What Does a Subject Matter Expert Do?

A subject matter expert is someone who communicates his knowledge of a topic to other professionals within an organization. They often act as consultants to companies that need to produce educational courses or publish training material. The subject matter expert may also serve as a resource through the entire process of bringing a product to market, or may simply offer some preliminary information at the start of a new venture. He may also take a role in establishing a company's quality assurance measures.

Technology and software companies often rely on subject matter experts to inform programmers and engineers of what a product needs to be able to do. The subject matter expert may also work with technical writers to ensure that product manuals are accurate and usable. Publishers, on the other hand, may rely on a subject matter expert to point them in the direction of good authors or to explain an up-and-coming area of interest. If the editors in a publishing company are not familiar with a particular subject, they can send a book to a subject matter expert for fact-checking.

Educational companies, particularly those offering vocational training, may also make considerable use of subject matter experts. Courses, both online and classroom, are often developed by editors and instructional designers who have little knowledge of the subjects being taught. A subject matter expert may be hired to write the course material which is then broken down into a course. Another significant role for subject matter experts is in the area of test development: Subject matter experts may work with psychometricians to develop professional licensing exams by making sure the appropriate subject matter is covered in the exam and that the answer key is correct.

Some subject matter experts are employees of the companies they work for, and may have a specific role, such as an editor, in the organization as well. On the other hand, subject matter experts may also continue to work in their own field of expertise while offering freelance consulting services to various organizations and companies. For example, a real estate appraiser might run her own firm while offering subject matter expert services to a company that produces appraisal software. That same appraiser might also write and edit books in her field. In doing this, she not only expands her professional network, but she also continues to hone her professional skills and increase her knowledge, increasing her marketability as a consultant.