The background, skills, and views of 20 distinguished professionals were surveyed to provide information about career development in institutional research and to provide ideas about program development. The respondents were members of the Association for Institutional Research and they included seven institutional researchers and planners, three faculty members, four academic administrators, three nonacademic administrators, and three senior state board staff members. With regard to background, two factors were widely perceived to be valuable in most academic professional roles (excluding nonacademic administration): a doctorate and experience as a faculty member. The dominant theme among the responses from the seven institutional researchers was the need for an analytical background or a background in policy analysis. Overall, responses suggest that the most important professional skills (in order) are (1) interpersonal, (2) writing, (3) analytical, and (4) management. The more technical skills (computer, research design, and statistical) received somewhat lower overall ratings. The faculty members placed more emphasis on research, and the two categories of administrators placed more emphasis on management skills. Many of the respondents viewed all of their professional activities as job-related, and they viewed the primary career options for institutional researchers as teaching, nonacademic administration, state-level administration/research, and institutional research. Several respondents suggested avoiding long-term careers in institutional research and advocated a variety of experiences. A condensed version of the questionnaire, the AIR PDS (Professional Development Services) Board Career Development Survey, is appended. (SW)