When people ask me the classic question "what do you do?,” I get an interesting reaction when I say that I am a psychometrician. It’s either a blank stare or a response like "psycho-what?" It never ceases to amaze me that it's the “psycho” part of the answer that sticks.

Psychometricians are highly trained scientists with expertise in the measurement of knowledge, skills, abilities and competencies. Psychometricians have unique career pathways with the common thread of applying rigorous academic insight, research fluency and modeling abilities to decision making. We demonstrate the entwinement of measurement and business acumen while contributing the magic of quantitative analysis to the advancement of the organization’s mission.

Psychometric work used to be shrouded in mystery. While our work was valuable, no one outside the psychometric universe seemed to understand the complex language. Psychometrics was the proverbial credentialing black box. Thankfully, those days are over. Psychometricians have extended their contribution beyond data analysis to strategy development, futureproofing certification programs and advocating for data driven decisions.

If a credentialing organization does not have a psychometrician seat at the table, the organization is missing the unique perspective of an elite professional.

Here are six tips for psychometricians to add more value and advocate for a seat at the table (Afterall, the psychometric crystal ball works (95% confidence interval and p≤ 0.05):

1. Know what keeps the leadership team up at night.

All credentialing organization have challenges, with some being fairly common. For example, every organization desires to have enhanced exam security and the majority of organizations are investing in diversity and inclusion initiatives. In addition to the common challenges, there are industry specific and organization specific challenges. Savvy psychometricians take the time to understand the range of challenges in the organization and explore solutions using the tools in the psychometric toolbox.

2. Seek to understand the business need behind data requests.

It is not unusual to receive data requests for candidate reporting, board reporting, etc. However, the savvy psychometrician seeks to understand the business need that led to the request. The knowledge empowers the psychometrician to consider the options and determine the best way to achieve the desired result. Getting insight into the rationale opens up more options that may lead to better solutions.

3. Present options and recommendations with pros and cons.

In addition to providing the requested data, savvy psychometricians explore all angles to provide multiple viable options, a logical ranking of options and when appropriate, a recommendation. The analysis of the pros and cons of each option provides the leadership team with flexibility, a broader view of the situation, and previews of potential outcomes and implications of each option.

4. Provide succinct executive summaries.

Crystalize, crystallize, crystallize. Simplicity is elegant. Savvy psychometricians summarize their summary to distill the essence of research studies and recommendations. Detailed information should always be available for a deeper dive into methodology, recommendations, and limitations. However, make it a practice to start light and layer on the levels of detail. The result of every research study and impact analysis should be presented in a straightforward format that is unambiguous. There will be subsequent opportunities to layer on the details.

5. Explore the creative use of analogies and storytelling.

Find ways to leverage everyday situations to illustrate psychometric concepts. I have fond memories of an analogy that materialized in a recent strategy meeting. We were exploring ways to increase the number of candidates sitting for the CFP^® exam, the executive sponsor, Jim Dinegar, suddenly asked me to stretch as far as I could to touch my highest spot on the wall. Never afraid of a challenge, I gave it my best shot and touched the highest spot that I could - on tiptoes. He then asked if anything could motivate me to reach higher. I perceived that the question was a blank check and reeled out my wish list. However, when I tried to reach higher than my previous best, I could not. My best was my best. I returned to my seat, sulky that I had missed an opportunity. Then the psychometric application of the analogy hit me! Candidates that fail the exam after trying their best, will fail again if they don’t do anything different. Their current best is not enough. No incentive will change the outcome. I lit up and used the analogy to explain the concept of reliability to the team. I may have missed a blank check, but I got a powerful analogy. 

6. Find a core group to broaden your horizon.

I.C.E provides several opportunities to grow and collaborate with other credentialing professionals with diverse expertise. My awareness of the legal implications of certification decisions has been heightened by being around Don Balasa, and I have increased sensitivity to proper instructional design by being around Bobbie Vernon. Collaboration with fellow psychometricians have also deepened my understanding of the nuances of psychometric practice. Three amazing individuals immediately come to mind: John Weiner, Chad Buckendahl, and Isabelle Gonthier. I did a quick tally, and we have a whopping 97 years of credentialing experience between the four of us! Such depth of knowledge equips us to view issues from all angles and limit blind spots.

This article is dedicated to Kevin Keller, CAE, chief executive officer at CFP Board, who encourages crisp input and my executive coach, Jenna Dorn, who inspired me to share these insights. Thank you for expanding my seat at the table.