Approach

Obliquity

Tarn Technologies subscribes to the theory of obliquity as expressed by Professor John Kay: 'If you want to go in one direction, the best route may involve going in another. This is the concept of "obliquity": paradoxical as it sounds, many goals are more likely to be achieved when pursued indirectly. Whether overcoming geographical obstacles, winning decisive battles or meeting sales targets, history shows us that oblique approaches are the most successful, especially in difficult terrain.'

We believe the success of Tarn is a consequence of doing the right thing, of being a good citizen, rather than being fixated on a goal. Our experience is that results accrue as a consequence of demonstrating the right behaviour rather than blindly focussing on a target. In the 10 years of Tarn's existence, of the dozens of engagements, only one project has not seen the light of day – and that was at the decision of the client. Every other program and project has been delivered successfully.

Baby Steps and Knitting

Tarn advocates the use of incremental delivery, agile or otherwise. Big Bang is exciting but rough on the nerves.

Federated Point Solutions

Tarn's experience is that federated best-of-breed solutions provide the best competitive advantage. There is benefit to deploying wall-to-wall ERP solutions but this only provides secure mediocrity. In some cases, this will be a big improvement but in many cases it only floats in the mainstream and doesn't cause differentiation. The best solution is to mix mainstream solutions for standard processes but to develop and integrate home-grown solutions for specialist purposes and to preserve intellectual property.

All facts are friendly

At Tarn, we think we smell the coffee. If there's an elephant in the room, we are likely to say so. In this respect we are probably not as PC as some organisations.