# John Isaac

> Design talent partner for startups & scaleups | Skills-based vetting + coaching | Elite Product Designers & UX Researchers (AI products)

Location: San Francisco Bay Area, United States
Profile: https://flows.cv/johnisaac

Design hiring is broken - noisy, slow, and risky.
I help startups & scaleups turn it into a sharp, repeatable advantage as their design talent partner.

If you’re scaling a product team, you can’t afford mis-hires, bloated interview loops, or “looks good on paper” portfolios that fall apart on the job.

What I Actually Do

I’m a design talent partner for product-led companies. I help you:

→ Vet and assess product designers with real signal

• Deep portfolio & case study reviews
• Live 1:1 working sessions using a structured skills-verification framework I’ve developed from thousands of reviews
• Skills-based scorecards so you see how designers think, decide, and ship - not just how they talk in an interview.

→ Coach & level up high-potential talent

I work directly with designers to sharpen their storytelling, business context, stakeholder management, and leadership behaviours so they hit the ground running and stay.

→ Design hiring systems, not just fill roles

Lightweight, repeatable processes for sourcing, screening, interviews, & decision-making so your team can consistently spot top 5-10% talent and avoid expensive mistakes.

Who I'm A Good Fit For

You’re likely:

→ Scaling a product/design team & can’t afford another bad hire
→ Tired of 5+ interview rounds that still feel like guesswork
→ Unsure how to judge real-world skills from polished case studies
→ Struggling to retain top performers through growth or change

You want someone who has sat on every side of the table: designer, hiring manager, educator, & coach, who can translate all of that into clear decisions.

Quick Bio

→ 25+ years in design across Australia, Canada, and the US
→ 10+ years teaching and mentoring at leading design bootcamps
→ Helped thousands of designers break into and grow in tech
→ People I’ve coached now work at global companies across SaaS, fintech, gaming, and enterprise

Today, I focus on helping founders and design leaders build elite product and design teams by combining coaching, hiring strategy, and deep talent evaluation.


👋 Want to work together?

→ DM me here on LinkedIn
→ Book a free 15-min strategy call: https://calendly.com/thejohnisaac/15-min-chat-with-john

Follow me on Instagram → @thejohnisaac

## Work Experience
### Founding Partner | Design Talent Architect & Startup Advisor @ Anderson & Isaac
Jan 2025 – Present
We connect elite designers and engineers with startups shaping the future.

We don’t just source talent. We refine it. 

Every candidate goes through our proprietary vetting and coaching framework, built from decades of design, education, and startup experience.

Every candidate we represent is vetted, coached, and portfolio-ready before reaching a founder’s inbox.

The result: founders hire with confidence, and candidates step into roles that accelerate their growth.

### Founder & Principal Talent Strategist (Design/Product/Startups) @ John Isaac
Jan 2016 – Present
I run a boutique talent advisory and coaching practice helping startups, scaleups, and design-led orgs find, vet, and retain world-class design talent.

I’ve worked with thousands of designers across every stage of their career, coaching them, assessing their readiness, and helping teams hire with clarity.

What I do:

→ Design hiring strategy for founders, VPs, and recruiters, so you hire right the first time
→ Talent audits and role benchmarking to clarify what you're actually hiring for

→ 1:1 coaching for designers to upskill, land roles, and grow in fast-paced teams
→ Portfolio and real-world skills assessment. No fluff, no vague feedback

→ Interview systems that cut time-to-hire in half (yes, no more 5-round interviews)
→ Team development workshops to turn junior and mid designers into top performers

→ Strategic advisory on scaling design orgs (culture, process, capability)

Bonus:
I’ve also built curriculum and coached for the world’s best tech bootcamps (GA, Designlab, RMIT), giving me unique insight into what good talent looks like and how to grow it fast.

### Design Mentor | UX and Product Design | Data-Driven Design Course @ Designlab
Jan 2018 – Present
DesignLab is a VC-backed online education platform, offering design programs to people all over the world. 

My role includes:

→ Mentoring Design students from all over the world
→ Providing critique & feedback on student project work
→ Providing career advice & guidance
→ Providing additional resources & materials based on student learning/progress

My goal is to personalize the learning experience based on student goals and interests. 

Courses taught:

→ Data-driven design
→ Advanced accessibility and usability

### UX Design Lead Educator | Product Design | Research Methodologies | Personal Branding @ General Assembly
Jan 2016 – Jan 2025 | Melbourne, Australia
Leading the full-time UX Design Instruction & also responsible for:

→ Classroom facilitation & delivery of lesson/activities
→ 1:1 student coaching
→ Curriculum development
→ Lesson planning
→ Tracking & responding to student progress
→ Working with the instructional team & course producer(s)

Course taught include:

→ UX Design Immersive
→ Product Management

### Design Thinking Course Mentor | UX and Design Program Lead @ RMIT Online
Jan 2019 – Jan 2024 | Melbourne, Australia

### UX Design Mentor @ Springboard
Jan 2018 – Jan 2020

### UX Design Mentor @ CareerFoundry
Jan 2018 – Jan 2020

### Head of UX Design & Strategy @ GMG Digital
Jan 2012 – Jan 2016 | Melbourne, Australia
I relocated to take up an opportunity with GMG, a startup digital marketing company. 

→ Established the design business, building processes & frameworks 

→ Grew design team from 0 - 8 via internship program & recruitment strategy

→ Established the GMG Goal Internship Program to provide design career pathways

→ $3 million of new business in first 2 years via client pitches & outreach

Brand experience included major Australian brands within retail, fashion, government, sport & FMCG.

### Lead Product Designer | B2C Fintech @ Virgin Money
Jan 2011 – Jan 2012 | Sydney, Australia
Applying UX design principles to various VM & Citibank products including:

→ Conversion optimisation via A/B testing, usability testing & user research
→ Data-driven product strategy for new campaigns

→ 40% minimum increase in credit card sign up / landing page redesign
→ $2.5 million revenue increase in 12 months for new campaigns / partner credit cards
→ Major partnership established with VM & Citibank

### Associate Design Director | UX & Brand Strategy | B2C @ White Wall
Jan 2010 – Jan 2011 | California, United States
Brand experience included:
• Express
• James Allen
• Pinkberry
• Williams Sonoma
• Kiwi Collection
...and various other shopping malls and retailers within California.

### Senior Digital Manager | UX & Content Strategy | B2B SaaS and Intranet Design @ NSW Health
Jan 2009 – Jan 2010 | North Sydney
• Applied HCD principles & best practice across various health & wellbeing programs
• Acted as Design advisor for partners such as Heart Foundation & Cancer Council
• Redesigned intranet portal used by policy officers & branch managers


## Education
### Master of Business Administration - MBA
ENEB - Escuela de Negocios Europea de Barcelona

### Masters in Human Resources Management and Services
ENEB - Escuela de Negocios Europea de Barcelona

### Master in Digital Product Management
Nuclio Digital School

### Design in Visual Communication
UNSW


## Contact & Social
- LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/thejohnisaac
- Portfolio: https://johnisaac.io

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Source: https://flows.cv/johnisaac
JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/johnisaac/resume.json
Last updated: 2026-04-13