September 20, 2022
Employee spotlight – Tom Norris, Acutest
Employee spotlight – Tom Norris
Meet the people who have made Acutest what it is today in our commemorative interview series as we celebrate two decades of assurance and testing.
Since its launch in 2002, Acutest has grown as a market-leading testing consultancy business specialising in testing software, business processes and IT. This year marks twenty years of Acutest and we are celebrating by shining a light on the talented consultants who make Acutest what it is. Acutest is a close-knit community of consultants built on mutual respect, creating a shared learning environment for everyone. It is these people and their dedication that makes Acutest what it is today.
To mark this year’s milestone, we caught up with the Founder and Director of Acutest, Tom Norris. An avid blogger, countryside lover and farm dweller, here’s what Tom has to say about two decades of Acutest and his career journey to date.
Let’s hear from Tom!
How long have you been at Acutest?
“I started Acutest 20 years ago in June 2002. I was the first employee, you could say!”
What does your job entail?
“Helping our customers deliver working IT-based products and services on time and with confidence that they are going to work.”
What do you most enjoy about Acutest?
“I am often struck by the fantastic group of colleagues who have been there from the early days to make a difference. They have the sharpest minds and a fantastic capability for solving problems that our customers think are impossible.”
“When we started Acutest in 2002, we were on a mission to help our customers deliver working products and services more quickly, at lower cost and under informed control. I am now surrounded by a fantastic group of colleagues. They have the sharpest minds and a fantastic capability for solving problems that our customers think are impossible.”
Tom Norris, Founder, and Director of Acutest
What’s the most interesting project you’ve worked on?
“Well, without sounding cliched, the nature of our work is that all the projects are interesting. If the work was not difficult nor time-critical, our customers would not want our help. Probably the most interesting project was working with one of the UK’s public service broadcasters where TV screens would have gone black if the service had failed. That was extremely exciting and nerve-wracking throughout.”
And what was the worst/most challenging?
“Actually, it was working with a large telco, where the customers would have noticed immediately if anything had gone wrong. We were really under pressure to get things right the first time, with no excuses. We did this of course, but it added a few more grey hairs to my head.”
How would you describe your day job to a child?
“I would say, visiting large companies and helping them solve impossible problems.”
What gets you out of bed in the morning?
“Knowing that the day will be full of surprises.”
Tell us a little bit about your home life/interests
“My family are farmers, so our house is surrounded by hundreds of sheep. I am also an active member of the local Anglican church. I love walking in the countryside whenever I can.”
Thanks for taking the time to talk to us Tom!
Championing our employees at Acutest
At Acutest, we continue to value our employees and encourage collaboration and professional development, with regular social events. Recently we published our employee satisfaction results for 2021 where an overwhelming 94% of Acutest employees felt they belonged within the Acutest family, 26% above the UK national average. We are deeply proud of these results and we look forward to what the next chapter holds for Acutest.
Like what you’re reading?
We are looking for bright, enthusiastic consultants to join us on a wide variety of projects across our high-profile client base. You will have the opportunity to work hands-on within functional test projects, creating and executing test cases, but also to gain experience with cutting-edge tools and technologies. You will work across multiple industry sectors and disciplines, so will need a consultative nature and be able to collaborate with individuals of varying levels of technical knowledge. Many of the projects you will be involved in will enable leading blue-chip businesses to demonstrate the productivity of their systems and websites. A majority of these are in the public eye, so will give you the professional satisfaction of being able to see the results of your work in action.
Written by Julia Bluckert.
