I’m the John P. Campbell Distinguished Professor of IO Psychology at the University of Minnesota, where I study technology in IO, focusing mostly on games, gamification, and artificial intelligence. I publish research in both psychology and technology outlets, depending on the intended audience. I’ve worked with a variety of technology and consulting companies for academic research or as consulting clients through my business, Landers Workforce Science LLC, which mostly advises on or conducts audits of selection systems incorporating artificial intelligence. I believe the science-practice model is key to what makes IO psychology uniquely valuable, and I try to live both sides of it as best I can to maintain a balanced perspective.
I have been fortunate to serve SIOP at all levels of the organization, starting with organizing the very first virtual conference experience SIOP ever attempted – the 2012 Sustainability Leading Edge Consortium. Since then, I’ve served in many committees and task forces, including Government Advocacy and as the Program Chair for the Seattle Annual Conference. As a current member of the Executive Board, I’m serving on two task forces focused on creating new community options within SIOP: Research Community Forums and persistent Special Interest Groups. This year, I led the Task Force to Identify Core Audiences to understand through empirical research how SIOP can better understand and serve its varied membership. Across these roles, I have seen many sides of SIOP and its members and call on that experience to make good decisions as a board member.
Goals Statement:
As stated in our strategic plan, our SIOP community is foremost oriented toward confronting real-world problems with rigorous science. We often disagree about the specifics. Many members have firsthand experiences with tensions between career scientists and career practitioners, doctoral and master’s degree holders, and even I and O. In our sibling-like squabbles, I fear we forget that we agree more than we disagree; this limits our power to respond to a rapidly changing world. We must be united in our core purposes while enabling our member subcommunities to do what they individually find meaningful. No I-O should feel lost, alone, or unsupported by SIOP. This better serves us all.
My goal as president is therefore to better identify, serve, unite, and empower the subcommunities within SIOP, big or small, reducing the barriers they face to the successes they desire, so that they find their place with the broader organization. I will accomplish this by doubling down on initiatives I’ve already started. I led the Task Force to Identify Core Audiences to understand where we are already united and where our differences are real and important. The resulting report is already core reading for our Staff and Chairs. Yet this is not a one-time problem to be solved; it’s an ongoing need that I will create infrastructure to address. I also helped create Community Forums and Special Interest Groups, but these fledgling initiatives need executive attention to prevent them from becoming more stories of SIOP’s good intentions lacking in follow-through.