To spotlight different perspectives and give an inside look at Grubhub, we’re highlighting leaders from across the organization. This month, we sat down with Hayley Pedrick, Vice President of Corporate Accounts, to hear how she’s energizing her team for growth, shaping a long-term strategy for the business, and finding new ways to blend Grubhub and Wonder together to meet corporate customers’ evolving needs.
A quick round to get to know Hayley:
- Favorite Grubhub order: I love Thai Kit in Connecticut (near where I live). I order a double order of mango & sticky rice since I like it too much to share.
- Book you’ve read recently that you’d recommend: The Overstory by Richard Powers — it’s so different from what I usually read. A former coworker who used to work for the National Forest Service recommended it as ‘the tree book,’ and it completely pulled me in. It follows a handful of people — conservationists, researchers, everyday folks — and weaves their lives together through their relationships with trees. It made me think about nature and change in a completely different way.
- Coffee or tea: Usually neither. I don’t drink much caffeine … although, since having my second child, Diet Coke has made a comeback.
- Favorite way to unwind after a busy week: I actually use the week to unwind from the weekend — a couple hours in Excel on Monday is my ideal unwinding version.
- Favorite productivity hack: I’m obsessed with Google’s NotebookLM. It’s not just a summary tool, it’s like having a personal researcher. You can drop in background materials, ask it to create a 15-minute podcast or summary on a topic, and listen while you’re commuting or walking the dog. When you’re ramping up on something new — say, a partnership area or industry trend — it pulls from multiple sources and distills what matters most. It saves hours of prep time and helps me absorb context quickly so I can focus on making decisions instead of just gathering information.
- A typical work day: Keeping everyone alive and fed! But actually, with two kids (2½ and 6 months) and our lab/shepherd rescue, it takes hours to get everyone out the door. I work best in the morning, so anything big I need to get done I’ll do in the morning during my “heads down” time. From there, my day is usually filled with meetings until the kids come home, family time and then I’ll finish up anything I need to from the couch once they are asleep.
You’re relatively new to Grubhub. What made you want to join?
The vision and energy around it were huge for me. Marc’s path for the company is ambitious but doable. It makes sense, and you can see how to get there step by step. I was energized by how much people believe in where we’re headed and how every team is connected to that growth story.
What’s something that’s surprised you so far, either about the Corporate Accounts team or Grubhub overall?
The resilience of the team. Grubhub’s been through a lot of change over the past several years — and still, people are positive, focused, and ready to go back into growth mode. Every month brings something new, and the team just keeps moving forward.
You’ve worked in both consulting and startups. What did you learn in those roles that shapes how you lead today?
At Bain, I focused on five-to-ten-year strategy projects and M&A work — that taught me how to take a 15,000-foot view of markets and growth plans. Then at Brightwheel, I learned how critical people are to making that strategy actually work. You can’t just put a vision on a slide; you need the right people in the right roles who believe in it and own it.
What are your top priorities for the Corporate Accounts team?
The first priority was people — filling open roles and getting the right leaders in place. From there, the focus has been on both short-term execution and long-term strategy, whether that means improving inbound processes or laying the groundwork for transforming how Grubhub serves businesses. We’re also beginning to heavily invest in team development — growing leadership capabilities and building a stronger internal pipeline so the team is ready when new opportunities arise. It’s about building capability and confidence while delivering results in real time.
All three of these priorities are happening at once, which makes the work both challenging and exciting.
How can Grubhub differentiate in the corporate food space?
Everyone offers the same core products — line of credit, group orders, catering — so true differentiation comes from being the best at solving the underlying customer pain points – attracting and retaining talent, streamlining operations and cutting costs. I can’t go into too much detail now, but we’ll have some exciting news to share next year.
How does being part of Wonder help support that strategy?
It opens a lot of doors. The breadth of what’s being built across Wonder creates new possibilities for what we can do for our corporate customers. Grubhub alone could have grown Corporate Accounts, but Wonder’s ecosystem lets us move faster and serve more needs with one integrated offering.
What’s the best piece of leadership advice you’ve ever received?
“Stop waiting for someone to give you the plan, go make the plan.”
That’s been core for me. No matter your level or tenure, understand what the company and your team need, build your own plan, and bring it forward. If you wait for direction, you won’t learn as quickly or drive as much impact.
A fun fact about you is that you once spent time as a scuba instructor — what did you take away from that experience?
I was! After my time in management consulting, I took a few months off and became a dive master in Indonesia where I led groups and taught lessons. It was an incredible experience, and it completely changed how I handle pressure. When you’re 100 feet underwater and something goes wrong, panicking doesn’t help anyone. You have to stay calm, read the situation, and guide people to safety.
That mindset translates directly into leadership. When things get tense at work, I remind myself that this isn’t life or death. Take a breath, stay grounded, and focus on solving the problem the right way. It’s about creating calm so others can think clearly, too. That allows us to do better and do more.
If you could have any other job at Grubhub for a day, what would it be and why?
Finance in an FP&A role. I love spreadsheets and the strategic side of finance, but only for a day!
