Our Philosophy
We may be a bit deep occasionally but we believe it's important to stand for something. Our something is craftsmanship. We class software development and everything that leads up to it and flows from it as a craft not a factory production line. We aim to produce something that makes you go 'wow', something you have fun using and ultimately something you see as an investment.
Too often software, and technology in general, is seen as a throw away cost. Buy it one day, hopefully it works, hopefully it works as you expected and then assume you'll need to replace it in a year or less. Using that investment model we want to create a quality product that when you see it your expectation immediately recognizes quality and a product that will work. It will be designed in a way that not only meets the needs you discussed with us but also meets the needs you didn’t realize you had.
So if we’re aiming to craft great products we obviously need a great team and we believe we are building and growing that team every day. We believe in transparency and that simple principle creates a refreshing perspective and a simplified approach. We don’t need a lot of bureaucracy or major hierarchies but instead everyone is fully aware of everyone else's role, their goals, their gaps and therefore training required and ultimately their aspirations for success. None of us can be successful in this business on our own but if we work together in this transparent way agendas turn into goals, secrets turn into plans and skiving turns into great fun.
Our Team
Chris is still working on his bio but he is our Games developer having worked for Virgin Entertainment in the UK and having a passion for all things digitally retro...
Kathleen is still working on her bio but she is our Creative Guru and resident entrepreneur. Her flair for ideas in her previous businesses including flowers, crafts, journalism and art has balanced the often dry subject of technology...
Nathaniel has a Bachelor of Arts in Foreign Languages and Literatures, Spanish from Whitman College in Washington, USA and he has over 15 years of graphic design and web design and usability experience in the US and New Zealand. He has implemented creative strategies resulting in software and websites for medium sized corporations in industries as diverse as Healthcare, DVD Entertainment and Kitchen and Bath Products. He has designed products sold successfully across the US in stores like Walmart, Target, Home Depot and Best Buy. Nathaniel has advised on numerous iPhone apps and web applications as well as dozens of websites; to him the user comes first.
Tim holds a NZ degree in ICT and US bachelor's degree equivalence in Computer Technology. His background in technology management includes having worked for Arthur D. Little (ADL) management consulting for 6 years - initially in Europe and then in the US. From ADL Tim moved back to NZ working as CIO for Gen-i for 5 years and then for the last 8 years delivering technology advice to the product design & manufacturing industry.
Life AT STYLAH
It sounds like a jail term when written like that! But we believe your work is your life. It's not about balancing the two it's about finding what you love to do and doing it.
The team at Stylah are looking to create this unique environment where we can grow, develop, flourish and almost most importantly, have fun. We currently have a small a team of enthusiastic and passionate people who only want to work with other smart, articulate and the odd quirky people. Trust and transparency count above everything else and we're not ashamed to say we are more of a family than "work colleagues" or "staff members".
If you value software as a craft, recognize as a craftsman you need to be at the top of your game, but also release perfection is something you strive for every day, then give us a call.
We believe in the team model, not as a cliche but as a group of people that know their goals, listen to their coaches, and take risks to score better point average than their last game.