A Message from the Board of Directors

Melisande Arneil

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During the summer, the board was approached by the Keeper and Amyrlin regarding the position of Keeper. The amount of time required to handle both operational and membership issues is huge, to the point that in itself, the Keeper position could be a full-time position. The board has therefore decided to create a new position, on par with the rest of the officers, to more fairly divide the volunteer work, and hopefully create a better experience for our membership. This position, which we are calling the Chief Membership Officer (with an appropriate WoT name to be decided later), would be in charge of the Departments of Membership and Community Outreach. The Keeper would be in charge of the Departments of Events, Technology, and Marketing.

This division of responsibilities reflects the different skill sets required for each position. It's rare to find someone who can balance both the operational and membership skill sets required to be effective. We also realized that as we are a social club, as defined by the IRS, we should have a C-suite level position dedicated solely to membership needs. The board feels that it's necessary and vital to redistribute the workload so that no one person is overwhelmed by the position they've volunteered/been hired for.

Considering that we had advertised for a Keeper first, then onboarded our newest Board members, then decided to create the CMO position, we've decided that we will be hiring for both of these positions from the applicants that applied for Keeper. All applicants have been notified and have made their choices regarding which position they wish to be interviewed for. We hope to have interviews done and decisions made regarding the new Keeper and CMO shortly.

If you have any questions regarding these decisions, please feel free to email the board.
 

Ahmyra al'Ruley

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I think this is an excellent change. Best of luck to all applicants!
 

Tallan Daar

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I'm a bit sad to think of people who might have applied - and been an excellent fit - for one of these positions, but weren't able or willing to take on both (and so didn't apply for Keeper).

Other than that, this is great news.
 

Kelgan al'Moranwin

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Sounds like a reasonable change :)

Will the CMO have a site title, similar to the rest of the C-suite, as opposed to just being the CMO?
 

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I think that will help a lot with admin burnout in that position. That's a great move! :joy
 

Morrighan Daghdera

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Totally agree that it’s a great move.


I'm curious how these duties differ from those typically held by respective department heads.

I’m only guessing here. In my mind, the duties still represent what the Keeper level office would handle: hirings, overseeing department heads (especially navigating any conflicts across or between departments), but also evaluating structures to enact potential changes. For example, the much needed change to the age requirement for different levels of membership is not enacted at the department head level.

Your question is a great one though. I think a lot of the possible overlap in duties could be related to the different leadership styles as well. But there are some things that must be sanctioned above individual departments. The Keeper is that level. This split refers to splitting the departments so that 2 people instead of just 1 person will cover all departments. The duties of Keeper appear unchanged.
 

Cassie Dainar

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The way I read it, the split also means we will have an inward facing (membership and outreach) and an outward facing (tech and marketing) person. Sort of splits the job from one person doing everything to a people person and a technical selling the site person. Definitely should help with burnout and allow each spot to have a more focused objective. In my brain the current position would be like having me be over outreach and events just because they’re money intensive even though it would be a horrible fit.

Good luck to the applicants and I can’t wait to see who I’ll be working with on the future. (Fair warning, I’m as team oriented as any cat)
 

Morgana Arakos

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This seems like a great change, thank you!
 

Yenie Antagar

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I'm a bit sad to think of people who might have applied - and been an excellent fit - for one of these positions, but weren't able or willing to take on both (and so didn't apply for Keeper).

Other than that, this is great news.

I agree that this is a great change but that there might have been people that didn't want the job posting as it was but would've liked to apply for either or both of the new ones.
 

Alyria Ess

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Would someone from the Board be able to speak to why the hiring for CMO wasn't posted at the same time as the hiring for Keeper? From the quote I have below, it appears (unless I am misunderstanding,) that the need for two positions was known, yet only one position was posted.

During the summer, the board was approached by the Keeper and Amyrlin regarding the position of Keeper. The amount of time required to handle both operational and membership issues is huge, to the point that in itself, the Keeper position could be a full-time position. The board has therefore decided to create a new position, on par with the rest of the officers, to more fairly divide the volunteer work, and hopefully create a better experience for our membership.

My most reasonable guess is that the need for two positions was known this summer, but the details were not worked out regarding what the second position would entail until the middle to end of the Keeper hiring process - if that's the case, then why not open hiring for the second position? Or even expand applications for Keeper? If my above guess is so, then I must say you are really shorting yourself on a talent pool. I feel there are many more members who would have applied had they known of both more specialised roles.

Thanks
 

Ty al'Djinn

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Would someone from the Board be able to speak to why the hiring for CMO wasn't posted at the same time as the hiring for Keeper? From the quote I have below, it appears (unless I am misunderstanding,) that the need for two positions was known, yet only one position was posted.



My most reasonable guess is that the need for two positions was known this summer, but the details were not worked out regarding what the second position would entail until the middle to end of the Keeper hiring process - if that's the case, then why not open hiring for the second position? Or even expand applications for Keeper? If my above guess is so, then I must say you are really shorting yourself on a talent pool. I feel there are many more members who would have applied had they known of both more specialised roles.

Thanks

From how I read it, they posted the position for Keeper, onboarded the new directors, and then while deliberating decided that splitting the position would be best.

Given that we haven’t had a keeper for four months, I think they made the right call in just moving forward with the applicants they had. It ensures candidates with the most time to dedicate will be chosen, which is very much needed right now. It also sounds like they have enough people to have a real choice for both positions, so they have enough candidates.
 

Elania al'Manir

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I think this is a good change.

However, while we have been Keeperless for months, the commitment to the position generally lasts for years. I understand the desire to move forward, but this is one of the places where I advise being thorough.
 

Alyria Ess

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It ensures candidates with the most time to dedicate will be chosen

It does not ensure it, however it does suggest it. As I said above, to ensure you have the best candidate, you would want to fish from a relatively big pool. I don't see the threat of there being an overwhelming amount of candidates, considering our size, so no risk there.

I agree with @Elania al'Manir, thoroughness should be advised. We need a Keeper, but speed should not trump accuracy.
 

Ty al'Djinn

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IMO, If an individual did not think they could do the whole job, or at least give it a good effort, then there is no reason to think they could do it now. Even with the split, the candidates will arguably have more work at first, not less, because now they will have to figure out a clear delineation of their responsibilities and build what is expected of them from scratch, while navigating a new balance of power and shift in social obligations on the site. It is also likely that each “mini keeper” will need to learn the full responsibilities of the other half of their position the same way the keeper previously learned the Amyrlin’s responsibilities.

I firmly believe that the perfect is the enemy of the good, and in this case I do not think that a cost/benefit of re-opening the position to new applicants would provide any real value at all.

I am sure that your objections were raised by at least one member of the board, and this was reached as the consensus. We have to start trusting our leadership eventually.
 

Leala ni al'Dareis t'al'Caleum

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IMO, If an individual did not think they could do the whole job, or at least give it a good effort, then there is no reason to think they could do it now. Even with the split, the candidates will arguably have more work at first, not less, because now they will have to figure out a clear delineation of their responsibilities and build what is expected of them from scratch, while navigating a new balance of power and shift in social obligations on the site.

I totally agree with that. It's not just making the job simpler. Now they'll need to make the jobs fit the site, and then make it their own.
 
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