I apologize for the piecemeal approach to this post but I'm at work and have limited moments of access (and clarity some might say )
I do know this. Whomever applies to be VATUSA1 had better KNOW this situation exists, be very careful in their decision making, and go in with the understanding that your decisions may be overturned. Being a leader is as much about following as it is leading. Just remember that
Ahhh....a reasoned voice!
[!--quoteo--][div class=\\\'quotetop\\\']QUOTE [/div][div class=\\\'quotemain\\\'][!--quotec--]However, you win some, you loose some, and ultimately the Founders and BoG hold the keys to the castle, i.e. if they decided to stop paying for all this stuff, we'd be out a hobby. If they want something done a certain way, then you make your case, then live with the decision....good or bad.[/quote]
This is the point! Articulation and dissemination of the Founders requirements through the BoG et. al. takes alot of damn hard work. Appropriately wielded, the DD position can be a valued participant and as importantly, an
advocate representing his constituents. That voice of advocacy is what will be lost through the elimination of the DD position. The job could be done by the RD but how effective will this be while he is also responsible to the remaining divisions and the region as a whole?
[!--quoteo--][div class=\\\'quotetop\\\']QUOTE [/div][div class=\\\'quotemain\\\'][!--quotec--]My question is WHY is it a us vs. them scenario? Who is driving the wedge and conflict? Posts like this definitely don't go towards finding a solution, but rather, further drive that wedge in. It's rheotorical btw. Poor communication, i.e. not being on the same page, seems to be the key premise of all the threads around this situation. Expectation setting, accountablity, process flow, etc. etc. all seem to be at issue.[/quote]
Keyword here is
accountability. Most of the issues at their most basic level, are attributable to the lack of exercised accountability and holding folks responsible in times past. Most of the new policies and policy amendments reflect an effort to "codify" if-you-will actions that are expected of individuals in positions of management. For varied reasons those actions were not accomplished in recent past (say 5 years) - in essence no common sense was applied as would have been expected. Case in point, the GRP. It was originally actualized through a request from the BoG to the EC to come up with a policy that provided regulation over the widely variant and in many cases, outlandishly difficult and obtuse controller training, transfer and visiting requirements VATSIM-wide. Up to that time even with constant prodding, no positive results had been attained in answer to the identified problems. Through this "codification", a loss of some autonomy at the operational level has occurred. Many find this disconcerting to say the least. This is further exasperated by the fact that such codification has to be well-crafted, easy to understand, well focused and thorough in applicability.
Now layer on top of all this the factor of VATSIM being a
volunteer organization. With the onerous burden of having to operate under more and more policies and regulations and a sense of not being able to determine one's own "destiny" as-it-were, you can quickly see where frustration can erupt and members who have all the best in mind for their efforts become any one of; frustrated, combative, reticent...(fill in the blank).