What Sequoia does

Sequoia is a compensation, benefits, and HR advisory and outsourcing firm founded in 2001, headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area (San Mateo). It serves 2,500+ investor-backed companies spanning seed-stage startups through global enterprises, operating across 140+ countries via the Sequoia Global Network of local actuaries, brokers, and consultants. The firm specializes in helping clients optimize what it characterizes as the largest line item outside of cost of goods — total people spend — through a combination of expert advisory, brokerage, and an integrated technology platform.

The firm's core technology asset is Sequoia OS, an integrated platform that unifies HRIS, payroll, equity, and benefits data into a single system with real-time analytics, compensation benchmarking, headcount planning, and collaborative workspace capabilities. Sequoia OS serves 300,000 employees across the client base, with a 94% client adoption rate and a 4.9 App Store rating for the mobile application. In March 2026, Sequoia launched Sequoia Pages, a real-time collaborative workspace within Sequoia OS enabling advisor-client decision-making on comp and benefits planning. Sequoia also operates Sequoia One, a Professional Employer Organization (PEO) solution for VC-backed tech startups offering co-employment, payroll/tax execution, HR administration, and benefits management. An exclusive partnership with Carta provides differentiated access to private market compensation and equity benchmarking data.

Sequoia generates revenue through multiple streams: recurring advisory and brokerage subscriptions (billed annually), managed PEO services through Sequoia One (monthly billing, typically priced as a percentage of wages or per-employee fee), and subscription platform licensing for Sequoia OS modules (analytics, benchmarking, headcount planning, collaborative pages). Go-to-market is sales-led, segmented into enterprise field sales for 500+ employee accounts, inside sales for mid-market (100-499 employees), and direct sales to startups via the Sequoia One PEO channel. Marketing is content-driven, anchored by annual benchmarking reports, thought leadership content, webinars, and client success stories targeting HR, compensation, and finance decision-makers at investor-backed companies. Strategic positioning emphasizes an advisory-first model with a dedicated team of expert advisors, technologists, and service specialists acting as an extension of client teams rather than transactional brokerage.

Name

Sequoia

Legal name

Sequoia

Website

https://sequoia.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Sequoia is a compensation, benefits, and HR advisory and outsourcing firm founded in 2001, serving 2,500+ investor-backed companies across 140+ countries. It combines dedicated advisory services with the integrated Sequoia OS platform and Sequoia One PEO solution.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

HR & Benefits Consulting

NAICS

Insurance and Employee Benefit Funds (5251)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Professional Employer Organization (PEO) / Co-Employment Services (BPACAHAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Workforce Compliance & Employment Law Risk Management (Local Labor Law, Tax, Statutory) (BPACAHAH), Workplace Wealth & Employee Investing Programs (FSAAAAAK)

Keywords

• Compensation advisory
• Benefits brokerage
• HR outsourcing
• Payroll administration
• PEO solutions

Headquarters

HQ city

San Mateo

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Advisory & Brokerage Services: Strategic guidance and expertise aligned with business goals for total compensation and benefits. Delivered through expert advisors acting as an extension of client teams, providing year-round advisory and brokerage support.
2. PEO & Outsourcing Services: Outsourced HR administration, payroll, tax execution, and benefits management through Sequoia One PEO solution. Provides co-employment services for VC-backed startups.
3. Investor Solutions: Specialized services for VC and PE investment firms to maximize ROI across portfolio companies through optimized people spend guidance.
4. Platform Solutions (Sequoia OS): Technology platform licensing for compensation, benefits, and HR data management. Includes analytics, benchmarking, headcount planning, and collaborative workspace tools.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Sequoia provides compensation, benefits, HR, payroll, and risk management advisory and outsourcing services for employer organizations, primarily investor-backed companies. Its core delivery combines dedicated expert advisors with the Sequoia OS technology platform, which unifies HRIS, payroll, equity, and benefits data into real-time analytics, benchmarking, and planning tools. It also offers Sequoia One, a PEO service that co-employs workforce and administers payroll, benefits, and HR operations for VC-backed startups.

Product overview

Sequoia is a compensation and benefits advisory and outsourcing firm that operates as a platform-plus-services model. The core offering is Sequoia OS, an integrated technology platform that unifies HRIS, payroll, equity, and benefits data, supplemented by Sequoia One (a PEO service), and various advisory service lines covering compensation & equity, benefits (healthcare, wellbeing, retirement, global), HR & payroll, and business risk. Sequoia Pages, a collaborative workspace feature, was launched in March 2026 as an add-on module within Sequoia OS to enable real-time advisor-client collaboration. The company serves 2,500+ clients across 140+ countries, primarily investor-backed companies from startups to enterprises.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Sequoia OS: Integrated platform unifying HRIS, payroll, equity, and benefits data for strategic management of compensation and benefits programs.
• Sequoia One
• Sequoia Tech

Products and services

• Sequoia OS Integrated operating system for Sequoia's services that unifies HRIS, payroll, equity, and benefits data into a single platform with real-time analytics, benchmarking, headcount planning, and collaborative workspace capabilities for employer organizations.
• Sequoia One PEO Professional employer organization service for VC-backed tech startups delivering total comp, benefits, HR administration, and payroll/tax execution with co-employment arrangement.
• Sequoia Pages Real-time collaborative workspace within Sequoia OS that brings analytics, insights, and planning into one canvas for leadership teams and Sequoia advisors to review, comment, and accelerate compensation and benefits decisions.
• Advisory & Brokerage Year-round strategic guidance and brokerage services providing proactive total comp and benefits advisory across compensation, equity, benefits, and HR operations, delivered through dedicated expert advisors.
• Investor Solutions Specialized services for VC and PE investment firms to maximize ROI across portfolio companies, including exclusive market data, benchmarking, and investor-portco alignment tools.
• Compensation & Equity Advisory Comprehensive compensation advisory covering comp foundation, employee comp, executive comp, merit cycle support, and compensation outsourcing for designing and administering pay and equity strategy.
• Compensation Retainer Ongoing strategic advisory engagement with structured quarterly reporting, advisor-led reviews, and self-service platform access for year-round compensation management.
• Benefits Advisory & Brokerage Benefits advisory and brokerage covering healthcare, wellbeing, retirement, and global benefits, including benefits compliance and benefits outsourcing for employer clients.
• Global Benefits Global benefits coordination and consulting supporting client operations in 140+ countries through the Sequoia Global Network of local actuaries, brokers, and consultants.
• Healthcare Benefits Health benefits advisory and brokerage covering medical, dental, and vision plans, pharmacy analysis, and strategic health plan insights through partnerships with major carriers.
• Wellbeing Benefits Wellbeing program enablement covering physical, emotional, financial, and family wellbeing through vetted vendor partnerships including Carrot, Headspace, One Medical, and Spring Health.
• Retirement Benefits 401(k) advisory, fiduciary governance, executive deferred compensation, financial wellness programs, tax-advantage programs, and IPO readiness programs delivered with Pensionmark as affiliated adviser.
• Business Risk Risk advisory and brokerage covering compliance, employment practice liability, worker's compensation, and directors & officers insurance to manage and mitigate business risk.
• Comp & Benefits Analytics Analytics module within Sequoia OS providing pre-built dashboards, board-ready decks, custom reporting, and secure role-based access for workforce data visualization.
• Comp & Benefits Benchmarking Market comparison capabilities powered by Sequoia's proprietary data and Carta partnership for compensation and benefits benchmarking to keep client programs competitive.
• Headcount Planning Workforce planning module connecting people and spend data for scenario modeling, real-time plan-to-actuals tracking, and ATS sync for hiring execution.

Quantifiable outcome

• NPS of 75 indicating high client satisfaction
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability1 record

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and supporting.

• Multiply MortgageflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 March 2026Strategic commercial partnership delivering AI-native mortgage benefit platform to thousands of companies through Sequoia's professional employer organization and advisory network. Employees save average $5,700 annually through lower interest rates.
• CartacoreTechnology or IntegrationExclusive partnership providing Sequoia access to Carta's private market data for compensation benchmarking and equity comparisons. Sequoia advisors leverage Carta data for bespoke benchmarks tailored to client company stage.
• Sequoia Global NetworkcoreOthersGlobal network of local actuaries, brokers, and consultants providing benefits expertise in 140+ countries. Sequoia oversees local resources to ensure adherence to global strategy.
• Healthcare Carriers (Aetna, Anthem, Cigna, Kaiser Permanente, United Healthcare, Guardian, MetLife, Delta Dental, VSP)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBrokerage relationships with major health insurance carriers enabling Sequoia to provide competitive medical, dental, and vision plans to client companies.
• Wellbeing Vendors (Carrot, Headspace, One Medical, Omada, Spring Health, Cleo, Ladder, UrbanSitter)supportingChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDigital marketplace partnerships with wellbeing vendors offering fertility, mental health, fitness, and family support benefits. Vendors packaged individually or as bundles for affordability.
• Pensionmark Financial GroupsupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerAffiliated investment adviser for 401(k) and retirement plan services. Pensionmark provides investment advice while Sequoia manages retirement benefits coordination.

Scale indicators7 records

Direct peers

• Justworks: Tech-forward PEO targeting SMB and mid-market employers with bundled payroll, benefits, HR, and compliance. Closely comparable in target customer and PEO delivery model, though typically more SMB-skewed than Sequoia's investor-backed focus.
• Rippling: Unified HR, IT, payroll, and benefits platform serving SMB through mid-market with strong investor-backed customer base. Directly comparable on integrated platform thesis and venture-backed customer focus; competes heavily for the same Sequoia One buyer.
• Insperity: Large publicly-traded PEO offering workforce solutions, HR outsourcing, and benefits administration to SMB and mid-market. Comparable in PEO delivery and benefits brokerage, though more traditional in go-to-market than Sequoia.
• Gusto: Cloud-based payroll, benefits, and HR platform with growing PEO capabilities, primarily serving small businesses and startups. Comparable on payroll/benefits integration and tech-led UX; smaller scale and less advisory depth than Sequoia.
• TriNet: Established PEO specializing in SMB and small-enterprise HR outsourcing, including payroll, benefits, and risk mitigation. Comparable PEO/co-employment model; less differentiated on technology than Sequoia OS but a meaningful direct competitor for HR outsourcing engagements.

Emerging players

• Deel: Global HR and payroll platform focused on international Employer of Record and contractor management. Comparable on technology-driven HR delivery and investor-backed customer focus; partial overlap where Sequoia serves global benefits via its Global Network.

Broad incumbents

• Paychex: Large payroll, HR, and benefits provider with PEO offerings serving SMB through mid-market. Comparable on payroll/benefits integration and PEO delivery; broader incumbent with stronger traditional payroll footprint than Sequoia.
• Aon: Global professional services firm offering health & benefits brokerage, compensation consulting, and risk management. Comparable across benefits brokerage and comp advisory; larger scale and broader portfolio than Sequoia's focused comp/benefits niche.
• Mercer: Global consulting leader in health, wealth, and career advisory, including major compensation & benefits consulting and brokerage. Comparable on advisory and benchmarking services; broader incumbent with deeper enterprise relationships than Sequoia.
• ADP TotalSource: The PEO/professional employer organization arm of ADP, the largest payroll services provider in the US. Comparable in PEO delivery model and SMB-to-mid-market focus; broader incumbent with deeper payroll legacy and scale advantages.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sequoiaTPI
• Facebookfacebook.com/SequoiaTPI
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sequoia-tpi

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sequoia