Why we started
Tallis began in 2012, when Nora Kessler left a finance director role at a family-owned manufacturer. She had spent a decade watching capable owners make large decisions with half the facts: a new plant, a price cut, a key hire. The facts usually existed. They were just scattered across spreadsheets, systems and people’s heads.
The first clients were friends of friends who wanted a straight read on their numbers. Two of them are still clients. We’ve added partners in operations and growth since, but the idea hasn’t changed: gather the facts, say what they mean, and help the owner act.
We still take on a limited number of engagements at a time. It keeps the work senior, and it means we can say no when we’re not the right fit.
Milestones
2012
Nora founds Tallis with one client and a laptop.
2016
Amit Rao joins, and operations work becomes half of what we do.
2020
We go remote-first. Plant visits stay; travel days halve.
2024
We publish our prices on the website. Enquiries get better and first calls get shorter.
How we work
Four habits we don’t skip.
Evidence before opinions
We start with your numbers and your people, not a framework from a slide deck.
Plain English, short documents
If a plan doesn’t fit in a few pages, we haven’t finished thinking.
Say the awkward thing
You’re paying for an outside view. We’ll tell you when the problem is the plan, the pricing or the person.
Teach as we go
Every engagement should leave your team better at this than we found them.
The people you’ll work with
