How a Family Business Thrives with Tech Mahindra

Tech Mahindra's family business, Target Group, is a software and business process services provider that TechMarketView has frequently covered, albeit without recent in-depth analysis. Since our last conversation with the company, Target has navigated a transformative phase, leading to substantial positive changes. To gain insight into Target's recent journey, I spoke with CEO Peter O’Connor, who shared the complete narrative.

O’Connor assumed the role of CEO at Target Group in mid-2023, inheriting a business at a pivotal moment. The Newport-based financial services technology and BPO provider had faced a challenging period characterized by changes in senior leadership and financial hurdles. This placed the organization at a strategic fork in the road: to pursue a revitalized growth path or to manage a natural decline.

Eighteen months on, Target is again profitable. The company has secured new clients and is leveraging its connection with Tech Mahindra's global Business Process Services division to expand in payments, collections, and broader financial services markets.

O’Connor's turnaround story illustrates the lasting importance of specialized domain expertise and the necessity of leveraging operational strengths. Additionally, this recovery showcases how a struggling mid-sized services provider can truly benefit from corporate ownership instead of merely being absorbed into a parent company’s cost structure.

The challenges Target faced were typical for the services sector. Established in 1978 as an IT software firm, it adeptly transitioned to BPO around 2006, initially concentrating on mortgage servicing and motor finance. By the time Tech Mahindra acquired Target in 2016, the company had experienced numerous growth episodes, involving significant client onboarding and offboarding, along with the operational demands of managing a diversified asset portfolio. When O’Connor joined as COO in August 2022, the business was grappling with a challenging sales environment, and by spring 2023, the previous CEO had exited.

Despite the turbulence, the assets remained strong. Target employed around 1,000 individuals with an average tenure of five years and an attrition rate below 3%, which is remarkably low for a BPO operation. The company maintained its own private cloud infrastructure, featuring over 850 servers located in Newport and Cardiff. Crucially, it serviced prominent clients such as the DVLA, BBC, Shawbrook Bank, Skoda Finance, EE, Yorkshire Water, and Yorkshire Building Society, delivering essential software platforms that handle billions of pounds in payments annually, boasting an impressive 99.98% service resiliency.

The core issue was a lack of strategic clarity. Target had unwittingly limited itself to being a single-service provider for most clients, creating vulnerabilities in relationships, and had not sufficiently invested in technology. It also failed to leverage its ownership under Tech Mahindra effectively, treating the parent company more like a distant relative than a strategic ally.

O’Connor's strategy focused on three interconnected pillars: re-engaging with Tech Mahindra, refocusing on software where Target had clear commercial strengths, and fostering the family culture that contributed to outstanding staff retention. This approach not only revitalized the organization but also highlighted the advantages of being a family business within Tech Mahindra’s larger framework.

For further insights into business process services, you can explore resources at McKinsey and Deloitte.

For information on effective marketing strategies, visit www.sellablemarketing.com/blog or www.sellablemarketing.com/resources.

Source: https://www.techmarketview.com/ukhotviews/archive/2026/03/17/ukhotviewsextra-target-group-a-family-business-finds-its-footing-within-tech-mahindra