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Company: The Test Factory
Project: The Test Factory
Dates: Jan 2007 to Jan 2008
How did the project start?
The initial idea came from Microsoft, recruiting for technical roles. The challenges of assessing a technical CV (expert in this, x years experience in that) resulted in over 100 interviews for each hire!
With experience at a leading 'On Demand' software provider, the need and opportunity for an online testing solution was clear and the idea for The Test factory was born.
What options did you consider?
Our research showed that whilst online tests were growing rapidly for both psychometric tests and libraries of skills tests, there was no solution to simply create your own bespoke tests. This was a real need, not only in recruitment, but to support company training, compliance or product knowledge for example. We therefore decided to create a platform to enable clients to simply create their own bespoke online tests, without the need for technical skills.
It became clear this should be provided as an online solution (Software as a Service), to provide a leading solution to all clients instantly and cost-effectively whilst providing a robust business model.
What help and expertise did you receive?
The product was developed with Microsoft developers, to create a leading and scalable online application. Their skills and experience working on the London congestion charge, tax credits and banking systems, where crucial in creating a feature-rich tool to support significant numbers of clients, tests and users.
We also obtained investor finance to develop the business.
Did you face any challenges or learn any lessons?
Whilst the original need came from recruitment, we learnt quickly that the opportunities for The Test Factory covered many other areas, such as assessment, training, compliance, education, accreditation and e-Learning. As well as providing a massive opportunity, the sheer size of our market also provides a key challenge.
What are the outcomes and how has it improved your business?
The Test Factory application is the leading tool for creating and managing online tests. The company officially launched in January this year, with a team of six at our prestigious offices at Rainton Bridge Business Park. Within our first fortnight, we had strong interest from airports, universities, councils, utilities providers, outsourced call centres and the banking sectors.
What are your plans for the future?
We have an aggressive business plan to grow to 25 people within 18 months. The potential market is enormous, across many areas such as recruitment, training, education, assessment, accreditation, compliance and e-Learning.
The application has been developed for multi-language use and easily scalable to a leading global solution.
We are also discussing opportunities to integrate our solution with other software vendors or partners to compliment their technology.
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