The "Compleat" Policy Analyst: A Top 10 List |
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| Authors: | Russell Lidman Paul Sommers |
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| Affiliation: | Professor and director of the Institute of Public Service at Seattle University. He previously served as executive policy advisor to Washington's governor, assistant commissioner for policy in the state's Employment Security Department, and director of the Washington State Institute for Public Policy, a legislatively directed policy research organization. He earned a PhD in economics at the University of Wisconsin. E-mail: .; Professor at the Institute of Public Service and the Albers School of Business at Seattle University. He previously served as an analyst in the Washington State Office of Financial Management, as senior research fellow at the University of Washington's Evans School of Public Affairs, and as a research scientist in the Seattle office of the Battelle Memorial Institute. He earned a doctoral degree in economics at Yale University. E-mail: |
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| Abstract: | In this article, the authors provide a list of the top 10 ways to become a "compleat" policy analyst, drawing on lessons from their own experience as policy analysts. The authors make no claims that their list is unique. However, they suggest the items included within it are supported in the academic and practitioner-oriented literature. Counting down from number 10—"The compleat policy analyst knows how to skip steps"—the authors present and comment on the items in turn. The authors suggest the number one concern for practitioners is "to live with uncertainty." Other items on the list include eating crow, loving numbers, and acknowledging values and politics in the analytical process. |
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