Team Lead - Instawork Robotics Labs

Instawork is on a mission to create meaningful economic opportunities for skilled hourly professionals in communities around the globe. Our AI-powered labor marketplace helps local businesses scale, and enables global technology companies to push the frontiers of robotics and AI. Backed by world-class investors like Benchmark, Spark Capital, Craft Ventures, Greylock, Y Combinator, and others, we’re looking for exceptional talent to reimagine the way the world works. About IRL (Instawork Robotics Labs) Researchers at UC Berkeley have identified a “100,000-year data gap” - the gulf between what trained AI language models and what physical robots actually have to learn from. Closing that gap is the defining infrastructure challenge of the physical AI era. IRL is Instawork’s answer to it. We deploy skilled workers into real commercial and residential environments - kitchens, warehouses, hotel floors, homes - to capture the high-fidelity task data that the world’s leading Robotics labs use to train their foundation models. Read more here . About the Role We are looking for a highly driven and hands-on Team Lead – Operations to build, manage, and scale a high-performing operations team supporting AI-powered data capture and workflow execution initiatives. This role combines people leadership, operational excellence, customer management, and process optimization. The ideal candidate has experience working in high-growth B2B SaaS or technology companies, has managed large enterprise accounts, thrives in fast-paced startup environments, and is comfortable rolling up their sleeves to solve operational challenges. Key Responsibilities Team Building & Talent Management Lead end-to-end hiring and onboarding of operations team members. Build, mentor, and manage a high-performing team of operators and team members. Create career development plans and coaching programs to improve team effectiveness. Foster a culture of accountability, ownership, and continuous improvement. Training & Process Excellence Design and implement training programs for new hires and existing team members. Develop, document, and continuously improve SOPs and operational playbooks. Ensure teams are equipped with the right tools, knowledge, and processes to perform efficiently. Drive adoption of AI tools, particularly ChatGPT and other productivity platforms, to improve operational effectiveness. Operations Management Oversee day-to-day execution of task-based physical and data-driven workflows. Monitor operational KPIs, productivity metrics, and quality standards. Identify bottlenecks and implement scalable process improvements. Ensure timely delivery of operational commitments while maintaining high-quality standards. Review completed work regularly and provide corrective feedback where necessary. Customer & Stakeholder Management Act as the primary operational point of contact for customers and internal stakeholders. Manage relationships with large enterprise customers and strategic accounts. Prepare and deliver weekly business reviews, operational updates, presentations, and MIS reports. Communicate project progress, challenges, and recommendations to customers and leadership teams. Drive customer satisfaction through proactive communication and operational excellence. Infrastructure & Operational Readiness Ensure operational infrastructure, hardware, and tools are functioning effectively. Manage inventory, equipment allocation, and operational readiness across teams. Coordinate with internal teams to resolve operational issues quickly and efficiently. Required Qualifications 5+ years of experience in operations, account management, customer success, BPO, shared services, or technology-enabled operations. 2+ years of experience managing teams and leading people. Experience working in high-growth startups and scaling operations. Strong background in managing large enterprise accounts and customer-facing operations. Proven experience driving operational excellence in fast-paced environments. Excellent communication and presentation skills with the ability to interact confidently with senior stakeholders. Strong analytical mindset with experience creating reports, dashboards, and operational reviews. Hands-on approach with a willingness to dive deep into execution when required. Highly proficient with AI tools, particularly ChatGPT, and able to leverage them to improve productivity, problem-solving, and workflow design. Preferred Qualifications Experience in B2B SaaS, technology, operations, customer success, or enterprise services organizations. Experience managing large-scale operational teams. Familiarity with quality assurance frameworks and process improvement methodologies. Exposure to AI, data operations, annotation, content moderation, workflow management, or technology-enabled service delivery. Experience working with global customers and cross-functional teams. Why Join Us Lead a critical operations function powering innovative AI-driven initiatives. Build and scale a team from the ground up. Work directly with customers and leadership on high-impact projects. Opportunity to shape processes, systems, and operational strategy. Competitive compensation along with benefits such as commute and meals. Fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment with significant growth opportunities. Our Values Empathy, Trust & Candor We put ourselves in the shoes of our colleagues and customers and don’t shy away from uncomfortable conversations, instead building trust through honest and direct feedback. Bias for Action We practice high-velocity decision-making, clear-eyed that we often operate with incomplete information. Growing quickly means it’s OK to be wrong, so long as we learn from our mistakes and course correct! Always Be Learning We’re a curious bunch, and with AI transforming our workplace we encourage everyone to learn from each other, compounding our knowledge and experience to help us change an entire industry. Act Like an Owner We work long, hard, and smart, building products that delight our users and drive growth. Your ability to impact Instawork is limited only by your courage and conviction, not your job description. About Instawork Founded in 2015, Instawork is the nation’s leading online labor marketplace for food services, hospitality, light industry, and logistics, connecting more than 7M skilled workers with local restaurants, hotels, warehouses, stadiums, and more. Our AI-powered platform serves thousands of businesses across more than 50 major markets in the United States and Canada. We're not just helping fill shifts, we're supporting local economies—and we're just getting started! Instawork has been featured by CBS News, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and the Associated Press. Forbes included us on their Next Billion Dollar Startups list; RetailTech Breakthrough named us Workforce Hiring Solution of the Year for 2025; and Inc. 5000 recognized us as one of the country's top 10% fastest-growing companies two years in a row. But what matters most is our impact. We're solving real problems for real people, and we’re doing it at scale. Join our team to help us build something that matters! We’re looking for superstars who want to help us shape the future of work. With hubs in San Francisco, Bangalore, and Chicago, city offices in New York, Phoenix, and Singapore, we're back to working together in-person five days a week because we believe the best ideas happen when great people collaborate face-to-face. We also value diverse perspectives and encourage applications from candidates of all backgrounds. Ready to make an impact? Learn more at www.instawork.com/about .