What is a Management Scientist?

Early in November, approximately 2,000 questionnaires were mailed to a randomly selected sample of the membership of The Institute of Management Sciences. The stated goal of the questionnaire was to accumulate data from which a discussion could commence about the definition of a management scientist.

Each of the questions was of an attitudinal nature and dealt with the individual's perception of himself and/or his professional colleagues who considered themselves management scientists. A copy of the questionnaire is provided in Exhibit I. The statements focused on three areas, namely the person's viewpoints on the training necessary to be a management scientist, the job characteristics of a management scientist, and the contribution of the management scientist to his organization. There were several statements related to each area, but these were randomized in actual presentation of the questionnaire.