Too many tools
You pay for software that overlaps, and nobody is sure what to keep. You need a clear decision about what to use and what to stop paying for.
In theory, tech should help you make money · Denver
A senior AI and technology lead for your service business, without the full-time hire.
We find the workflow that is costing you sales or margin, fix it with the tools that fit, and measure what changed in 90 days.
For established service businesses with 5–150 people. No technical brief needed. From $2,500 a month, scoped in writing. Or email phil@innovationtheory.com.
An example workflow
Your next customer is already interested.
Today, staff copy call notes, chase missing details and assemble the proposal by hand. It goes out in three days, if it goes out.
01
Call notes captured onceStructured inputs, no retyping
02
Draft proposal preparedFrom approved templates and price lists
03
A person reviews scope and priceTarget: out the same day
In practice: measured by staff time per proposal, turnaround and correction rate.
Denver, since 2011The AI practice of Innovation Theory
Senior people, directlyYou work with Phil and Martin, not a junior team
Prices on the pageFrom $2,500 a month, scoped in writing
Measured against a baselineWe agree how success is judged first
Our team has worked with
“For over ten years, Innovation Theory has been part of the ShapeShift journey. They’ve helped shape the brand, the product, and the tech behind it. If you want a team that knows crypto inside and out, you won’t find better.”
“These guys understood the vision from day one. They built the product that created the category.”
“They know how to take an idea, sharpen it, and actually make it happen. Worked with them on everything from Wall Street Bets to Stabull, and every time, they delivered. Smart, fast, and no BS.”
Sound familiar?
You have plenty of software. Nobody owns the decisions.
Most service businesses we talk to are not short of software. They are short of someone with the time and judgment to decide what to change, lead it and make sure the team actually uses it.
Manual handoffs
Proposals, onboarding and reporting get copied between disconnected systems by hand. Mistakes and delays follow.
No one owns it
Your team is busy serving clients. You need someone accountable for choosing improvements and getting them adopted.
What changes
Every engagement is tied to one number you already care about.
Every engagement starts from one of three outcomes, with a number we agree to track before any work starts.
Turn more interest into customers
Faster lead response, consistent follow-up and quicker proposals so good opportunities keep moving.
Measure: response time, qualified opportunities, won business
Make coming back feel easy
Organized onboarding, renewal reminders and timely updates so clients stay and refer.
Measure: renewal rate, repeat purchases, referrals
Spend less time on avoidable work
Less rework, fewer handoffs and fewer unused subscriptions. Recovered time goes back into client work.
Measure: staff hours, turnaround, software spend
Where we usually start
Recurring workflows with a clear cost.
We pick one workflow, measure it, improve it and prove it before touching the next. These are the most common first projects.
Lead response automation
Reply to new enquiries in minutes, with a person on anything that matters
See how it works →Proposal and quote automation
Turn a sales call into a reviewed proposal the same day
See how it works →Client onboarding automation
Make the first 30 days feel organized for the client and the team
See how it works →Software stack audit
Decide what to keep, what to connect and what to stop paying for
See how it works →AI intake and call answering
Capture after-hours and overflow calls without losing the details
See how it works →KPI and pipeline dashboards
See the numbers that matter without building a spreadsheet every Monday
See how it works →The business case
What would it take to pay for itself?
Enter what one workflow costs you today. We show the break-even, not a promise. Before recommending anything we replace these assumptions with your real numbers.
What this workflow costs today
a month in staff time, before any lost sales
Monthly fee + assumed tools +
Break-even: new clients a month (at first-year value)
Or: staff hours recovered and redeployed
Break-even additional revenue
Value of +1 point of win rate
First 90 days, service fee
Worth a closer lookTest the assumptions
Illustration only, not a forecast or guarantee. Recovered staff time becomes a cash saving only if spending actually declines or the time goes into paid work. Tool costs are an assumption; we replace every number here with yours before recommending a scope.
A focused first engagement
90 days. One valuable problem. A clear way to judge it.
You get a named lead, a written scope and a weekly decision rhythm. Your team stays involved throughout, and people approve the important decisions.
Diagnose
Review how the work happens today and rank the opportunities. Agree one pilot, its baseline and its acceptance criteria in writing.
Deliver
Build and test the scoped improvement with real examples and the people who will use it. Existing tools first, new ones only when they earn their place.
Measure
Support adoption, compare results with the baseline and agree what deserves investment next, including whether to stop.
Ways to work together
Senior judgment. A scope that fits. Prices on the page.
Marketplace data puts a typical fractional CTO at $9,000–$15,000 a month (sources). Our plans cost less because we lead one scoped workstream at a time for service businesses, rather than acting as a part-time executive for a software company.
For decisions and oversight
Advisory
$2,500 / month
$7,500 for the first 90 days
- Twice-monthly advisory sessions
- Opportunity and tool prioritization
- Vendor and roadmap oversight
- Implementation quoted separately
For a priority workflow
Lead + delivery
$5,000 / month
$15,000 for the first 90 days
- Weekly leadership sessions
- One scoped workstream at a time
- Team training and adoption support
- Baseline and performance review
For deeper team involvement
Embedded
$7,000 / month
$21,000 for the first 90 days
- Weekly leadership plus team sessions
- More delivery capacity, still scoped in writing
- Closer work with your team leads
- Agreed support and review rhythm
USD, billed monthly. Initial 90-day engagement with a written scope before kickoff. Software subscriptions, major custom builds and 24/7 support are budgeted separately. Not sure which fits? Take the 3-minute check.
Industries
Built for service businesses.
Law firms, CPA firms, trades, property managers, agencies, clinics and more. Each industry page shows the workflows that usually pay back first.
Selected work
Shipping for brands and startups since 2011.
Before InTheory, our team led product, brand and engineering work for global brands and fast-moving startups. A few of those projects, written up.
Product · 2024–2026Arkeo
Twenty-two months building and running a decentralized data marketplace, with every finding from an outside security audit resolved.
Read the case study →Product · 2017–2018WISE and College Board
Machine learning that scored SAT practice answer sheets from a phone photo, built in 2017 and shipped through point releases.
Read the case study →
Product · 2013–2020ShapeShift
An account-free crypto exchange we designed and helped build, which peaked at more than a million transactions a day.
Read the case study →The people behind InTheory
Two founders. No hand-off to juniors.
InTheory is the AI practice of Innovation Theory, a Denver firm operating since 2011. You work with the founders directly, from the first call to the day-90 review.
Phil Cowan
Twenty-five years across product, design and engineering. Phil leads architecture, tool choices and delivery so improvements hold up in daily use.
Martin Naithani
Martin connects customer needs, business priorities and the work that ships, so the first improvement is the one that matters most to revenue or margin.
A few useful answers
Is this a fit for my business?
We work best with established service businesses, roughly 5 to 150 people, that have recurring workflows, a measurable problem and an owner or operations lead who can sponsor change. If you are earlier than that, we will point you to simpler options.
Do we need to know what AI we want?
No. Bring the business problem. We evaluate whether a settings change in software you already own, a workflow change, an automation or AI is the best route. Sometimes the right decision is to avoid a new build.
Can you guarantee more revenue?
No. Demand, your offer, sales execution and delivery capacity all affect results. We agree measurable goals up front and review the evidence against a baseline at day 90.
What happens to our data?
We agree access, tool choices and data handling in writing before implementation. Sensitive work gets appropriate contract terms and human approval checkpoints. AI drafts; your people approve anything that goes to a client.
What happens after the first conversation?
If there is a credible business case, we send a short written scope with success measures and price. Sometimes a paid diagnostic comes first. If there is no case, we tell you that, and usually what we would do instead.
Do you only work in Denver?
We are based in Denver and happy to be on site across the Front Range. Most of the work runs well remotely, so we also work with service businesses elsewhere in the US.
Next step
Bring one expensive workflow. Leave with a clear next step.
In 30 minutes we look at one recurring workflow, what it costs you today and whether there is a credible case to improve it. If there is not, we will say so.
Book a 30-minute workflow review
Not ready to talk? Take the 3-minute check
30 minutes with Phil or Martin. No technical brief, no pitch deck. Phil or Martin replies personally, usually within one business day.