The Spotlight is on John Verbestel. Author of our upcoming SAP ABAP test.

RN: Please tell us a little about yourself.

JOHN: I am a graduate of the University of Kansas with a degree in Aerospace Engineering. I started in the IT field as a summer intern at Motorola. I continued working for Motorola as a developer for a number of years. I later moved to SAP America and worked as a technical consultant and instructor for over 4 years. During that time I also authored courseware for SAP America. I recently formed my own consulting and instruction services company, VERBESTEL, LLC.

RN: Outside of working with ReviewNet, what do you feel is your biggest professional accomplishment?

JOHN: I feel that my biggest professional accomplishment is to have created my own training and consulting corporation and having great success with it.

RN: How do you keep up with changing technologies and the latest trends in the IT industry?

JOHN: Read, Read, Read. I allocate some time every day to review the latest news and events in the ERP and related industries.

RN: Tell us a little about your ReviewNet test.

JOHN: The SAP R/3 developer test is not purely based on the ABAP language. It also explores the candidates' knowledge of the overall environment. This is required since SAP R/3 is such an integrated system.

RN:What advice would you give to someone learning your discipline? Are there significant barriers to learning about this subject?

JOHN: The complexity of the SAP R/3 system creates a unique environment with a significant learning curve. This is specially true for first time developers. There is no substitution for hands-on training in this area.

My recommendation is to start with learning the environment (how SAP operates including look & feel), learn the rules of the language and the system, and then start building your developments.

RN: Please share your thoughts with us on the role that ReviewNet evaluations play in hiring IT professionals.

JOHN: I strongly believe that any tool that can be leveraged by a hiring manager to filter out candidates is invaluable. ReviewNet Qsets serve as an additional filter for candidates, exploring the technical knowledge of a candidate without having to train the hiring manager.

RN: How did you design your ReviewNet test to help eliminate IT hiring mistakes?

JOHN: The test explores a wide variety of development-related areas and techniques. Knowing the ABAP language is not enough for development in the SAP R/3 environment and the test reflects this. This would assist hiring managers to get a good feel for the areas of expertise the candidate has of the SAP R/3 development environment.