[Applied] Rank Removals

[Steven.]

4 hours ago, Carlito said:

All of these groups are needed in some type of way whether it is small or big. I would just not remove them but instead put certain teams together and just have sub-roles in them.

This was something that was mentioned previously by BoM and I by adding some sort of "sub-roles" giving a staff member something they thrive at and are proficient at doing like social media posts, banners, COTM, map bug fixes, etc and that being their goal and responsibility in that role alone before moving onto other projects that are outside their "skills". But given the struggle I've seen as of lately and the decrease in "active" staff I feel adding more roles won't do much if there's no one to fill those roles that are created.  I do like the idea and wish it was implemented in the past because it could've created some fluidity to the ranks but now I think it would be pointless.

[Gentoo]

The SM/IA split is possibly the worst change to rank structure seen in the communities history. From having people handling ban appeals/demotions/promotions not actually interacting with the community (on the servers but also in TS and later Discord), to providing a pathway for people to this position (and BD) where they are never required to actually grow and manage the community in a real and measurable way. The board has always been somewhat disconnected from the community from their inactivity, which is where much of the frustration comes from, but I think it's permissible to some degree. Having a pathway to funnel people in just off the basis of being PC/mature enough and posting in enough threads? Trash, and sort of an arbitrary definition to make. I know it's been justified as "offloading some work from AOs" but it doesn't function that way. See CAs, work is offloaded to those that are capable and want to do it, it just put IAs above SMs like you couldn't trust someone to talk about demotions/promotions/unbans but you could trust them to manage an entire server.

 

BoMs idea of specializations that aren't full ranks or teams is also a good idea, they've never been teams anyways. At best, the person in charge is checking to make sure everything is done (it never is), or usually it's just a bunch of guys who don't interact much and don't know what anyone else is doing but sort of do the same thing. It works better just having SMs and ETs reach out independently to people they like working with to add accountability and get things done more efficiently. I don't see why it would be too late to have this if we're already leaving teams here.

[Cept For Her]

Responsibility and Focus Changes by Cept

IA

• The same responsibilities except for some shared roles with other teams
• More focus on internal staff issues, and better communication with staff members who are doing things they should not be (ie. give them a warning or have a talk with them, regardless of their rank)

SM

• Ability to handle ban appeals for their servers (they manage the servers, meaning they should know the rules the best, and be able to judge a ban as being just or not. Appeal can go to IA if its more on the no evidence side)
• **MAYBE** Perm requests. At the least should have the ability to weigh in on them, and should be consulted in the form of problem people to a specific server (although lets be real, the latter should go for every admin)

CA

• Basically mini IA/SM. Focus should be more on external/community member relations, and relay problems/concerns to the proper team, be it IA or SM

 

Media/Marketing/Modding

• Axe them all. As @Dominicsaid, the requests can be made public, and as such, can promote more community discussion and revival.
• Marketing can return to BDs with conference to IA/SM/CA on situations that concern them (ie. Server Adverts / Community Relations)
• Media is the only real issue with having artwork for special events, but as dominic said, you dont need insane banners for that stuff, considering the community isnt doing very well anyway. Oftentimes waiting for banners or other artwork can delay a great event from being pushed out.

Stream Team

• Get rid of the team, and instead promote streamers on the website/discord through a "partner" program of sorts.
• You can allow trusted higher ups / members to stream on the official SG twitch for official events, but lets be real, its not going anywhere anytime soon without some major management and planning

Events Team

• You guys keep doing you, focusing on bringing community members together and giving a good time to everyone. A lot of people stick around/return for some of these events, and they should not be overlooked as a way to help revitalize the community, whether the events be on the server or not

[Gator]

I personally really liked the old rank structure we had before breaking off into teams.

 

It was easy to identify where each rank was in the hierarchy and who to go to for particular issues. Right now you can be a CA (below SM), but also be an IA (above/equal to SM) which doesn't make sense to me. Looking at you two @kabLe @Hawks

 

It also gave a significant incentive for promotions. The responsibilities and powers that came with going from SA to CA to AO made it much more worth the effort it took for the promotions.

 

 

[Caution]

Updates coming tomorrow.

[Dom]

3 hours ago, Gator said:

 

It was easy to identify where each rank was in the hierarchy and who to go to for particular issues. Right now you can be a CA (below SM), but also be an IA (above/equal to SM) which doesn't make sense to me.

what is confusing about wanting to be a higher up staff member such as IA without wanting to bother with server related things . moving files aint for everyone