How to find, grow and keep software developers Lunch & Learn - 16th March 2017 Daniel B. Roy daniel@infi.nl 06 20 98 83 61 danielbroy

CEO and co-founder of Infi Daniel’s bio Daniel Roy CEO and co-founder of Infi Freelance 1998-2003 CEO 2003-now ‘Never had a real job’ Infi founded in 2003 Located in Utrecht Currently 30 people

...builds custom software... ...for start- and scale-ups About Infi Infi... ...builds custom software... ...that truly matters... ...for start- and scale-ups

Infi: tried to do HR. Had many failures. Sad! Infi HR – our results Lots of things have changed...   2014 Employee left Infi terminated Developers 1 Overhead Project managers Total 2 (11%) 2015 1 (5%) 2016 3 (12%) Average growth 2012-2016: 15% Turnover from €1,2 million to €2,5 million Workforce grown from 12 FTE to 27 FTE, all Dutch devs Scale has increased, project size has gone up and MT was formed ...but turn-over virtually absent! Infi: tried to do HR. Had many failures. Sad!

Why would a developer want to work here? Do we have a winning culture? 42 Why would a developer want to work here? Do we have a winning culture?

How NOT to view your developers

1 2 3 4 Step 1 – Create a winning culture The game plan Step 1 – Create a winning culture 1 2 3 4 Invest in continuous development Transparency and inclusiveness Freedom and responsibility Remember your hygiene Step 2 – Show it to the rest of the world Use your developers as much as you can!

Invest: continuous development Step 1: discover what your people dream about Step 2: develop them as much as you can At Infi: Quarterly goals for everyone Unlimited budget for conferences, coaching and training

Infi quarterly goals

Transparency and inclusiveness Transparency => helps people to take action Inclusiveness => giving people the opportunity to take action At Infi: All numbers are public Monthly open meeting with management teams Devs play a central role in evaluation of peers and selection process

No secrets

Freedom and responsibility Give people what they need Push responsibility down in the organization Get out of the way At Infi: Virtually no central policy: teams decide People feel connected to their job and are more loyal

Remember your hygiene Fair pay Safe environment Meaningful work

Looking outward: attracting new people The goal is that they come to you! Show yourself in the technical community Your developers are your ambassadors!

Website Does your site speak to prospective clients or employees? Does it show your culture and your people?

Vacancies Who writes your vacancies?

Recruiting agencies Avoid

Social media Are heavily overused, so response is very low Use as proof of winning culture

Community: meetups/dojo’s Many hosting opportunities  host regularly Always have devs organize this, be present and represent you When up to it, let devs organize your own meetup

Community: conferences Sponsoring is a means to show your culture Stands should be primarily manned and thought up by devs ' How to win at doing sponsor stands... Create your own game and have attendees battle it out. Ride around on a hoverboard and give it away to an attendee. Do 3D vision stuffs. Have 3D printers creating miniature DOM towers. Have actual _developers_ at the stand... Definitely over 9000, I'd say :-)'

Previous employees Everyone who leaves should be an ambassador How do you treat people who leave you? Someone leaving is a learning opportunity Have exit-meetings before leaving and lunch three months later Get frank feedback and use it

Summary Start by focusing on your internal culture and fixing your people turnover Look outward and focus heavily on the technical community through meetups and conferences Your own developers are your greatest HR-asset. Use them in everything! Feel free to approach me or drop by at Infi HQ!

Any questions? Thank you for your attention! Daniel B. Roy daniel@infi.nl 06 20 98 83 61 danielbroy