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Eggy216 · 12-20-2017, 04:27 PM

Since coming in to the commissioner position a few seasons ago I've found the current setup of the head office to be slightly disorganized and inefficient for one reason or another. When I first came into the position I didn't want to make any changes without having the opportunity to see how the system worked and what the greatest issues within it appeared to be, and having had that opportunity for a decent amount of time now I would like to present the new set up of the head office, which will go into effect as soon as we complete the transition in members.

To start with, the election system has kind of slowly gone downhill. While it started out with people extremely interested in taking part in the process as time went on we saw less and less people interested in going through the nomination process or the actual election. Even when we had people for the elections, nobody really made any effort to further their case. It was kind of just vote for these guys based on their names. That's not a really great way for us to be choosing the people in charge of the league, and while in some cases it's lead to some great people getting into the head office who likely would not have been given the opportunity otherwise, it's still kind of ended up as a mockery of a system and has numerous opportunities for failure within it. Because of that I've opted to get rid of the election system and move to an application system, which should allow us to better decide between candidates and get the people best suited for the job.

Then there's the terms of office. From talking to people I noticed a majority tended to lose interest after two seasons, and get stuck in the position for that third and final season. Because of this the terms are going to shift from 3 seasons to 2 seasons, but the maximum consecutive terms is increasing from 2 to 3, such that the maximum number of consecutive seasons in the head office remains the same (at 6) but we can see more turnover when people generally start to lose their drive for the position to keep people from getting "trapped."

This also allows for the head office to move on from candidates more quickly if they aren't able to fulfill their responsibilities. While this hasn't necessarily been an issue thus far, it's better to have the safety net in place.

I've also sought to make the responsibilities of the head office members clearer. The duty of being a member of the head office at least to me has never really been clearly defined. I think part of this was a difference in the original structure of the head office which kind of intended the owners to play a bigger role than they were willing and led to a bit of disconnect in responsibilities. Hopefully defining the roles more clearly should be beneficial for everyone moving forward and keep responsibilities more balanced.

Another one of the issues with the old rules was the way in which the commissioner was to be chosen. The original rules were designed based on the way Bojo was selected as commissioner, then he resigned and the new commissioner was chosen by a new set of rules drawn up when belgarat was the only one in HO willing to step forward. Then upon his resignation nobody was willing so the owners chose a new commissioner outside of what any rules called for. So now we have new rules governing the selection of the commissioner which should hopefully provide us a path forward in the future when I inevitably decide to move on.

We're also going to be bringing back the co-commissioner, the reason for which is two-fold. Going back to what I indicated earlier, I feel like the move to a one-commissioner system was done with the expectation that the owners would have an extremely active role in everything, but that wasn't ever really discussed with the owners and that's not what ended up happening. Bringing the co-commissioner back also helps in it allows the commissioner to take a smaller role in matters of forum-related discipline, and rather serve as a part of the appeals committee, insulating us against a situation in which none of the owners were around to take part in the appeals process (a situation which as of yet has not been an issue because at least one owner has been active on the site at all times, but it's better to have a contingency plan in place).

The other big change is that we're moving from a 7-member head office team down to a 6-member head office, with the 4 "head office members", a co-commissioner, and the commissioner.

And the final thing I have to mention is that the applications process is being moved to be around the middle of the season rather than the offseason. I moved the head office transition to the offseason when I became commissioner and that was a mistake since that's the busiest time of the season for us, so I'm changing that back to rectify my error.

To see all the changes laid out more clearly, I've posted an additional post in the rulebook so you can see the old rules for head office laid out next to the new ones. I'll be getting rid of the old rules after a week or so, but I want to give people the opportunity to see what's changing. Those rules can be seen here.

I'm looking forward to seeing what the new head office can do. Details on applications for co-commissioner and head office positions will be up soon.

Eggy
Shl

Eggy216 · 12-20-2017, 04:29 PM

I'm very much open to feedback on this. I spent a long time talking with people about all of these things and trying to ensure we had the right approach (it was about 2-3 months of work in total) but I don't expect this to be a perfect fix. Like always there's probably going to have to be re-adjusting and re-evaluating as time goes on, but for now this is what we're starting with as a foundation.

r1c3bowl22 · 12-20-2017, 04:29 PM

Thank god applications are coming back and this stupid ass election bullshit is over and done with. Good job, Eggs.

EDIT: I don't really get term limits. I feel like if the group is doing well, then you my as well keep them. It should be to the discretion of the commish/co-commish if the members of HO are putting in the right amount of work. If not, boot 'em. But if it's all going well, then keep the group intact however long. People will lose interest/get busy naturally.

Co-commish is a good thing to have back.

Eggy216 · 12-20-2017, 04:32 PM

Quote:Originally posted by r1c3bowl22@Dec 20 2017, 04:29 PM
Thank god applications are coming back and this stupid ass election bullshit is over and done with. Good job, Eggs.

Rice this is the SHL. You're being too level-headed and agreeable.

r1c3bowl22 · 12-20-2017, 04:33 PM

Quote:Originally posted by Eggy Nog@Dec 20 2017, 03:32 PM

Rice this is the SHL. You're being too level-headed and agreeable.

Oh no, then don't read the edit.

Eggy216 · 12-20-2017, 04:38 PM

Quote:Originally posted by r1c3bowl22@Dec 20 2017, 04:33 PM

Oh no, then don't read the edit.

That's a fair point. I chose 3 terms because it kept the time the same as it was already, but honestly as far as having term limits at all I was mostly thinking about the old head office system, where people seemed to get the jobs and then never leave them so that you had the same group in charge for what felt like my entire time on the site until Bojo took over as commissioner and instituted elections. Perhaps the application process on its own would keep that from becoming an issue again, though.

Phobospwns · 12-20-2017, 04:41 PM

It has always surprised me that Commissioners can also be GMs here. Nothing against Eggy in particular, I just think it's weird.

I know, I know, most people can separate the commissioner spot with being a GM, and it's not likely we'll have a problem with any conflict of interest (who knows if we ever have)... but regardless, we should be shooting to "Keep an honest man honest", as someone said when I was talking about this in the Rene Discord.

Also, GMing a team naturally takes time, time that could be otherwise spent doing commissioner work- researching trends, considering rule/process changes, discussing with player representative groups (GMs have their say in the HO, the commissioner would be the ultimate decision maker on changes, are the <s>elected</s> selected HO members responsible for "the average joe" aspect?), settling disputes, etc. Taking focusing on GM responsibilities off the plate of the commissioner seems like it would allow them to maybe work more efficiently.

Just my .02 cents.

r1c3bowl22 · 12-20-2017, 04:43 PM

Quote:Originally posted by Eggy Nog@Dec 20 2017, 03:38 PM

That's a fair point. I chose 3 terms because it kept the time the same as it was already, but honestly as far as having term limits at all I was mostly thinking about the old head office system, where people seemed to get the jobs and then never leave them so that you had the same group in charge for what felt like my entire time on the site until Bojo took over as commissioner and instituted elections. Perhaps the application process on its own would keep that from becoming an issue again, though.

Honestly, the only thing wrong with how it was before the election format was that we needed a commish that wouldn't be afraid t osay "Guy, you're not doing much. I'm gonna get someone else". Now, that may be a bit tough to judge, since I know there's not always stuff that needs to be discussed. However, when I was reaching my 8th-10th season there, I would've accepted being removed tbh. Not sure why I didn't just step down, but ya. Term limits aren't necessary, I think.

r1c3bowl22 · 12-20-2017, 04:46 PM

Quote:Originally posted by Phobospwns@Dec 20 2017, 03:41 PM
It has always surprised me that Commissioners can also be GMs here.  Nothing against Eggy in particular, I just think it's weird.

I know, I know, most people can separate the commissioner spot with being a GM, and it's not likely we'll have a problem with any conflict of interest (who knows if we ever have)... but regardless, we should be shooting to "Keep an honest man honest", as someone said when I was talking about this in the Rene Discord.

Also, GMing a team naturally takes time, time that could be otherwise spent doing commissioner work- researching trends, considering rule/process changes, discussing with player representative groups (GMs have their say in the HO, the commissioner would be the ultimate decision maker on changes, are the <s>elected</s> selected HO members responsible for "the average joe" aspect?), settling disputes, etc.  Taking focusing on GM responsibilities off the plate of the commissioner seems like it would allow them to maybe work more efficiently.

Just my .02 cents.

Valid points. I think we should enact a no-GM rule. I'm pretty sure we had that before. Kez or tez or anyone that was in HO when I was, may be able to remember. I seem to remember having no GM's in HO at all. With the exception of Leafs who's an owner. But he's not a GM anymore so even that point's moot.

**RomanesEuntDomus** · 12-20-2017, 04:47 PM

Good job, I'm looking forward to seeing these changes in effect, they certainly sound like a good idea and some fixes were surely needed given how fast people in the league leadershup have burned out in recent years.

***Wally*** · 12-20-2017, 04:49 PM

Good changes to see <a href='index.php?showuser=1765' rel='nofollow' alt='profile link' class='user-tagged mgroup-4'>Eggy Nog</a>

Glad to see some continued proactivity moving forward. As a former GM, to a punished/penalized member, to a now general member who gets to take in the change and simply analyze aspects of the league, I think it is a good move. I look forward to continued improvements long term.

sash · 12-20-2017, 04:51 PM

Good changes, but I agree with phobo. GM being commish does add bias to alot of desicions

Grapehead · 12-20-2017, 04:53 PM

Quote:Originally posted by Phobospwns@Dec 20 2017, 04:41 PM
It has always surprised me that Commissioners can also be GMs here.  Nothing against Eggy in particular, I just think it's weird.

I know, I know, most people can separate the commissioner spot with being a GM, and it's not likely we'll have a problem with any conflict of interest (who knows if we ever have)... but regardless, we should be shooting to "Keep an honest man honest", as someone said when I was talking about this in the Rene Discord.

Also, GMing a team naturally takes time, time that could be otherwise spent doing commissioner work- researching trends, considering rule/process changes, discussing with player representative groups (GMs have their say in the HO, the commissioner would be the ultimate decision maker on changes, are the <s>elected</s> selected HO members responsible for "the average joe" aspect?), settling disputes, etc.  Taking focusing on GM responsibilities off the plate of the commissioner seems like it would allow them to maybe work more efficiently.

Just my .02 cents.

Everyone on a team has a perceived bias, not just GMs. There's a conflict of interest for any member of the site tbh, but we have no option around that. I don't think GMs are less trustworthy in these situations so they should be eligible the same as anyone. Your point about workload makes sense though, but seems like something we'd have to treat on a case by case basis.

JumpierPegasus · 12-20-2017, 04:53 PM

Very good changes, all necessary and good work coming up with a solution eggster

Now just make sure that you have two strong members as commissioner and co-commissioner. The Head office should be used for the commissioner and co-commissioner to make decisions but utilise the head office members as simply people to bounce ideas off of. Don't let there continue to be a "too many cooks" situation which plagued the league when we introduced this new system

r1c3bowl22 · 12-20-2017, 04:55 PM

Quote:Originally posted by JumpierPegasus@Dec 20 2017, 03:53 PM
Very good changes, all necessary and good work coming up with a solution eggster

Now just make sure that you have two strong members as commissioner and co-commissioner. The Head office should be used for the commissioner and co-commissioner to make decisions but utilise the head office members as simply people to bounce ideas off of. Don't let there continue to be a "too many cooks" situation which plagued the league when we introduced this new system

You're just mad you got bounced as quick as you were let into HO when they got the new system.

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