Keywords: credibility, project management, professional development
While statisticians are formally taught methodological skills, tactful project management and establishing credibility early on are equally important to successfully contributing to a team. In some settings where traditional hierarchies drive authority, such as the medical profession, it may be particularly difficult as an early-career (female) statistician to establish credibility and manage projects with confidence. In order to establish expertise and command respect from the get-go, or to re-work the current dynamic on a project team, several subtle tactics may be used. Pulling from popular culture texts on the topic, including Sheryl Sandberg's widely recognized Lean In, as well as resources from our own profession, I will highlight tips and tricks I've picked up in the first five years of my career as a statistician that have proven useful in being taken seriously by senior collaborators.