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Professionalism: Expertise Alone Is Not Enough!

By Norman S.W. Williams, Ph.D., P.Eng.
Executive Director/Registrar, APGO

What or who is a professional? If your answer is: "Someone who is the member of a profession." It, then, begs the question: "What's a profession?" In colloquial language the word profession is used loosely to mean an occupation or a job, and, therefore, a professional is regarded simply as someone who earns a living through the performance of an activity. For example, we speak of professional athletes as opposed to amateurs with the understanding that the latter do not usually receive an income from their sport. During the late 1960s, debates in the Ontario legislature concerning the concept of self-regulation defined a profession as "a self-selected, self-disciplined group of individuals who hold themselves out to the public as possessing a special skill derived from training and education and are prepared to exercise that skill in the interest of others."1

The original meaning of the term "professional" implied the conformance to prescribed technical standards and ethical tenets. Consequently, professionalism implies a certain set of attitudes. In recent times, the word professional seems to be acquiring the emotional connotations that suggest a highly desirable status for an individual or group of individuals. They are derived from the public importance of professional knowledge and skills and the difficulty of obtaining them. And, in view of globalization, there's a growing need to ensure that work that has the potential to impact the public, directly or indirectly, is performed by professionals.

Professionals approach their responsibility by using their specialized knowledge in an objective manner independent of self-interest and directed towards the best interest of society. Strictly speaking, in the main, for an individual or a group to be considered professional, the following well-recognized criteria must be satisfied:

  • Extensive formal education and training as a prerequisite to permit engagement in an activity;
  • Deployment of said activity involving the exercise of specialized skills, judgment and discretion that is not routine or susceptible to mechanization;
  • Membership in an organization that sets and implements stringent standards for admission and grants a licence with the right to practise;
  • Being bound by a code of ethics;
  • Having the legislated authority to enforce against non-members (i.e., unlicensed practitioners) and discipline members;
  • Holding the public welfare paramount;
  • Committing to ensuring competence;
  • Subscribing to promoting continuous professional development and updating of knowledge and skills among the members.
By examining this list it seems clear why many practitioners who consider themselves experts in their own right might not realize their full potential. Besides, it's illegal in Canada for anyone to practise and take responsibility for work in any of the regulated professions, including professional geoscience, if that individual does not hold membership in the provincial/territorial association that has jurisdiction.

Professional registration and membership, which give members the right to use the designation conferred (e.g., "P.Geo.") after their name and the right to practise, provide them a competitive advantage as licence holders; not only in Canada but throughout the world. It signifies that, based on an assessment by their peers, their qualifications measure up. Furthermore, the fact that they have accountability for their work to a reputable organization, by virtue of their membership, is of added significance in the eyes of prospective clients and the general public.
1Hon. H.A. MacKenzie, Opening Address, Ontario Legislature, Debates (1968).

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Field Notes is published by APGO and is edited by Wendy Diaz, P.Geo. If you have comments or wish to contribute material to this newsletter, please contact Wendy Diaz, P.Geo., or Norman Williams, P.Eng., Executive Director/Registar.

Copyright 2006, Association of Professional Geoscientists of Ontario (APGO)