This segment is a unique and cool talk show that showcases individuals and companies in the community and is focused on leadership and giving back. Our goal is to interview guests that are doing great things in their business and in their community. Today our host, Morgan Yonge spoke with Justin Counts.
Justin Counts
CEO at JCLA Labs
Website Address: jclalabs.com
Short company description:
JCLA Labs is a growth and innovation lab where design thinking meets applied AI. We help teams move beyond theory and turn AI into a real business multiplier through hands-on strategy and execution.
What is the most fascinating fact you know?
AI is ready to be used now – no need for expensive engagements and tools. It’s not about losing your job to AI. It’s about losing your job to someone else who uses AI when you don’t.
How did you acquire deep knowledge in your area of expertise?
Bias to action and deep passion for learning.
How has mentorship shaped your journey to becoming an expert?
If you can’t teach it, you really can’t do it well. It’s a circle with no end.
How do you use feedback to accelerate your growth?
We believe deeply in lean, TPS, and continuous improvement. Learn, win, or fail – they all mean growth.
Transcript:
Morgan:
Welcome back to another episode of Ask the Expert. I’m Morgan Yonge, and here we highlight experts across all industries who are making a big impact. Today, we have Justin Counts with JCLA Labs. Justin, thank you for joining us.
Justin:
Thanks so much for having me.
Morgan:
Absolutely. Tell me about what you do. You do quite a lot, but tell me about what you do with JCLA Labs.
Justin:
Sure. JCLA Labs is a strategy consulting company. I spent five years doing consulting for Deloitte and then 15 years with Ford and Lincoln across China and the U.S., launching brands, products, and services.
Now we’ve taken all of that know-how and help teams grow their business through AI-enhanced thinking and virtual design thinking experiences.
I know that’s a mouthful, but the gist is this: how do we take AI and make it absurdly practical, and give you results that are actionable right after our sessions?
Morgan:
That’s incredible. Who do you primarily like to work with? What size businesses?
Justin:
We usually work with small and medium-sized businesses because they don’t have dedicated resources incubating and innovating growth, forming defensible moats against competition, or future-proofing their products, services, and solutions.
We also work with BPOs, consulting companies, and agencies that need to innovate on behalf of enterprise clients. That’s another segment of our client base.
Morgan:
That’s incredible. How are you utilizing AI, this cutting-edge technology we’re all still figuring out, to benefit your clients?
Justin:
The way we think about AI is agnostic and accessible. What that means is you can bring any AI tool to the table during our sessions.
We start with basic understanding and prompting, using AI as a creative turbocharge. Because of the way AI works, it can process massive amounts of information far beyond what a human brain can do.
That turbocharges the process. It’s fast, it’s fun, and it’s frictionless. Our sessions run two to four hours, and the output is six to ten ideas with business plans that you can go test immediately.
Morgan:
That’s incredible, especially how helpful it is for businesses to stay ahead of the game and enhance how quickly they can get things done. Automation and maximizing those small windows of time in the day. I love that.
What else makes you completely unique?
Justin:
What makes us unique is the combination of a few different tools. My background in CX, marketing, and sales has given me a masterclass in design thinking.
Design thinking is essentially a framework for working through challenge questions. During our sprints, we teach teams how to frame problems and solve them quickly.
The second piece is our agnostic AI approach, layering AI lenses and turning them into purpose-driven AI agents within the sprint design process.
The third piece is that we do all of this in a virtual whiteboard space. Imagine a conference room whiteboard, but virtual. Teams can be located anywhere in the country or the world and still fully participate.
That whiteboard then becomes a permanent repository of information that teams can return to and build on during future sprints.
Morgan:
That’s incredibly helpful for so many businesses. As an expert, I have one final question. What is one tip you would give any business owner to increase efficiency?
Justin:
Bias toward action. That’s something we teach in our sessions.
You need to get your hands dirty with AI. It’s going to be increasingly important to remain competitive. I don’t believe people will lose their jobs to AI in droves in the near term, but they will lose jobs to other people and companies that know how to use AI efficiently and effectively.
My advice is simple: work with us, work with someone else, but get help and start learning. Get your hands dirty.
Morgan:
Absolutely. Thank you so much for your time today.
Justin:
Thanks so much. I appreciate it.
Morgan:
And viewers, thank you for tuning in to another episode of Ask the Expert. If you want more information on JCLA Labs, head over to DailyNewsNetwork.com. We have everything right there. See you in the next episode of Ask the Expert.
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