One of the biggest issues contributing to those negative experiences I encountered twenty years ago, was that we weren't reporting to a paid boss. We were doing our best to function as an effective, coordinated team, without outside administrative oversight or direction. While that gave us a certain degree of freedom, and a lot of scope for creative problem-solving, it also led to confusion and some amount of mission creep, because it was easy to forget who our constituents were: not each other, but rather the public we served.
We weren't administratively accountable to those constituents: they didn't elect us, supervise us, or have any input on how the organization was structured. We spent their money (indirectly, through the medical supplies, vehicle maintenance, and liability coverage provided by the campus), and I think we spent it responsibly and effectively, but it was without any reporting requirement to show them the benefits of their investment, resulting in ongoing public relations problems.
As events unfolded earlier this month, I found myself harking back to that earlier situation, as I tried to sort out who was now coordinating which activities, administering which fund, and providing direction to the overall mission. I went looking for the answers on the respective websites and forums, to try and sort it all out. I found lots of information — but very little of it specific enough to really address my confusion.
I have nothing but respect for those who have given 110% over the past year and a half, to spearhead and staff the campaign. So please take the following in the spirit intended: not as a challenge or any kind of aspersion, but merely a sincere request to eliminate any possible confusion about the current state of affairs. These open questions are addressed not to a single specific site, but to any site or group working on campaign activities:
In bullet or outline form, 200 words or less, what is the current general mission of your organization/association? To promote the Farscape television show, cast, or crew? To expand/unite the Farscape fan community? To promote charitable efforts in the show's name? If you have multiple missions, how are you avoiding a loss of focus in your activities?
In bullet or outline form, 200 words or less, what are the current specific goals of your organization/association? Season Five? A particular rating on the miniseries when it airs? A specialized product or service? How are you targeting your efforts to a reasonable spectrum of goals, to avoid splitting your resources too much to effectively achieve those goals?
Who are your constituents? Other scapers? The general public? Specific communities? Specific interest groups? How do you measure and demonstrate your accountability to those constituents, for activities conducted in their name?
What are the requirements for membership? Is your membership tiered (such as voting & non-voting, etc.), and if so, how and why?
What is your governance structure? Are issues decided by the full membership, or an executive committee? If the latter, what posts/offices have been established? How are they filled? Do you have formal terms, with set lengths of service? How are officers replaced or reappointed?
How formal is your organization? Are you a casual association, a formal organization, or legally incorporated?
If any part of your group's activities involves the collection/distribution of funds,
What processes are in place for the collection of monies? Are funds collected into a personal PayPal account designated for the project, a PayPal account established in the name of the group, or a formally incorporated organization bank account?
What processes are in place for the disbursement of funds? Are there controls to ensure that funds are only disbursed in accordance with the wishes, and under the authority, of the group's members/governing committee?
What reporting mechanisms are in place to provide timely, accurate, detailed, and auditable accounting of all flows of funds in and out of group accounts? How often are these reports updated? Are they posted in a regular, prominent location, so that constituents can easily locate them?
The more specifics, the more data that's put out there, the less confusion and conflict we'll have to deal with, going forward. And surely that's a good thing. ;-)
The temptation itself is divided. The devil on my treblin side is tugging at my earlobe, urging the immediate knocking together of heads. The angel on my hamman side, patting me on the shoulder, murmers that there is no honor in potentially prolonging a conflict merely for the opportunity to express my own opinion.
"But, you might talk some sense into everyone," entices Treblin.
Hamman grimaces at the arrogance of that thought. "Remember all those times your parents chided you for having Last Word Syndrome? Hmmm? What's your real motive for sticking your oar in now, anyway?"
Good question. Why am I feeling compelled to wade in, just as the waters are starting to settle?
There's really no getting around it — the answer to all of the above has to be, "yes". Even the most valid of motives cannot possibly be free from an individual's own personal shortcomings and limitations. So, let's put that on the table right upfront. But, looking at that list of questions, it's the last one that I really want to address. How could my viewpoint not be affected by almost four decades of experiences, good and bad? It's obvious to me that those experiences are framing my perspective now, and one in particular has been especially on my mind this month.
For the bulk of my college years, I was active in the campus's emergency services team. By the end of my tenure, I was a senior EMT, an assistant EMT instructor, a CPR instructor, and had served on the executive staff as both Secretary and Public Relations officer. I had put my creative talents to use designing and sewing the team's banner for events. I had sweet-talked the campus administration into providing us with dedicated office space at no charge. I had helped outfit a new emergency response vehicle, right down to the reflective EMS decals on the doors. My significant other was on the team. My roommate was on the team. My social circle was composed almost entirely of team members. By the time I graduated, I was on duty and carrying a pager 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
In short, it was a total immersion experience, which completely consumed my life. And I loved it. I loved being part of a close-knit community. I loved the friends I made. I loved making a significant difference in people's lives, when they were ill or injured. I loved growing as a person as a result of those experiences.
I also hated it. I hated the external politics, squabbling with a liability-wary university, but even more, I hated the internal politics of the clique-plagued team itself. I hated the in-fighting, the schemes to get someone on or off the executive committee, the petty arguments over things like whether or not we should be in full formal uniforms when we were on duty.
Looking back with a saner perspective, twenty years down the line, I see the organizational dynamic more clearly. We were young, and idealistic, and dedicated, and most of all, passionate about what we were doing. There weren't any good guys or bad guys, there were just a whole lot of people with boundless energy, tons of ideas, and an intense desire to be involved, to contribute, to have a voice. It was natural that some of our ideas would be in conflict. It was natural that passionate people sometimes let ego get in the way of professionalism, sometimes let personal relationships interfere with their focus on a task. Sometimes I stood above the fray; other times I was the guiltiest party in the room.
I can't help but see parallels to recent developments in scaperdom. There have been arguments, some petty, some deeply philosophical. There have been personality clashes that distracted from the spirit of the effort. And there's been a whole lot of confusion on the part of those of us not directly privy to whatever the frell is going on behind the scenes.
And you know what? There still aren't any good guys or bad guys. There are just a whole lot of people with boundless energy, tons of ideas, and an intense desire to be involved, to contribute, to have a voice. It's natural that some of our ideas will be in conflict. It's natural that as passionate people, we sometimes let ego get in the way of professionalism, sometimes let personal relationships interfere with our focus on a task. Sometimes we stand above the fray; other times we're each the guiltiest party in the room.
Conflict is okay. Not desirable, but okay. Like the annual flooding of the Nile, it makes a mess of things for a while, but when it recedes, it leaves behind renewed soil, ready to be reseeded for fresh growth. I'm not worried about the long-term health of the scaper community. This too shall pass, and we may find ourselves healthier for it in the long run, as long as we face the issues raised, head-on.