Posted by Adam W. in Questions for the Candidates - Supporting Member Advancement
These are questions for Sarah and Rob based on their recent headquarters post, which I will include excerpts from.

Work with FComms, who will then work with COs, on prioritizing new members for opportunities like DH positions and command-level vacancies.

The President isn’t able to appoint a CO without the FComm’s consent. How will you handle a situation where the FComm is insisting on an experienced CO that they are convinced is the best candidate, but you would like a new CO? Or do you have a plan to try to avoid ending up in that situation?

Should all members be entitled to a chance to be a CO?

I think that any member who wants to be a CO (and there are some who do not, and that’s fine!) should be given the tools and the opportunity to have a chance to get there. My very first post in STF has been circulated recently in my Academy DMs and let’s just say that you wouldn’t think I’d ever win an STF Award for Best CO. Part of the impetus that led to the CO Command Course was making sure that people had access to the knowledge and skills needed to be successful at that level of the club.

The balance of returning experienced COs to the CO chair and getting new members into their first CO spot is something that I think every President and every FComm struggles with. I don’t have a magic formula that says when an experienced CO is a better choice than a new CO, but I hope that Rob and I can make our desire to ensure deserving people get positions is clear when we’re making our Cabinet choices. We also hope to better itemize what the CO job description is, among other positions in the club (part of our remaining platform that hasn’t been posted yet!). This will give both the FComm and the Exec a better framework to evaluate potential candidates and to balance providing opportunity and rewarding longevity.

It can be disheartening to see the same people having several DH positions when that feels like an unobtainable step and we’d like to see if we can tackle this so that new members get those opportunities and older members don’t end up feeling burned out by the sheer quantity of IC and OOC work demanded.

Are you aware of anyone who has recently expressed that they are disheartened that they have been unable to get a DH position? I’m wondering if this is something people are currently struggling with or not.

I am aware of people who haven’t been sure how to advance in the club, whether into DH spots or above, particularly since they are interested in becoming a GM and need to be promoted to Lieutenant to do that.

Reform the ship vacancies process to ensure that COs are regularly updating their vacancies and that these vacancies are easily viewable. As our membership numbers slowly increase, there will be a greater demand for players wanting to know where they can add second or third characters or try out a new position. Having this information easily updatable and accessible bridges the communication gap between command staff and newbies, particularly when one or both sides may not be active in Discord.

I find vacancies easy to update on the ship profile and I find it helpful that I’m prompted to post about them every month in my ship report. I also find it easy to find information on vacancies on other ships and I know a few different ways I can find it. However, I’ve been here quite some time. Why do you think this information is difficult for a newer member to attain? Does the process need reforming or is more education about the existing process needed instead?

Thanks in advance for your answers.

Adam W.

I do think this information is difficult for a newer member to attain. I send the vacancies page to many a new member who reaches out to the PDept for help finding another ship. :) Some COs aren’t as on top of updating the page, either – there are some DH vacancies that never made it into the ship profile, for instance, that Daniel came across recently and we worked to get a recent Academy graduate into the role.

One “easy” idea that I’ve tossed around is that the vacancies box in the fleet report is tied into the vacancies box of the ship profile. That way, you’re only updating them in one place and it’s a monthly “reminder” to get them situated. This would rest on TECH to implement, of course, but I think it’s one way to make sure the tools we already have are being utilized in an educated manner.

• Sarah