ABOUT ME
Jason is a business & product leader, that comes from a design background. Currently, he’s the Co-Founder & COO of Tezi – the creators of Max, an agentic AI recruiter.
His work and work ethic are both deeply influenced by his blue-collar, modest upbringing in rural Illinois. When not working, he likes to solo hike national parks, collect NBA rookie cards, try new AI apps, and listen to neurodiversity podcasts at 1.7x speed.
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HR Heretics Podcast, 3000 Applicants In Minutes: Recruiting Now
Oct 2025 – Jason sits down with Kelli and Nolan to discuss how to screen 3,000 applicants in minutes, why many great resumes just rode the elevator up at hypergrowth companies, and why AI bias audits set a higher standard than humans.
20VC Podcast, Why Most CPOs are Bad, Why You Don’t Need PMs, and Why the Design Stage is Dead
Aug 2025 – Harry Stebbings speaks with Jason James, Co-Founder of Tezi, about leadership, design, product, and culture – plus all sorts of hot takes about what’s real and what’s bullshit.
The Lean In Podcast, The Agentic Future of Talent Acquisition
Jul 2025 – Host Anders Sundquist interviews Jason James, Co-Founder of Tezi.ai, to explore the evolving landscape of talent acquisition technology.
Designing With AI Podcast, Jason’s Journey & the Future of AI in Recruiting
Feb 2025 – Mia Blume talks with Jason about his path from graphic design to leading design and product teams at tech companies like Instacart, and now co-founding Tezi, an autonomous AI recruiting partner.
The Elite Recruiter Podcast, The Future of Recruiting with AI Agents
Oct 2024 – Benjamin Mena speaks with Jason James, Co-Founder of Tezi, about AI, efficiency, automation, and candidate experience.
The End of Pixel-Perfection: Agentic AI Design Is the New Frontier
Jul 2024 – Six emergent design principles for designing agentic AI and how it’s quite different than traditional product design
Buying a B2B SaaS Startup Toolkit in 2024
Feb 2024 – In the two months since we incorporated Tezi, we’ve hired a lot of tools and vendors to support us. Sharing where we netted out on each selection and why.
Design Is Human Podcast, Atlanta Design Festival
Sep 2021 – Elayne DeLeo speaks with Jason James, VP of Design for Instacart about his path to a career in design and the reality of "imposter syndrome" when success comes early.
Navigate Burnout & Hustle Culture with Mindfulness
Aug 2021 – We dive into the factors that contribute to burnout and how meditation and therapy can help designers cope with burnout.
Say Hello to Jason James, VP of Design
Apr 2020 – We’re excited to announce that seasoned design leader Jason James has joined Instacart. He comes to us from Thumbtack.
5 Myths About Design Management
Jul 2018 – What design management is and isn't in order to help aspiring managers make a more informed decision about their career path
Our Answers to the Most Popular Interview Questions from Product Designers
May 2018 – After running 600+ product design interviews in the last two years, I thought, "Why not just publish the answers?"
Q: What is your biggest, most visible design regret?
Sep 2017 – My biggest, most visible regret: designing failed or failing companies
The Primacy of Shipping
Jun 2017 – To my fellow product designers, you will be judged by what you ship. Shipping is everything and the only thing.
What Makes A Great Product Designer
Mar 2017 – Guidance about the opportunities for career development and personal growth within the Product Designer role
A Framework for Deciding Your Next Job
Dec 2016 – Consider being very methodical about your next job change. Evaluate the opportunities across 16 different factors. Here’s a tool to help.
What traits do you look for when evaluating a product design candidate?
Apr 2016 – For every product designer, they will be evaluated across three areas: technical caliber, diversity, and values.
What Long Hours Really Mean
Nov 2013 – If some place or some job is making you feel like long hours “come with the territory” just know they are misleading you to their benefit.
Culture Matters, Prestige Does Not
Jul 2013 – When you’re faced with a decision between a prestigious job or a non-prestigious job, pick the one with the best culture.
Believing the Best
Jun 2013 – Mistakes happen. But your response to those events sets the tone for your workplace.
You Owe It To Yourself To Move On
May 2013 – Selling off the best hours of the best years of your life is one of the biggest decisions you’ll ever make (and remake).