Who Tangled works best with
Something you need to work through.
There's no formula for who Tangled works best with. The people who get in touch don't share an industry, a size or a stage.
What they share is that there's something important they want to move forward, and they want experienced help doing it.
That's it. Not an industry or a size. Something that matters, and needs working through.
If any of this sounds familiar, the rest of this page should help you decide whether it's worth a conversation.
Three starting points
Three reasons the conversation tends to start.
Resolve something
Something isn't working as it should. It needs understanding, and it needs action.
Work towards something
There's an idea, an opportunity, a change or a destination worth thinking through properly.
Bring a different perspective
You could probably work this out yourselves. An experienced, independent perspective, additional experience or focused capacity would make the difference.
These are three routes into the same kind of conversation, not three kinds of customer.
A note on capacity
“We could probably do this ourselves.”
That's one of the most common reasons people get in touch. It isn't a weakness, and it isn't outsourcing.
You stay involved and you own the outcome. Tangled adds experienced capacity and an independent perspective alongside the people who already know the business.
Who tends to call
The people who bring Tangled in.
Founders, owners, leadership teams and operators. People responsible for making something happen.
The title matters less than the characteristic. There's something important to move forward, and they want experienced help doing it.
Keir's background includes larger, more complex organisations, and that shapes how Tangled thinks. But the practice is deliberately small. It works best where senior people are close to the work and decisions can be made without a committee.
Recognition
You might be here if…
- You're spending too much time solving things the organisation should be able to solve itself.
- Growth has made things more complicated, not just bigger.
- Your systems aren't supporting the way people actually work.
- Everyone agrees something needs to change, but nobody agrees what.
- You've tried something before and it didn't stick.
- You need progress, not another report.
- You can see the destination but can't quite work out how to get there.
- You've got an idea worth doing properly, and you want to think it through with someone experienced.
- You could probably do this yourselves, but you don't have the bandwidth right now.
- You'd value someone independent challenging the thinking before you commit.
You don't need to recognise all of it. One or two is enough.
Not only when something's broken
Often, it's the other way round.
A lot of conversations start the other way round. You know where you want to get to, and you want experienced thinking around the route.
Or there's an idea worth exploring, and an independent perspective would help it land.
Tangled gets called as often to work towards something as to resolve something.
The relationship
Honest. Open. Pragmatic.
The best work happens when we can be straight with each other. I'll challenge when I need to, tell you when something isn't working, and expect the same in return.
We're working towards the same outcome. You're in the boat too.
Tangled isn't the right fit for every situation. The work depends on trust, openness and a willingness to get involved. If we don't think we can build something good together, we'll say so.
What it takes
A willingness to dig in.
This isn't a fire-and-forget engagement.
Access to the people closest to what we're working through.
The talent and expertise to move the work forward need to be available.
Honest conversations when circumstances change.
If expectations or needs evolve, we tackle that quickly and pragmatically.
Start with the situation.
You don't need a neatly defined brief, or to have worked out what you need before getting in touch. If there's something on your mind, that's enough.