Chris Masters
The man running Innovate! Inc. Rose through the ranks from team member to leading the entire Salesforce consulting firm. Government implementations, EPA projects, and the Friday weeklies that secretly taught everyone discipline.
The Arc
Chris Masters didn't inherit Innovate! Inc. He earned it. He started as a team member — one of the people in the trenches building Salesforce implementations for government agencies. EPA projects, federal compliance, multi-year deployments. The hard stuff that most consultancies won't touch.
Then he started running the Friday weeklies. That sounds small, but it wasn't. Those meetings became the operating rhythm of the entire company. Structured, disciplined, accountable. Every week, the team would align on what mattered, surface the blockers, and commit to the work. It was project management disguised as a meeting. And it worked.
Chris rose through the ranks because he could do both things that matter: deliver the work and lead the people. Now he runs the whole company. The Friday weeklies are still happening. The discipline he brought to those early meetings is now the culture of the entire organization.
Career Timeline
Early Career
Salesforce Consultant
Government Technology
Entered the Salesforce ecosystem working on government implementations. Built the foundation of technical and client-facing skills that would define his career — learning the platform, understanding federal requirements, and developing the discipline that comes from working in regulated environments.
Joining Innovate!
Team Member
Innovate! Inc.
Joined Innovate! Inc. and immediately became part of the core team. Worked alongside developers, PMs, and BAs on complex Salesforce implementations. Started running the Friday weeklies — structured team meetings that became the heartbeat of how Innovate operated.
EPA Implementations
Salesforce Lead — Government Projects
Innovate! Inc. / EPA
Worked on EPA Salesforce implementations — the kind of complex, compliance-heavy government projects that separate serious consultancies from everyone else. Helped deliver solutions for program offices that needed reliability above all else.
Rising Through the Ranks
Leadership & Operations
Innovate! Inc.
Took on increasing responsibility across the organization. From managing projects to managing people, Chris moved from contributor to leader. The Friday weeklies evolved from team check-ins into a management philosophy — structured accountability that kept the whole company aligned.
Present
Running the Company
Innovate! Inc.
Now runs Innovate! Inc. — the Salesforce consulting firm that built its reputation on government implementations, EPA projects, and a culture of discipline and teamwork. The person who once ran the Friday weeklies now runs the entire operation.
What Chris Brings
Salesforce Leadership
Leads a Salesforce consulting firm that has delivered complex implementations for government agencies for years. Understands the platform not just technically but strategically — where it fits, how to staff it, and how to deliver it.
Government Technology
Deep expertise in government Salesforce implementations, particularly EPA projects. Navigating federal compliance, security requirements, and multi-stakeholder environments is second nature.
Team Building
Built and maintained a team of talented Salesforce professionals — developers, PMs, BAs, consultants — and created the culture that kept them producing great work. The Friday weeklies weren't just meetings. They were culture.
Project Discipline
The Friday weeklies are the tell. Chris brought structure and accountability to every project, every team, every week. The kind of operational discipline that scales from a single sprint to an entire company.
Organizational Growth
Rose through every level of the organization and now leads it. That trajectory tells you something about both the person and the company — Innovate promoted from within because Chris had already proven he could do the job before he ever had the title.
How I Know Chris
Innovate! Inc. — Friday weeklies, EPA projects, team discipline
Chris and I worked together at Innovate! Inc. He was part of the crew that taught me how to be part of a team — alongside Larry Spackman, Matt Brumberger, Phil Thomas, Josh Long, Jordon Schulman, and Catherine Nolan. That group of people shaped how I think about work, collaboration, and what it means to actually deliver something.
Friday weeklies. That's what I remember most about Chris. The kind of structure that secretly teaches you discipline. You show up every Friday, you report on what you did, you commit to what you're doing next, and you don't let the team down. It sounds simple. It's not. Most companies can't sustain that kind of cadence. Chris made it the default at Innovate.
We worked on EPA Salesforce implementations together — the kind of government projects where the requirements are complex, the stakeholders are many, and there's no room to cut corners. Chris brought the same discipline to those projects that he brought to the weeklies. Structured, accountable, no excuses.
The fact that he now runs the whole company tells you everything you need to know. Innovate! didn't bring in an outside CEO. They promoted the person who had already been running things from the inside. That's the ultimate vote of confidence.
Why He Matters
There are two kinds of leaders: the ones who parachute in from the outside, and the ones who rise through the ranks because everyone who works with them already knows they're the right person for the job. Chris is the second kind.
He built his credibility by doing the work — government Salesforce implementations, EPA projects, the Friday weeklies that kept the team aligned week after week. Then he turned that credibility into leadership. Now he runs one of the most respected Salesforce consulting firms in the government technology space.
Innovate! Inc. is still going strong because of people like Chris. The culture of discipline, the commitment to government work, the belief that you build a company by building a team — that's Chris Masters.
Get Glen's Musings
Occasional thoughts on AI, Claude, investing, and building things. Free. No spam.
Unsubscribe anytime. I respect your inbox more than Congress respects property rights.
Keep Exploring
Larry Spackman
Innovate! Inc. legend. Salesforce architect and team leader.
Read moreJordon Schulman
Attorney turned Salesforce powerhouse. Innovate alum, now at PruTech Solutions.
Read moreJosh Long
Senior Salesforce developer. 16 years in the ecosystem, 7 active certifications.
Read moreCatherine Nolan
PM and BA at Innovate. Drove the EPA OPPT Program Plan from inception to deployment.
Read more