The posting
Government technology has failed citizens, veterans, 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 to procure counter-drone systems 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, 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.
Location
New York, NY. Hybrid, in person four days a week. Travel to Washington, DC with the founders a few times a quarter.
The Role
Kaizen's founders spend their weeks between New York, Washington and the agencies and partners in between, in rooms where decisions about public services get made. The company is scaling quickly, and the operating layer behind the founders hasn't kept pace: a trip gets booked at midnight, a dinner gets planned the morning of, an offsite comes together in a group chat. This role exists to own that layer for the CEO, the COO and the company: travel, scheduling, events, vendors and the hundred details that decide whether a week runs.
You'll work closer to the founders than almost anyone, with a front-row seat to how a company scaling this fast actually gets built. And because so little is set in stone yet, the systems you put in place now become how Kaizen operates as it grows.
What You'll Do
- Own travel end to end for the CEO and COO, especially the regular New York to DC rhythm: flights, trains, hotels, ground, and the plan B when something slips
- Run scheduling logistics with the Founders Associate: confirm, move and hold time, handle the back-and-forth with external offices, and make sure every meeting has a room, a link and the right people in it
- Be the main line between the founders and the rest of the company: keep the team current on where the CEO and COO are each week, when they're reachable, and the fastest way to get time or an approval from them
- Handle reservations, vendors, gifts, expenses and reimbursements for the founders, and keep the receipts and records clean
- Coordinate with office operations so the NYC space works for the team on heavy days: visitors, candidate onsites, customer visits and all-hands
- Build the systems that make the above repeatable, using AI tools as a first resort: templates, checklists, automations and a shared tracker the rest of the team can actually use
- Take on the problems that have no owner yet, solve them, and turn the recurring ones into systems, so the whole team can stay focused on the mission
What You'll Bring
- Experience supporting a founder, executive or small leadership team, and specific examples of what you took off their plate so it stayed off
- A working habit of using AI tools and automations to do the job faster, not as a novelty but as how you work day to day
- A track record of getting logistics right under time pressure and on short notice, with a plan B ready before anyone asks for it
- Reliability and responsiveness: when a founder is traveling and something breaks, you are the person who picks up
- Discretion with sensitive information, including investor, customer and personnel matters
- Pride in execution: you get energy from a week that runs without a hitch, and you know the details are where that happens
Strong Candidates May Also...
- Have worked in a high-growth environment, like an early-stage startup, where priorities shift week to week (government or public sector experience is a bonus, not a requirement)
- Have supported leaders who split time between two cities
- Have built or automated a workflow that a whole team adopted
Don't Apply If...
- You need someone to tell you the dinner is Thursday. You should already know, and have the reservation.
- You think AI tools are a shortcut rather than the way the job gets done now.
- You would rather manage a calendar than make sure the week it describes actually happens.
The founders are in rooms where decisions about public services get made. Your job is to make sure they get there, and that nothing about getting there is what they are thinking about.
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.
- Dinner and Uber rides home will be expensed if you choose to work in the office past 7pm.
- Company-provided laptop of your choice.
Wellness
- NYC employees: 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.
- Non-NYC employees: $100 per month, dedicated to gym / physical fitness reimbursement.
Stipends
- $100/month utility stipend.
- $250/quarter home cleaning stipend
- $500/year professional development.
- $250/year recreation.
- $300/quarter pet care stipend.
