Openwork
Openwork is a private, Austin-based staffing firm offering temporary, contract-to-hire, direct hire, payroll, onsite management, and MSP workforce solutions to employers across eight verticals, operating 12 branch offices throughout the Sun Belt states of Texas, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1971
- HeadquartersAustin, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Openwork does
Openwork is a private, Austin-headquartered staffing firm that delivers temporary, contract-to-hire, direct hire, payroll (employer-of-record), onsite management, and Managed Service Provider (MSP) workforce solutions to employers across the Sun Belt. The company operates 12 branch offices in Texas (Austin, Dallas, Houston), Georgia (Atlanta, Duluth, Kennesaw, Locust Grove, Savannah), Mississippi (Olive Branch), North Carolina (Charlotte, Greensboro), and South Carolina (Greer), serving customers across accounting/finance, customer service, IT/engineering, office/administrative, manufacturing, skilled trades, and warehouse/logistics roles. Self-reported metrics include 17,000 active candidates, 277,000+ historical placements, 82% fill rate, 3–5 hour average time-to-fill, and a 21% talent / 12% client NPS, supported by employer-of-record obligations covering payroll, benefits, ACA compliance, workers' compensation, and unemployment insurance.
The technology stack relies on third-party SaaS — Greenshades for payroll and W-2 delivery, and an Avionte-based applicant tracking system — plus an employee portal for web time entry, paperwork, and paystub access, and an employer portal for time tracking. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed; the contract staffing stream bills clients weekly based on hours worked, while direct hire placements carry a one-time transaction fee. The company supplements its core Austin/Houston/Dallas/Atlanta-based regional brand with a family of wholly-owned, brand-retained subsidiaries: Rock Staffing (Georgia), QS Nurses (Kansas), and Aerospace Solutions (California).
Openwork is founder-led (co-founder Sydney Small), privately held with no disclosed institutional investor, and has been recognized with consecutive 2024 and 2025 SIA Fastest Growing Staffing Firm awards, 2025 Inc. 5000, dual Best of Staffing (Talent + Client), and Best Staffing Firm to Work For honors. Growth strategy articulated by leadership is to expand organically and through acquisitions (e.g., the May 2025 Meador Staffing Services acquisition) from core Sun Belt markets into adjacent regions with strong population and wage tailwinds.
Openwork firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Openwork
- Legal name
- Openwork
- Website
- https://openwork.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1971
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Openwork is a private, Austin-based staffing firm offering temporary, contract-to-hire, direct hire, payroll, onsite management, and MSP workforce solutions to employers across eight verticals, operating 12 branch offices throughout the Sun Belt states of Texas, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Openwork industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Staffing Services
- NAICS
- Temporary Help Services (561320), Professional Employer Organizations (561330), Employment Placement Agencies (561311)
- SIC
- Services-Employment Agencies (7361)
- akta.pro primary industry
- High-Volume / High-Turnover Temp Staffing (BPACACAF)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Office & Administrative Temp Staffing (BPACACAA), Light Industrial & Warehouse Temp Staffing (BPACACAB), Workforce Management & Scheduling Outsourcing (Non-payroll) (BPACAKAJ)
Keywords
Where Openwork is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Austin
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices12 records
Markets served
Openwork business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Contract Staffing Services: Openwork handles employment of candidates, managing all payroll, compliance, tax filings and billing clients on a weekly basis based on hours worked. Openwork serves as the employer of record, covering Social Security, Medicare, unemployment insurances, workers' compensation, employee benefit costs, and ACA compliance costs.
- Direct Hire Recruiting: Openwork sources, vets, and interviews candidates for permanent positions. Client hires the candidate directly and pays a one-time fee for the service.
- Payroll Services: Openwork hires employees on behalf of clients to reduce administrative time and cost burden. They assume all payroll, benefit, and compliance responsibilities, billing clients for these services.
- Onsite Management: Openwork places dedicated managers at client locations to oversee temporary workforce administration, including training facilitation and performance monitoring.
- Managed Service Provider (MSP): Openwork acts as central coordination point for all temporary employees, managing multiple staffing vendors on behalf of clients to streamline sourcing, selection, retention, and productivity.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Contract staffing with flexible billing |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Direct hire placement with one-time fee |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
Openwork product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Openwork is a staffing agency that supplies temporary, contract-to-hire, and direct-hire talent to employers across the Sun Belt, while also acting as employer of record to handle payroll, benefits, tax filings, and compliance for placed workers. The firm additionally provides onsite workforce management and operates as a Managed Service Provider to coordinate multiple staffing vendors for clients.
Product overview
Openwork is a talent-first staffing agency offering a comprehensive suite of workforce solutions. The core product portfolio consists of five main service lines: Contract Staffing (temporary and contract-to-hire placements), Direct Hire Recruiting (permanent placements), Payroll Services (employer of record), Onsite Management (dedicated on-site workforce administration), and Managed Service Provider (vendor management). Supporting these core offerings are the Employee Referral Program for candidate sourcing, and self-service platforms including the Employee Portal and Pay Portal for time tracking, document management, and payroll access. The company operates across the Sun Belt region serving industries including Office & Professional (Accounting & Finance, Customer Service, HR, IT & Engineering, Office & Administrative) and Industrial (Manufacturing & Production, Skilled Trades, Warehouse & Logistics).
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Contract Staffing
- Direct Hire Recruiting
- Payroll Services
- Onsite Management
- Managed Service Provider (MSP)
Quantifiable outcome
- Positions filled 12x faster than average staffing company
- +6 more outcomes
Companies that use Openwork
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments9 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Openwork technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Openwork partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators14 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Openwork competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Express Employment Professionals: One of the largest franchised generalist staffing firms in North America, offering temporary, contract-to-hire, direct hire, and onsite management across office/industrial verticals — the closest direct comparison to Openwork's full-service generalist model.
- PrideStaff: Mid-sized generalist staffing firm operating across multiple U.S. states with a similar mix of administrative, professional, and industrial placements, plus direct hire and payroll services — closely comparable in scale and service breadth.
- CornerStone Staffing: Regional multi-state staffing firm offering temporary, temp-to-hire, direct hire, and payrolling services across office/admin, professional, and light industrial verticals — directly comparable to Openwork's regional generalist positioning.
- Aerotek: Industrial and professional staffing subsidiary of Allegis Group with strong overlap in manufacturing, warehouse/logistics, and skilled trades placements — comparable on the industrial side of Openwork's book.
- Insight Global: Large private staffing firm providing temporary and direct hire staffing across IT, engineering, finance, accounting, and call center verticals — comparable to Openwork's professional and IT/engineering segments and similar founder-led private profile.
Broad incumbents
- Robert Half: Large publicly traded staffing firm with strong overlap in accounting/finance, office/admin, and IT direct-hire placements; a broader incumbent against which Openwork competes for professional talent placements.
- Kelly Services: Publicly traded generalist staffing firm with broad office, industrial, and professional offerings; competes with Openwork across multiple verticals as a larger, more diversified incumbent.
- ManpowerGroup: Global publicly traded staffing leader with extensive generalist, industrial, and professional offerings; competes with Openwork in the U.S. market as a broad incumbent across all major verticals.
- Adecco Group: Global publicly traded staffing leader with deep generalist, industrial, and professional service lines; a broad incumbent peer competing across virtually all of Openwork's verticals in the U.S.
Emerging players
- ZipRecruiter: Publicly traded online job marketplace and AI-driven sourcing platform competing with traditional staffing agencies; an emerging technology-enabled player that threatens to commoditize the candidate-matching function Openwork monetizes.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Openwork social profiles
Digital presenceOpenwork financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Openwork leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Openwork subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries3 records
Openwork funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Openwork M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Openwork
What does Openwork do?
Openwork is a staffing agency that supplies temporary, contract-to-hire, and direct-hire talent to employers across the Sun Belt, while also acting as employer of record to handle payroll, benefits, tax filings, and compliance for placed workers. The firm additionally provides onsite workforce management and operates as a Managed Service Provider to coordinate multiple staffing vendors for clients.
Is Openwork a public or private company?
Openwork is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Openwork founded?
Openwork was founded in 1971. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Openwork based?
Openwork is headquartered in Austin, United States, in the North America region.
How does Openwork make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Contract Staffing Services are the primary driver. The others are direct Hire Recruiting, payroll Services, onsite Management and managed Service Provider (MSP).
Who are Openwork's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Express Employment Professionals, PrideStaff, CornerStone Staffing, Aerotek and Insight Global. Broad incumbents are Robert Half, Kelly Services, ManpowerGroup and Adecco Group. ZipRecruiter is listed as an emerging player.
Does Openwork have an API?
No public API is recorded for Openwork.
What industry is Openwork in?
Openwork's product category is Staffing Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPACACAF, High-Volume / High-Turnover Temp Staffing, with a secondary code of BPACACAA, Office & Administrative Temp Staffing. Its NAICS code is 561320 and its SIC code is 7361.