Jason Jones (a.k.a. The Swami)

The ops guy who always avoided consultants—yet here I am

Who I Am

I am a problem solver by nature, an engineer by education, and an operations guy by experience. I cut through the noise, frame the problem, and implement effective solutions—with or without technology.

My Story

Transforming Bureaucracy Into Performance

I started as a field engineer in operations-intensive work—large crews, diverse equipment and materials, tight weather windows, and a 24/7, all-season operation (highway maintenance at the DOT). We were a large, inefficient, bureaucratic organization, but I saw that we didn't have to be. With support from trusting leadership, we transformed the outfit people joked about (what's yellow and sleeps four? (Answer: A DOT truck...)) into a lean, performance-driven operation—with measured outcomes and costs. We successfully changed the operations and the culture. Then I took it statewide. As Statewide Maintenance Director, the scale jumped: a 1,500-person staff, a nine-figure operating budget, and the responsibility to keep thousands of miles of roads and bridges in shape (and the Governor out of the news). With a team that bought into what I was trying to do, we built a performance-driven organization that cut costs, increased output, improved quality, and measured results. We knew our core business and our unit costs, and contractors couldn't compete with us (believe me, they tried). Along the way, we developed and empowered leaders who could sustain and grow the culture of performance.

From Hard-hats to Software

After a couple of decades, I moved into software—something I knew little about. I went from a large bureaucracy to a 20-person startup: a software/hardware company providing a SaaS application and IoT telematics devices for tracking assets and managing large mixed fleets (think really large contractors). My operations background and experience managing large fleets, provided me with a good understanding of the customer needs, but software and hardware were completely new to me. With an outcomes mindset, and a lot of curiosity, I dug in wherever I could help. As small teams often require, I wore many hats—with my hands in product design and prototyping, software development, testing and validation, data analysis and cleaning (large datasets), customer support, custom client projects, and product documentation and training. Over six years, I learned to design, build, and apply technology that improves operations: tools people actually use and data shaped to their decisions—and I learned just as much about what doesn't work.

The Consulting Chapter

I never thought I'd be a consultant; I always kinda hated consultants. But what started as a side job for a friend has turned into my focus… helping small and mid-sized organizations that want operations to run cleaner and cost less. I bring an outside set of eyes and a pragmatic playbook: define outcomes, map what's really happening, isolate the few levers that move results, identify where tools and technology add value, design simple steps people actually run, and set an execution cadence with visible measures. Depending on the job, that can mean an operational deep dive, process documentation, an AI readiness check or roadmap, lightweight tools/prototypes to prove value, or training and change support so improvements last. If tech or AI pays back, we use it; if not, we don't.

How I Work

I'm small and hands-on, and I choose work where I can be effective and enjoy the problem—not a big-firm model chasing utilization and billable hours. When a project needs extra capacity or specialty skills, I bring in trusted people from my network and lead the work. If you're chasing measurable improvements—in ops, processes, or people—or you're considering where AI might fit, let's talk—maybe I can help.

Beyond the Work

I'm good at building teams and growing people, turning messy processes into clean, lean systems, teasing out the real drivers from the busywork, finding the few critical pieces that move results, translating (and sometimes refereeing) between operations and engineering, and teaching technical topics to non-technical people without putting them to sleep. I enjoy thinking, learning, explaining, helping people grow, and solving problems—creatively, simply, and effectively (with or without AI). I like to travel and have a kitesurfing addiction (hence the logo—and the hair). I'm not a swami, but life ain't over yet.

My AI Journey

I was able to jump on AI early. As luck would have it, I'd just finished a book on the history of AI and machine learning when ChatGPT landed in late 2022, so I was curious and ready to experiment. I've been using, studying, building—and failing—with AI ever since. I understand how it works, but more importantly, I know what it's good at and where—and why—it comes up short. AI is a great tool when used correctly and a force multiplier for the right work; applied poorly, it doesn't help.

Some things we did along the way...

Education & Career

Instead of automating 10 things that don't matter, I'd rather find the 2–3 that actually move your results.

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