Refactor Labs

Refactor Labs is a modern leadership advisory firm helping outliers and organizations lead through hard pivots. We specialize in resilience and reinvention, delivering remarkable experiences that thrill participants and build their courage + capacity for change.

Services:

🧢 Executive Coaching: 1:1 + small group sessions that unlock transformational growth through extended partnership.

🛠️ Participatory Workshops: Interactive seminars designed to learn and practice crucial skills for navigating complex transitions—storytelling, emotional intelligence, experimentation and more.

🎤 Keynote Talks: High energy presentations that challenges audiences to dream bigger and act bolder in the pursuit of excellence.

Clients:

Meta
Nielsen
Pinterest
Grubhub
Contenda
Coeus Ventures
Proctor & Gamble
Harmonic Message
Cornell SC Johnson College of Business

Executive Coach

Lunar Accel

Board Member

Merit

Angel Investor, Mentor

Contenda

Angel Investor

13 Fund

Angel Philanthropist

Jason Shen

Write about business, technology, and culture for publications with numerous bylines in TechCrunch, Fast Company, and Vox. My posts on Medium have a combined 800k+ views.

Speak and teach at conferences and events on topics like gaming & esports, product management, entrepreneurship, talent development, and leadership. Since 2012, I've spoken on four separate continents (North Am, Europe, Asia, Australia) at places like Google, Pinterest, General Assembly, and Empower. My TED talk on the future of hiring has 4M views.

Support ambitious startup founders as an executive coach.

Resilience Expert

Facebook

Led product for public groups which connect 400M+ people everyday to the interests, people, and  communities they care most about, without barriers. Incubated a new product experience in FB Groups to millions of people.

Product Manager

Presidential Innovation Fellows Foundation

The Presidential Innovation Fellows (PIF) program was established by the White House in 2012 to attract top innovators into government, capable of tackling issues at the convergence of technology, policy, and process.

The PIF Foundation is a 501(c)3 organization established to support and advance the PIF program, drive innovation in the US government, and connect our 100+ alumni. Board members are elected by members to 2-year terms.

The Asian American Man Study

The Asian American Man Study a national survey of the experiences and beliefs of American men of East, Southeast, and South Asian descent. Our findings have appeared in The Atlantic, NBC Asian America, Vox, and Quartz, and has reached over 100,000 people on Medium. Over 1000 Asian men have been surveyed since our founding in 2015.

Jason has shared his research and personal experience as a first-generation Asian American at Amazon, Pinterest, Proctor & Gamble, and Nielsen.

Founder

Helping unconventional founders & execs lead through hard pivots · Author: THE PATH TO PIVOT · Uncle Iroh with a side of Genie · 3x venture-backed startup founder · 1st gen immigrant · ADHD · Meta + Etsy alum

Hi, I'm Jason. I'm an executive coach to outliers & organizations facing hard pivots.

But let's talk about you for a sec. I'm guessing you've landed your fair share of funding, promotions, and industry recognition.

But somewhere along that grind, you noticed you saw the world differently than your peers and those ahead of you. You discovered that achieving inside someone else's definition of success isn't a sweet as winning on your own terms.

But at the same time, you've realized that building a company, career, and creative life that's out of the ordinary can be daunting.

I get it.

As an executive coach and the founder of a leadership advisory firm Refactor Labs, I help outliers like you lead through hard pivots in business and life. 

Having built teams, products, and companies in consumer, B2B, and marketplaces from inception to post-IPO—I've probably seen the problems you're facing.

As a three time startup founder with two exits and one very humbling failure under my belt—I know the pressure of having to manage your psychology and lead your team in pressure-cooker moments.

And as an ADHD kid transplanted from Suzhou to Silicon Valley, I've felt the sting of rejection and the struggle to find community when you don't fit in.

That's why I do what I do.

My clients are VC-backed founders, agency owners, and senior executives. Outliers who want to express their unique talents in spite of a system that tells them to just fit in. Leaders who want to transform their organizations to navigate a new reality.

I work with you to power through those hard pivots to land that next big thing.

That's what I did for Kevin.

Kevin had a growing family and a successful career as a marketing leader, but was tired of feeling tired and burned out.

Together we charted a path for him to leave his pre-IPO startup and launch a successful agency that's quickly becoming the go-to messaging agency for B2B SaaS companies while supporting his family and his health.

And for Edmar.

Edmar was the founder and former CEO one of Brazil's most successful tech companies, but when we met, he was stuck in first gear without much momentum in any direction.

Together we helped him find joy in coding again, develop genuine relationships and a community of Bay Area technologists, and shaped his vision to launch an AI venture studio.

So that's what I do. Here are some ways I can help you:

1. The Outlier Advantage Email Course (free)
2. The Path to Pivot book ($)
3. 1:1 or Group Executive Coaching ($$)
4. Keynote presentation ($$$)

Shoot me a DM to learn more and explore further.

🌱 Jason Shen

You built the thing.

You wrote the first lines of code, made the first sale, hired the first employee. You were the company.

But now you're scaling. You have a team of 5, 25, 50.

The skills that got you here, the relentless doing, the hands-on control... they are becoming the bottleneck. You feel you "should" be more strategic, but you're uneasy letting go.

You look at your title:

CEO
CTO
COO

And you wonder if you're still the right person for the job.

Your challenge isn't to become a different person. It's to find your new point of leverage.

It's to graduate from being the best "doer" to being the most effective "enabler."

What's one task you're still holding onto that you know you need to hand off to scale your impact?

Jason 🧠 Shen

The Outlier Coach · Helping venture-backed founders build conviction and win *their* game. Author of 'The Path to Pivot' & 'Weirdly Brilliant' · Retired NCAA 🏆 gymnast

Independent Consultant

Work published in Tahoe Quarterly, mindbodygreen.com, United Nation's publications,  National Geographic News Watch, AlterNet, Backpacker Magazine, Rocky Mountain News, American Cowboy Magazine, Novato Advance, Nob Hill Gazette, Boulder Women's Magazine, Bylines, the Sausalito New Voice, Marin Independent Journal, and others. 

Clients include:  Boulder B-cycle, Red Cup Agency, Carol Ross and Associates, IIN Health Coaches etc. Work delivered ranges from custom content for websites, video and podcast editing, original articles, press releases and media placement.

Writer / Editor

Marketing & Communications | People Development

University of California Office of the President

Communications Strategist

Vail Resorts

Craft and execute internal messages for leadership on change management, DE&I, crisis scenarios through various media including town halls, webinars, presentations, emails and blogs. Guide external communications for ski resorts including pitching, agency management, media hosting, executive communications and crisis communications.
•	Appointed to Senior Leadership Team at Kirkwood Mountain Resort within first six months by quickly building trust with teams outside of the business unit and working cross-functionally.
•	Implemented a visible leadership plan to promote vice presidents and general managers of resorts internally and externally, which resulted in positive story placements in the Sacramento Business Journal.
•	Built strong partnership with U.S. Forest Service to encourage safe recreation in Tahoe in the wake of COVID-19. Authored joint op-ed by working closely with leadership in both organizations.
•	Developed positive and professional relationships with media, particularly in the Bay Area. Successfully placed multiple stories in major target outlets like the San Francisco Chronicle.

Communications Manager - Tahoe Region

Colorado State University Energy Institute

Built an internal communications program from scratch to build better collaboration between faculty, staff and students; launched an internal newsletter, hosted movie nights, lunch-and-learns etc. 
•	Revised internal and external websites to better align with the mission and vision of the organization.
•	Wrote press releases and stories on scientific and technical topics such as acoustic harvesting of algae, hydrocarbon engines, microgrids, air quality monitoring, rocket launches and methane emissions.
•	Served as a consultant and advisor for energy venture startups housed within the Energy Institute on communications strategies and best practices for launching and garnering funding.
•	Ghost wrote and placed op-eds for leadership such as this one in the Fort Collins Coloradoan. 
•	Led multimedia expedition to Rwanda and Uganda to capture microgrid tech startups on-the-ground work with video, 3D and storytelling; content was successfully used to gain $100K in financing from donor.

Communications Manager

Turtle Island Restoration Network

Communication Director, 2015-2017
Managed all communications activities in support of marine conservation campaigns. Served as editor-in-chief of print and online newsletters that went out to 80,000+ members. 
•	Chartered a partnership with DigitalGlobe and Tomnod.com securing the use of satellite and crowdsourcing technology to track illegal fishing boats in Costa Rica in first-of-its-kind to use of this technology. Garnered international media coverage and saved the organization $26K.

Communications Manager, 2014-2015
•	Launched a mobile-friendly website and rebrand, consolidating three websites into one.
•	Grew audience's interest by creating campaign-specific videos, contributing to a grant of $10K.

Director Of Communications

Western Resource Advocates

Served as in-house reporter, wrote and edited e-newsletters, spoke on-air on behalf of WRA, created videos, managed social media accounts, built editorial calendar and authored press releases.
•	Grew electronic, blog and social media brand presence by more than 60% in the first few months.
•	Established a sold-out film preview event for donors, partnered with the Robert Redford Center.

Communications Coordinator

University of Colorado Boulder - Leeds School of Business

Digital Media & Communications Specialist

University of Colorado at Boulder

Chief Editor for the Political Science Department Newsletter 

Computer Assisted Reporting Teaching Assistant

Editor and Reporter

Pearson Education Services Private Limited

Editorial Assistant

taplio

The Battle

🌱 Jason Shen

Joanna L. McWilliams

Followers

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Performance Score🌱 Jason Shen's LinkedIn Performance

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taplio

The Battle

🌱 Jason Shen

Joanna L. McWilliams

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}🌱 Jason Shen's LinkedIn Performance

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Performance Score🌱 Jason Shen's LinkedIn Performance