Are You a Statistical Leopard? Developing Effective Communications Skills When You Are the Only Statistician in Your Company
A Talk by Douglas Milikien (Founder and Principal Consulting Biostatistician, Accudata Solutions, Inc.)
About this Talk
Leopards are one of the loneliest animals in the animal kingdom, spending time with other leopards only when mating or raising young. If you are the only statistician at your company, you encounter communication challenges that are unique to that solitary environment, such as 1.) lack of mentors or functional colleagues to champion your ideas, 2.) lack of cross-functional structures and experience in communicating with statisticians leading to downplaying of statistician’s possible contributions(the “Dry cleaners” phenomenon, 3.) tendency for analysis requests from colleagues to start with methods and not with the end goal, 4.) inclination to use technical language too early in the communication stream, and 5.) weaker resistance to groupthink. Developed from real experiences over 30 years by the author, this paper will provide case studies of these challenges and corresponding methods in communication and interpersonal dynamics that overcome these challenges. In turn, these communication methods will increase the potential value of the solitary statistician to the company, or at least enable the solitary statistician to determine whether the company is the right company for him/her/them.
