In an important and timely article Meng (2009) has raised important questions regarding the future of the statistics profession. We elaborate on several of his points and offer some additional opportunities for the profession to consider. We argue that statistical methods and tools must be properly integrated into an overall approach to scientific inquiry in order to be properly understood and utilized. The discipline of statistical engineering, defined in this article, provides a mechanism to do this based on research and theory. Similarly, statistical thinking provides a clear framework to help students understand the "big picture" of statistics, and a relevant context for its application. Further, there is a natural, synergistic linkage between statistical thinking, statistical engineering, and statistical methods. We believe that teaching this linkage to students and utilizing it widely ourselves will enable the profession to move forward to a higher level of impact.
The CAUSE Research Group is supported in part by a member initiative grant from the American Statistical Association’s Section on Statistics and Data Science Education