Jill Heinze helps product leaders make smarter AI decisions through strategic intelligence and ground truth research. As founder of Saddle-Stitch Consulting, she reveals the gap between what organizations assume about AI and what users actually experience, helping them spot opportunities competitors miss and avoid expensive mistakes before they happen.
With 20 years of experience in user research, competitive intelligence, and digital product strategy, she's worked with Fortune 500 clients across financial services, healthcare, and technology. As Research Director and Lead of the Data and AI Research team at a major consultancy, she built an AI evaluation framework that guided high-stakes implementations and founded the firm's first executive AI governance committee.
Her approach combines market research rigor with practical implementation experience, bridging strategy and execution to help organizations navigate AI uncertainty with confidence.
She serves as Responsible AI Program Director for The American College of Financial Services, is a member of the AI Leadership Institute, and hosts Responsible Tech Talks on LinkedIn Live.
Based in Charlottesville, Virginia, Jill enjoys local wineries, sci-fi shows, cake decorating, and cat wrangling.
