On 14 Apr 2004 10:09:57 -0700, tsdore@mindspring.com (TurboTim) wrote:

>I have been a Software Developer for 25 years mostly PC based for the
>last 20. I have been earning my Doctorate for the past 4 years and am
>now doing my Dissertation. The theme of my dissertation is the
>relationships between job characteristics, job satisfaction and
>turnover intention among Software Developers. I have developed a model
>that shows the paths from job characteristics such as autonomy or task
>significance to job satisfiers such as internal work motivation or
>satisfaction with pay, and ending with the Developer's turnover
>intention (quitting their job in the near future). Survey data will
>drive the model and will hopefully serve as a basis for structuring
>programs and policies to promote the retention of Software Developers.
>
>The help I need is if you're a Software Developer I would truly
>appreciate it if you would take a few minutes out of your busy
>schedule and take my survey at http://www.dolphinmsds.com/progsurvey
>The survey consists of 6 pages and should take about 5 to 10 minutes
>to take.
>
>Your e-mail address is optional but if you leave it I will send you a
>copy of my dissertation in the next 90 days. I will also have a
>drawing for 4 Amazon $50 gift certificates for survey participants.
>The survey results will be very helpful for future developers and for
>management to understand the nature of developers. Feel free to ask
>your Developer friends and I sincerely thank you for the help.
>
>
>Tim

On 15 Apr 2004 16:27:15 GMT, Tim Dore <tsdore@mindspring.com> wrote:

>Michael,
>
>Thanks for reading my post and voicing your concerns. What I posted is
>true, no marketing trolling here. I have been a developer for 25 years
>and I embarked on a Doctoral program for a Doctorate in Business
>Administration/Information Systems 4 years ago. My dissertation proposal
>has been accepted by my committee; therefore, I am ready to start
>collecting my data. I originally started to do my dissertation on
>Outsourcing but I kept reading that one of the main reasons for
>outsourcing is due to Developer turnover and the subsequent loss of
>process and technical knowledge. I work for Dolphin Software Inc. in
>Lake Oswego Oregon and have a staff of 10 developers and I have had no
>voluntary turnover in 12 years. We certainly are not the highest paying
>gig in town so there must be other factors for our retention success.
>Therefore, I changed my dissertation topic to a study of the Job
>Characteristics of the average Developer and how these relate to job
>satisfaction and turnover intention (quitting the company). I have
>purposely limited my study to Developers that work for a company since a
>self-employed Developer does not have issues with management or their
>supervisor, nor are they inclined to quit themselves. I am collecting
>data on self-employed Developers though because I would like to see how
>their needs/wants relate to those of company Developers. Hopefully this
>is not too long winded but I assure you my research in this arena is
>important because managers (especially non-technical ones) need to
>understand the needs and mindsets of Developers and the worth of the
>products/services that the developers provide to the organization. Many
>organizations don't even have IT representation at senior levels so if
>they don't value us, they will not understand why their turnover is high
>nor will they understand the loss of process and technical knowledge
>that comes with the loss of a Developer.
>
>Take care,
>
>Tim
>
>
>
>*** Sent via Developersdex http://www.developersdex.com ***
>Don't just participate in USENET...get rewarded for it!

On 16 Apr 2004 01:37:11 GMT, Tim Dore <tsdore@mindspring.com> wrote:

>Michael,
>
>I am glad we had this discussion because I had not really considered
>self-employed developers since I am doing this relative to turnover
>intention. However, if I compare their feelings about job satisfaction
>relative to job characteristics through multiple regressions then I
>would have some good data about their preferences because for the most
>part if they weren't satisfied they would change since they're self
>employed. I think that I could do some great analysis with this! Thanks
>again for the ideas!
>
>Tim
>
>
>
>*** Sent via Developersdex http://www.developersdex.com ***
>Don't just participate in USENET...get rewarded for it!