ownership" — every employee is accountable for the quality and trustworthiness of the product.
- **Work Model**: Hybrid. Employees work from home on Mondays and Fridays, and are in the office 3 days a week (Tuesday–Thursday) for intentional collaboration.
- **Location**: HQ in New York, NY. Some roles are listed as remote or hybrid.
- **Tech Stack**: TypeScript, JavaScript, Node.js, React, Next.js, GraphQL, PostgreSQL, AWS, Google Cloud, Vercel, GitHub, Linear, Slack, Salesforce, Outreach.
- **Notable Perks**: The company is building a culture of collective ownership and high design standards, with a focus on meaningful impact in the public sector.

## Sources
1. [kaizenlabs.co](https://www.kaizenlabs.co/)
2. [kaizenlabs.co/careers](https://www.kaizenlabs.co/careers/)
3. [builtin.com](https://builtin.com/company/kaizen-labs)
4. [tracxn.com](https://tracxn.com/d/companies/kaizenlabs/__4v0zyP-x3-EA2YdE8qp-2lRpYlAKgenz9fUD8HxFbDY)
5. [jobs.ashbyhq.com](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/kaizenlabs)

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