What is Tron?

Fundamentally we have three beliefs that permeate every decision that we make; these are what makes Tron, well, Tron:

Core Values

1. The people of the United States of America deserve military and government leadership who can effectively communicate, understand, and lead in a world dominated by software & technology.

2. This technological talent is curated best by empowering individuals who are passionate and purpose-driven in digital service towards their country.

3. There is no reason to wait to be promoted before believing you can have an impact.

The implementation of these values motivates our mission and vision:

Mission

We seek to build a government-wide cadre of digitally-enabled servicemembers and civilians through open, extensible, mission-obsessed software.

Vision

Success to us means creating an environment within the US military and government at large where any servicemember or government civilian can become educated and enabled to contribute to the software that runs their lives & the lives of the people they represent, whether through code, product ownership, design, or elsewhere, in a manner that brings programmatic decision authority to the people who are closest to the mission.

Common Misconceptions About Tron

The values of our organization are inherently cross-functional, which often results in common misconceptions about our team as people work to understand this amorphous Tron entity through cognitive matching against personal backgrounds and experiences. This is completely understandable, but also incredibly important to overcome. Purpose is expressed through written language, written language conveys meaning, meaning influences actions, actions curate beliefs, beliefs define character. Therefore, given that Tron operates in the realms of both purpose and character, proper understanding of who we are is essential to avoid improper stereotyping, defensiveness, or even misinformed attacks from other entities. So without further ado:

Are we a DevSecOps platform team? Kind of, but not really. We work extremely close with the DoD Platform One team to build something that has mutual benefit to both organizations.

Are we a mobility air forces software factory? Kind of, but not really. Our initial products were heavily focused on bringing value to the squadrons in the Mobility Air Forces and associated supporting functional areas, but that was more a function of who founded the organization, not so much a function of why we even exist. Besides, there is a way cooler team that handles this at Scott called Conjure, and they are actively changing the game for both AMC and digital adept focus at large.

Are we a software factory at all? Kind of, but not really. Yes, we have double-digit microservices in development, multiple of which are already in accredited production environments. But we do not exist for the ultimate outcome of translating hundreds of programmatic requirements into hundreds of applications.

Are we an innovation cell? Kind of, but not really. Our goals are very aligned with innovation cells, but highly focused on enablement in the digital arena.

Are we a wing-level software cell? Kind of, but not really. Yes, we have multiple proven, highly-productive wing level teams that consider themselves to be part of Tron, but as an organization, Tron is not a software cell.

So then what is our "turf"? Honestly I despise the fact that this question even exists, but it is a reality of the world we live in. We really have no desire to be in competition with our gov partners, yet somehow we continually seem to be "solving the same problems" or "stepping on someone else's toes."

How to Stay Up-to-Date

We will be iteratively releasing information on this website to keep our partners informed about our focus areas & values.

If you prefer to receive updates & articles via email, please subscribe to get full access to the newsletter and website.

You won’t have to worry about missing anything. Every new article or update will go directly to your inbox!