Test Management Forum Keys to successfully hiring and retaining your testing team Jane Muller

Introduction Jane Muller  20 + years HR & Recruitment experience  9 years experience within QA & Testing  Recruited over 300 QA & Testing Professionals to date  Implemented a talent management system for QA & Testing Professionals  NLP Master Practitioner and Certified Coach

Getting the most value from your time this afternoon Introduce yourself Ask each other the following questions: “Why are you here today?” “What do you want to get out of this session?” Spend 5 minutes discussing

What I aim to cover Marketplace Intelligence How to maximise your ROI Attracting the best candidates – what’s your brand & USP? Retaining your valuable team

The cost of recruitment UK companies are wasting more than £15b a year on recruitment mistakes This figure is the equivalent of 1.7% of UK GDP The average recruitment cost of filling a vacancy per employee is £4,200 This rises to £8,500 when the associated labour turnover costs are also taken into account

Marketplace Intelligence  Current Drivers Available Skills –vs- Required Skills  Where is the shortage?  What solutions are available to you? How many candidates are looking now?  Test Analysts  Senior/Leads  Test Managers How many opportunities are advertised?  Test Analysts  Senior/Leads  Test Managers

Marketplace Intelligence Recruitment Vehicles Available – Experiences & The Best Deals

Marketplace Intelligence Networking plays an important role…. Gerrard Consulting Tester Forums

Marketplace Intelligence …and of course your own website and intranet! Is the career page accessible from home page? Apart from the obvious - include: Your views on why you joined your company & the company’s beliefs in QA and Testing – how important is it within the company? A day in the life of one of your team Company culture – how does QA fit into the overall picture? An explanation of how their careers will develop Make contact easy! Have a specific name (not

Marketplace Intelligence Salary Survey 2007 End Users Consultancies Contractors Where else can I find this type of information?

Attracting the best candidates Having identified the required skills, experience and behaviours, what else can you do to attract the best candidates?  What lifestyle would your ideal candidate have?  Who would he/she mix with professionally?  Where would he/she work now?  What would he/she read professionally?  Where would they do their development and training?  Employee recommendation?

Making an Impact This is a competitive candidate driven marketplace… What is unique about your company and the opportunity? What is you and your team famous for? What reputation do you enjoy? What do you and your team stand for? What’s important? Expertise? Experience? Ambition? Drive? Tenacity? Teamwork? Innovation? Take 5 minutes to discuss with your neighbour..

How satisfied, committed and engaged are you and your team? Satisfaction allows employees to work more pleasantly and stimulates better performance Committed employees feel a certain bond with the organisation and are more willing to perform  Affective Commitment – employees stays because they identify with the organisation  Normative Commitment – employees stay because they feel obliged to the organisation  Continuance Commitment – employees stay because they feel the personal cost of leaving too high Engaged employees are passionate about their work. They are less time bound and willing to go that extra mile.

What do most candidates look for in a new role Great people to work with A company that values my skills More challenging & varied work To have the chance to learn new things Clear career path and promotional opportunity Salary Benefits

Needs and Motivation Maslow's concept of self-actualisation relates directly to the present day challenges and opportunities for employers and organisations - to provide real meaning, purpose and true personal development for their employees Sustainable success is built on a serious and compassionate commitment to helping people identify, pursue and reach their own personal unique potential. Virtually all personal growth, whether in a hobby, a special talent or interest, or a new experience, produces new skills, attributes, behaviours and wisdom that is directly transferable to any sort of job role.

Personal Development = Retention What’s available to help develop your team’s potential? The usual training courses… Attending Conferences Networking Groups & Forums Mentoring each other – champions of QA/testing topics Presenting at conferences Publishing articles (internally & externally) Delivering their own training courses Leading meetings Team leading duties Assist in recruiting and appraising What else?

The last slide! Did we achieve our outcomes? Any questions? Thank you for participating