What Does Handshake Do?

Total employees1037
HeadquartersSan Francisco
Founded2014

Handshake is a leading career network and recruiting platform designed for college students, early career professionals, and alumni. It connects users with employers, job/internship opportunities, and career services at their universities. Handshake's mission is to democratize access to opportunity, ensuring that all students can build a meaningful career regardless of their background, connections, or where they attended school. The platform serves millions of students from over 1,400 educational institutions, connecting them with more than 900,000 employers, including all Fortune 500 companies.

Where Is Handshake's Headquarters?

Handshake officeHandshake officeHandshake officeHandshake office
*Images sourced via web search. Rights belong to original owners

HQ Function

Central hub for leadership, strategy, and core operations, supporting a remote-first workforce.

Notable Features:

Modern tech office in the Mission District; specific facility details are not widely publicized, with a focus on providing collaborative space for optional on-site work for Bay Area employees.

Work Culture:

Handshake fosters a mission-driven, collaborative, and inclusive work culture. The San Francisco hub serves as an optional space for in-person connection and teamwork within its remote-first operational model, emphasizing impact and learning.

HQ Significance:

Anchors Handshake in the San Francisco tech hub, facilitating access to talent, strategic partnerships, and maintaining a strong industry presence, complementing its remote-first operations.

Values Reflected in HQ: The San Francisco hub, as part of a remote-first strategy, reflects values of innovation, flexibility, intentional collaboration, accessibility, and employee well-being.

Location:

While its primary markets are the United States and the United Kingdom, Handshake supports a global community. Its platform is accessible to international students at partner universities and features remote job/internship listings from multinational companies. Handshake's remote-first company structure enables it to hire talent globally, supporting diverse functions such as engineering, product development, and customer support across various time zones, enhancing its ability to serve a worldwide user base.

Street Address:

225 Valencia Street

City:

San Francisco

State/Province:

CA

Country:

USA

Where Else Does Handshake Operate Around the World?

Denver, CO/USA

Address: Flexible hub / Co-working space (specific address not publicly listed)

Provides a physical space for Denver-area team members to connect, collaborate, and engage with the local tech community, supporting Handshake's distributed workforce.

New York, NY/USA

Address: Flexible hub / Co-working space (specific address not publicly listed)

Facilitates collaboration for New York-based employees and strengthens Handshake's presence in a major economic and educational center, enabling closer relationships with East Coast partners.

London, UK

Address: Regional office / Co-working space (specific address not publicly listed)

To establish and grow Handshake's footprint in the UK, tailoring its services to meet the needs of British universities, students, and employers, and serving as a base for European operations.

Buying Intent Signals for Handshake

Highperformr Signals uncover buying intent and give you clear insights to target the right accounts at the right time — helping your sales, marketing, and GTM teams close more deals, faster.

Notable news
Hiring actively
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance
*Example signal, not calculated in real time

Who's Leading Handshake? Meet the Executive Team

As of April 2025, Handshake' leadership includes:

Garrett Lord - Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer
Jonathan Stull - Chief Technology Officer
Jessica Kasinskas - Chief Financial Officer
Valerie Capers Workman - Chief Legal and People Officer
Malthe Sigurdsson - Chief Product & Design Officer
Christine Cruzvergara - Chief Education Strategy Officer

Who's Investing in Handshake?

Handshake has been backed by several prominent investors over the years, including:

EQT Growth
Kleiner Perkins
Lightspeed Venture Partners
Spark Capital
True Ventures
GGV Capital
Chan Zuckerberg Initiative
Emerson Collective
Reach Capital

What Leadership Changes Has Handshake Seen Recently?

Hire1
Exits0

Over the past 12 months, Handshake has strategically enhanced its executive leadership, particularly in finance, to support its continued growth and market expansion. The company has maintained stability across other key C-suite roles.

New Appointments:

Jessica Kasinskas, Jessica Kasinskas joined Handshake as Chief Financial Officer, bringing extensive experience in scaling finance organizations at high-growth technology companies.

What Technology (Tech Stack) Is Used byHandshake?

Discover the tools Handshake uses. Highperformr reveals the technologies powering your target accounts — helping your sales, marketing, and GTM teams prioritize smarter and close faster.

Handshake Email Formats and Examples

Handshake typically uses the {first}.{last}@joinhandshake.com email format for its employees. This is a common pattern in the technology industry, facilitating professional communication.

{first}.{last}@joinhandshake.com

Format

garrett.lord@joinhandshake.com

Example

76%

Success rate

What's the Latest News About Handshake?

Handshake Blog • April 16, 2024

Handshake Report: Early Career Confidence & The Rise of AI

Handshake released its Spring 2024 Network Trends report, 'Early Career Confidence & The Rise of AI,' analyzing current sentiments among students and recent graduates. The report delves into how AI tools are influencing job search strategies and employer expectations, offering key insights for the early talent ecosystem....more

Business Wire • November 14, 2023

Handshake Appoints Jessica Kasinskas as Chief Financial Officer

Handshake announced the appointment of Jessica Kasinskas as its new Chief Financial Officer. With a strong background in guiding high-growth tech companies, Kasinskas will lead Handshake's financial strategy and operations as it continues to expand its platform and services....more

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