7Shifts raises $80M for restaurant labor software

7Shifts, a provider of automated scheduling and other labor software for restaurants, has raised $80 million in a funding round led by the big tech investor SoftBank. Founded in Saskatoon, Canada, in 2014, 7Shifts makes software designed to ease scheduling, time clocking and staff communication for restaurant managers. “[Restaurants] had to make a lot of changes during COVID, and they realized they didn’t have any insight into their labor workforce,” Boesch said of the growing demand. “It happened quicker than we anticipated.” The company will use the funding to continue building tools for all parts of the “employee life cycle,” from hiring to payment and retention. “We’re seeing there’s a need for a really simple tool for them that they’ve been left without.” 7Shifts’ clients include &pizza, Salt & Straw and Meyer’s own Union Square Hospitality Group, among others.