Roger Kaufman, Ph.D. is an influential figure in the history of the educational technology (see also Instructional design) and performance improvement fields as well as strategic thinking and planning for public- and private-sector organizations. Regarded as one of the founding figures of the field, he is referred to as the father of needs assessment. While needs assessment is such common practice today that many new practitioners may not be able to envision a time when it was not part of the standard process, his work in this area established one of the foundational concepts that sets professional practice apart. The core tenets of his work are reflected in the professional standards for certifying performance technologists, such as the emphasis on system thinking and planning and sound evaluation of outcomes.