Senior Manager, Regulatory Operations

We're transforming the grocery industry

At Instacart, we invite the world to share love through food because we believe everyone should have access to the food they love and more time to enjoy it together. Where others see a simple need for grocery delivery, we see exciting complexity and endless opportunity to serve the varied needs of our community. We work to deliver an essential service that customers rely on to get their groceries and household goods, while also offering safe and flexible earnings opportunities to Instacart Personal Shoppers.

Instacart has become a lifeline for millions of people, and we’re building the team to help push our shopping cart forward. If you’re ready to do the best work of your life, come join our table.

Instacart is a Flex First team

There’s no one-size fits all approach to how we do our best work. Our employees have the flexibility to choose where they do their best work—whether it’s from home, an office, or your favorite coffee shop—while staying connected and building community through regular in-person events. Learn more about our flexible approach to where we work.

Overview

About the Role: We are seeking a strategic operations and people leader to join the Regulatory Operations team as Senior Manager. This is a hands-on leadership role — you'll set the strategic direction while remaining deeply embedded in the work alongside your team. In this role, you will own the team's full operating model — managing the legislative pipeline, driving cross-functional alignment, and ensuring Instacart is always ahead of regulatory change rather than reacting to it. You will serve as a key thought partner to senior leadership on critical business decisions, translating complex legislative and compliance challenges into clear recommendations that shape how Instacart operates. This is a high-stakes, high-visibility role: the decisions this team influences directly affect our shoppers, retailers, and consumers.

 

About the Team: The Regulatory Operations team is a pillar within the Expansions team at Instacart, dedicated to ensuring our operations remain compliant with the evolving landscape of legislation affecting our shoppers, retailers, and consumers. We are a lean, high-impact team that sits at the intersection of Legal, Policy & Government Affairs, Product, and Operations — translating regulatory change into business decisions and execution. The addition of this Senior Manager role marks a critical investment in the team's ability to operate proactively, scale its impact, and drive the cross-functional alignment that keeps Instacart ahead of an increasingly complex legislative environment — including as we expand into new international markets with their own distinct regulatory requirements. 

 

About the Job 

• Strategic Leadership: Develop and execute strategies that align Instacart's compliance goals with broader business priorities, proactively identifying and addressing regulatory risks before they become escalations. Ensure alignment across technical and non-technical teams, and serve as the critical escalation point for high-stakes regulatory decisions.
• Team Management: Lead, coach, and mentor a team of Regulatory Ops and Program Managers while remaining actively embedded in the work, owning key workstreams and initiatives alongside your team.
• Stakeholder Alignment: Lead and advocate for the Regulatory Operations team and broader Operations org by driving alignment on high-priority legislative initiatives and building strong relationships throughout the organization.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner closely with Policy & Government Affairs, Legal, Product & Engineering, Business Development, and Operations to drive seamless communication, proactive alignment, and consistent delivery of compliance outcomes across all regulatory initiatives.
• Program & Project Oversight: Oversee the coordination, implementation, and monitoring of regulatory initiatives, ensuring on-time delivery of compliance objectives. Own executive-level communication on the status, risks, and business implications of critical regulatory activities.
• Operational Excellence: Build and continuously improve the operational frameworks, workflows, and tooling that scale the team's impact — including automation, audit processes, and the systems that keep Instacart ahead of long-term compliance risk, including as we scale into international markets.

 

About You

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Operations, Public Policy, Law, or a related field
• 10+ years of experience in strategy, operations, regulatory/compliance operations, program management, consulting, or a related field, with a demonstrated ability to lead high-impact, cross-functional programs
• 2+ years of experience managing and developing direct reports, with a focus on driving the team to results and fostering individual growth
• Proven ability to drive alignment across cross-functional stakeholders in fast-paced, ambiguous environments
• Strong process development and operational excellence skills, with a track record of building scalable systems and frameworks from scratch
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to distill complex regulatory and operational issues for senior audiences
• Analytical and data-driven decision-maker with strong problem-solving instincts
• Proficiency with AI tools (e.g., Claude, ChatGPT, Copilot) and a demonstrated ability to integrate them into day-to-day workflows

 

Preferred Qualifications

• Background in gig economy, marketplace, or high-growth technology companies — particularly experience with legislation affecting labor, contractors, or consumer operations
• Experience serving as the operational bridge between Legal/Policy and a Product or Operations organization
• Familiarity with compliance workflows and legislative change management, though deep regulatory expertise is not required

#LI-Remote

Instacart provides highly market-competitive compensation and benefits in each location where our employees work. This role is remote and the base pay range for a successful candidate is dependent on their permanent work location. Please review our Flex First remote work policy here.

Offers may vary based on many factors, such as candidate experience and skills required for the role. Additionally, this role is eligible for a new hire equity grant as well as annual refresh grants. Please read more about our benefits offerings here.

For US based candidates, the base pay ranges for a successful candidate are listed below.

CA, NY, CT, NJ$194,000—$205,000 USDWA$186,000—$196,500 USDOR, DE, ME, MA, MD, NH, RI, VT, DC, PA, VA, CO, TX, IL, HI$178,000—$188,000 USDAll other states$162,000—$171,000 USD