Our Customer’s Mission Is Our Mission
We are a team of dedicated professionals specializing in data-driven enterprise performance management. We have developed a SaaS platform and management methodology that is proven to transform government performance. We help you clarify your goals for strategic and operational excellence, set clear OKRs and KPIs, and manage for success. We are Mass Ingenuity, and we share your passion for great government.
Mass Ingenuity, based in the Pacific Northwest, has been helping government agencies capture and implement strategic plans and manage organizational change for over 14 years. Our SaaS platform, Results Software, is the leading government performance management solution serving agencies across the U.S.
Founded by Aaron Howard and Kelly Ferguson, Mass Ingenuity’s vision is to transform government performance. The team at Mass Ingenuity is made up of industry veterans that have not only helped clients achieve exceptional results, but have also produced success at every step of their careers. As entrepreneurs, CEOs and Department Heads, the MI team is experienced in planning, executing and delivering at a consistently high level.
When you work with Mass Ingenuity and deploy Results Software you get the collective strategy, implementation and tracking practices from a professional team that cares about your outcomes and will support your vision with their best practices. Ask for a few references or contact one of your peers at one of our satisfied clients.
WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY
Meet The Team
Kent Ragen, Chief Executive Officer
Kent is a SaaS veteran with a history of bringing innovative solutions to market on a global scale. Kent’s expertise spans the go-to-market functions of marketing, sales, business development, and customer success. He has a track record of building and nurturing strong teams who are deeply committed to their mission of delivering for their customers.
Kent joined Mass Ingenuity in 2023 after a career at SaaS winners including Responsys (ORCL), Zustek (ZETA), and Demandbase. His objective is to capitalize on Mass Ingenuity’s proven solution – used by customers including Oregon Department of Human Services, Arizona Department of Corrections, and Washington Division of Vocational Rehabilitation – to scale the company nationally. In concert with the rest of the Mass Ingenuity team, his mission is to transform government performance through adoption of Results Software.
Kent holds a BA from Yale University and an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business.
Kent Ragen,
Chief Executive Officer
Aaron Howard, President & Founder
Aaron is an industry leader in designing and installing visual business solutions. He has developed these solutions over the last 20 years and applied them to numerous areas across the enterprise, including strategy development and implementation, board governance, process improvement, risk management, audit and internal controls, leadership development, organizational transformation, and project management.
Through these visual business solutions, Aaron has enabled leaders and employees to achieve outstanding results by providing a quicker and greater understanding of complex business functions, processes, and problems. In addition, his work has enabled a better grasp of cross-organizational connections and dependencies, increased individual accountability, and team collaboration.
The tools also provide stronger prioritization, more concise and relevant communication (which remains more readily remembered), faster and more effective planning and execution efforts, more reliable decisions, and reduced waste.
Aaron is certified in Total Quality Management (TQM) from the Crosby Quality College. In addition, he is Lean and Six Sigma certified. He has successfully implemented Crosby TQM, Lean and Six Sigma at a division of Squibb Pharmaceuticals and Aldus (the PageMaker company and ninth largest software company at the time).
Aaron has held senior executive positions within publicly traded enterprises and venture funded companies ranging from $5-100+ million in annual sales. Aaron has managed teams from startups to over 1,000 people. He grew U.S. sales of Aldus PageMaker software to over $100 million and brought to market the first all-digital diagnostic ultrasound scanner (now owned by Philips Medical Systems).
At StanCorp Financial Group, Aaron was Vice President, Retirement Plan Services. This business unit provided retirement plan administrative services for plans totaling in excess of $20 billion in assets. The business unit served approximately 5,000 plans and more than 400,000 plan participants and offered plans for 401(k), 403(b) and 457 customers. Both defined benefit and defined contribution plans were administered by Aaron’s organization.
Aaron and his organization interacted directly with retirement plan sponsors, retirement plan participants, internal and external pension consultants, and other external channel partners who sold and serviced the customer. He also managed organization development and process improvements within this business unit. This work included aligning retirement plan services processes with the evolving needs of both retirement plan sponsors and retirement plan participants.
Aaron’s consulting clients include Oregon Department of Administrative Services, Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services, Oregon Department of Human Services, Oregon Health Authority, Paccess Global, American Electronics Association, Washington Software Association, University of Washington, Michael G. Foster School of Business Entrepreneur Center, Portland State University Entrepreneur Center, Sony Electronics, Disney Interactive and Feature Film, Microsoft, Philips Interactive Media, Nike, Kodak, McGraw-Hill Home Interactive, The Washington Post, Toshiba, National Geographic, Apple Computer, NeXT Computers, REI, and HarperCollins. Aaron has a MSEE and BSEE in Electrical Engineering with a focus on computer science and bioengineering from the University of Washington.
Kelly Ferguson, Chief Operating Officer & Founder
Kelly has 28 years as an entrepreneur, sales and marketing leader, OD manager for a Fortune 1000 company, senior OD consultant, and process improvement facilitator. She has over 15 years in relationship-based sales, successfully closing and implementing large-scale projects at Microsoft, Nike, Starbucks, Nordstrom, StanCorp Financial Group, Coinstar and REI.
Kelly is responsible for company-wide marketing strategy, as well as channel development and support. She is committed to supporting clients improve business results, employee engagement and ultimately a high-quality customer experience. As a leader, Kelly is recognized for her drive to grow companies from start-ups to large enterprises by focusing on top-line growth, the introduction of innovative products and services while developing diverse relationships. She consistently makes the customer experience and results the highest priority.
Kelly has a BA from the University of Washington in Liberal Studies and a MS in Organization Development from Central Washington University.
Kate Sterner, Chief Financial Officer
Kathryn “Kate” Sterner brings 30+ years of experience in finance, business strategy, operations, M&A, strategic partnerships and financial services. Her experience spans private and public companies across various industries. Holding roles of CFO, Vice President of Marketing, Operations, Finance, Banking has provided extensive, real-world experience in both strategic visioning and tactical execution of finance and operational strategies that achieved tangible and lasting results. This broad-based background brings a high level of acumen, beyond finance, to the team.
Kate has been continually recognized for delivering results, managing change, and driving complex decisions through an achievement oriented approach. She is energetic, analytical, a broad and creative thinker who enjoys collaborating with others. She thrives in bringing integrity, trust and purpose to her work.
Prior to moving to Portland, Oregon in the Fall 2016, Kate was a partner in a national firm providing CFO services to privately-held clients. From 2002 – 2012, Kate held senior level positions in Finance and Operations at Korn/Ferry Leadership & Talent Consulting and Lominger International, both global companies specializing in talent recruitment and talent assessment, respectively. In addition to the above Kate co-owned a broker/dealer and consulting firm, spent six years in banking, was VP Product Management and Consulting Manager with one a premier firm.
Some of her prior responsibilities include:
- VP Operations for Korn / Ferry Leadership and Talent Consulting
- Vice President, Finance Lominger International
- CFO Lominger (prior to the acquisition by Korn / Ferry)
- Participating on the thought leadership team that developed market strategy, globalization, customer segmentation planning, and growth strategies that doubled revenue in three years
- Finance representative on major pre- and post-acquisition teams
- Business process improvement, change management, and team development
- Marketing and product management background for a business re-engineering technology company
Kate’s responsibilities at Mass Ingenuity include Finance, Human Resources, IT, Investor Relations, Strategic Partnerships and M&A.
Kate holds an MBA in Finance from the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota and a BS in Accounting from St. Cloud University. Although lapsed, she held NASD Series 7, Series 66 and Series 24.
Jim Clark, Vice President, Professional Services
Jim has over 20 years of diverse industry experience in leadership roles in small and large corporations and portfolio companies with strong brand focus in the Outdoor Recreation market. Industry categories of experience include highly engineered hard goods (Yakima Products), paddle sports and accessories (Perception, Dagger), family camping (The Coleman Company), fishing and hunting products (Flambeau) and outdoor media services. In his role as President and CEO, Jim has led the strategic planning process for a complex multi-site, multi-brand businesses, as well entrepreneurial organizations seeking to grow.
He has a strong sales and marketing background and is adept at building brands and developing effective growth strategies. Jim also has a well-rounded organization development and operations background. He has overseen several acquisitions and divestitures, restructured management teams and led process improvements in sales operations, product planning and operations. Jim holds an MBA from Southern Illinois University and a BA from Middle Tennessee State University.
He is the past Vice Chair of the Outdoor Industry Association Board of Directors, past President of the Outdoor Industry Foundation, and is a Board Director for Leupold and Stevens and Big Brothers Big Sisters Columbia Northwest.
Jim has an MBA in Economics and Finance from the Southern Illinois University, Carbondale.
Scott Harra, Executive Vice President of Corporate Development and Government Relations
Scott is an Executive Vice President with Mass Ingenuity. He is an economist with 30 years of management experience in state government. His career in state government started in Oregon’s Budget and Management Division, the Governor’s budget building office. He also has served with the state’s Legislative Fiscal Office. The bulk of Scott’s career has been with the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services, the state’s largest regulatory agency with oversight of the insurance, banking, credit union, workers’ compensation, and building codes arenas. In his nearly 20 years at the agency, he has served as the budget director, chief financial officer, deputy director, and director.
He was appointed to head the Oregon Department of Administrative Services by then Governor Kulongoski, a role he served in during the final three years of that administration. Later in his career, Scott was appointment by State Treasurer Ted Wheeler and Deputy Treasurer Darren Bond to serve as Chief Administrative Officer and Executive Advisor where he played a key role in developing Oregon State Treasury’s shared services functions and modernizing the investment operations of the state.
Paul Aljets, Data Analyst
Paul Aljets has worked with the Mass Ingenuity team for five years. He first served as an Assistant to the Chairman and later as a freelance researcher and data analyst. Paul has helped develop the user experience for the Results software as well as provided support for its data and visual analytics. He also provides internal research for Mass Ingenuity including market and product analysis.
Paul has nine years of experience as a researcher and analyst. He has worked on projects for multinational corporations, state agencies, and local governments. He prefers a jack-of-all-trades approach to research; using both quantitative and qualitative methods to solve client problems. He has experience in everything from surveys to agent-based modelling.
Paul received a Masters degree from Oregon State University in 2010 in Public Policy. He is currently working towards a PhD in Systems Science at Portland State University.
Tim Dexter, Cloud Computing
Tim is an IT professional with over 20 years of experience providing system design and support for organizations ranging from small business to multinational enterprises. In 2007 he founded Dexter Network Engineering, LLC a consulting firm focused on supporting small professional services companies with desktop, server and cloud solutions in the Portland Oregon area. Tim is a Microsoft Certified Network Engineer.
Bobbi Benson, Creative Director, Marketing Communications Designer
Bobbi Benson, a seasoned Creative Director, has over 30 years of experience implementing conceptual design, devising branding strategies, creating innovative marketing materials, and supporting an environment that fosters collaboration. Creative services include analytical design problem-solving and synthesizing communication messaging and challenges with inspired visual solutions. While operating a Creative Services/Marketing Firm in the Denver/Boulder area for over 20 years, she brought a range of strategic business experiences and creative implementation to corporations, small business ventures and entrepreneurs to help them grow their passion and vision. She now lives on the Oregon coast working remotely with innovative corporations, visionary non-profits and individual entrepreneurial authors, coaches and consultants around the country.
Mass Ingenuity is focused on enterprise performance management,
from strategy to execution.
Our Results Management System and Software is a SaaS-based solution that drives results through the lens of enterprise performance data, visual analytics, and actionable insights. Our products and services transform how people use data to achieve results and make critical business decisions. We make managing enterprise performance easy, fast, accessible, and valuable.