ABSTRACT
This chapter is partly based on ASTM Special Technical Publication 758, “Guidelines for the Selection and Training of Sensory Panel Members” and on the ISO’s “Guide for Selection and Training of Assessors”. It describes specific procedures for the decision to establish a panel, the selection and training of both difference and descriptive panels, and ways to monitor and motivate panels. Although the text uses the language of a commercial organization which exists to develop, manufacture, and sell a “product” and has its “upper” and “middle management” and reward structure, the system described can be modified to fit the needs of other types of organization such as universities, hospitals, civil or military service organizations, etc. The investment in a descriptive panel is large in terms of time and human resources, and it is wise to conduct an exhaustive screening process, rather than training unqualified subjects. One of the major sources of motivation for panelists is a sense of doing meaningful work.
