Process Update The Active ATL Guide

[Deck Knight]

Approved by tennisace

This is a little guide I wrote to help out anyone who becomes ATL in the future. It is serious in content but I added some humor in, simply because the position has a stigma for some reason.

09/03/2010: Original Post.
09/04/2010: Grammar Update 1 edited in.

CAP Active ATL Guide
Written by Deck Knight
Proofread by Rising_Dusk

Well partner, it looks like you drew the shorter straw in the Topic Leader nominations thread, and now you’re the TL's patsy. Essentially, your job is to lay in wait and then take over should the TL move away, go on vacation, or be mysteriously abducted by agents entirely unrelated to you. As such, you cannot offer personal submissions during the CAP process, since there is the potential you would advance your own option should the TL have to step down at that point. That is part of the job description and a technical limitation, but otherwise the ATL position has many advantages. If you're the ATL either the TL trusts your judgment or you were picked because the Policy Review Council gave you the second highest number of votes, and it's a function more of tradition than the TL's personal taste. In any case, someone values your opinion highly enough that they believe you will make a suitable stand-in should the need arise.

You should consider it part of your duties to be a second set of eyes and ears on the CAP Project throughout its course. Your responsibilities include keeping threads on track, offering opinions on submissions, and basically anything else a TL would be doing to focus a discussion. Be aware that you cannot override the Topic Leader's final decisions on slates, but you can and should exercise your knowledge to help push discussions along and add your own input.

Maintaining Control

An active ATL is an extension and complement to the TL. However, an ATL is expected to have their own opinion and provide constructive feedback on discussion material. It is for this reason that an ATL has some power to "threadhog" in order to keep the topic on track. If you're in the concept discussion stage and people keep jumping to Counters counters or moves with no relevance, it's your job to step in, inform them they are getting off track, and redirect them to the matter at hand. When you offer feedback there is always the chance that the TL will disagree with you. In such a case, the TL's opinion will always mean more. Don't take this personally or fight with it, just accept it as fact. If they don't ask for your opinion, it's still good for both the process and the community that you state it anyway. ATL's have much broader latitude in discussions than most of the other posters since they, like the TL, are focused on the end-product and not necessarily the individual stage being discussed.

Exercising Power

In addition to steering threads in the right direction, an ATL should also be wary of destructive users that will try to take over or otherwise hurt discussions. You may encounter a poster who at every turn tries to drag flavor into competitive discussions or rages against a decision made in the previous thread. While you should expend the effort to keep the thread on track, sometimes you have to call in a moderator on particularly egregious matters. Don’t threaten an action in the thread, alert a moderator in #cap or send a PM. While you are supposed to keep things on track, you should avoid acting like a moderator—that is, of course, unless you are a moderator, in which case nuke away. Fostering good discussion occasionally means seeking out someone who can drop the hammer on a poster that repeatedly derails the project.

Conclusion

Although the ATL is still subordinate to the TL and their slates, you shouldn't view the position of ATL as something that prevents you from contributing. There is a long line of people who submit a stat spread or a name or a movepool in every CAP project, but none of them gets the power to directly focus the project at each step. The ATL position is an opportunity to show the CAP forum that you have the kind of drive and dedication to get the top slot for the next CAP. For a while, we had Topic Leaders that were hands-off and ATLs that were, if anything, even worse as the functionaries to a system of general complacency. With the strong TL model in place, ATLs should also display the same leadership qualities. At every turn, there seems to be someone willing to cry failure before the project is even half over, so it often takes two people to right the ship, as it were.

Always remember to communicate with your TL throughout the project. You're the second in command and should be working actively with the TL whenever possible. In the event that your TL has a bit more absenteeism than you do or is more difficult to communicate with, the duty falls on you to keep the project going until the TL makes their selections. Follow these guidelines and you will win the respect of your fellow contributors. The ATL is not a second-stringer, but a key player in the discovery process of each CAP project. Use your bully pulpit wisely and you won't be forgotten when the next project comes around.

 

[DougJustDoug]

I like this Deck! I like the writing style, and I think it fits perfectly. I think having a quick guide like this is a great way to "legitimize" the ATL position, and show how they can be a real asset to a well-run CAP project. I think CAP 11 was a wake-up call to everyone that the ATL is not just a fluff position. Because of your active involvement in CAP 11 from the very beginning, when Fuzznip left you were able to step right in without the project feeling like there was a "completely new leader". So, a guide like this is a nice way to show people how to do the ATL job the right way.

We're definitely putting this up on the CAP subsite. I guess it's just a question of grammar/spell editing, and perhaps adding any content that was missed. I can't think of anything more that is needed, but others may have suggestions.

 

[Rising_Dusk]

I read this over last night and was going to grammar check it then, but ended up being too tired for my own good. Aside from that, I second Doug's sentiment. This is a very nice guide that absolutely does reaffirm the ATL as a serious position in the CAP hierarchy for any given project. I will definitely proofread this tonight and throw a GP stamp on it for good measure.

Also, I love the style of the writing, but I do not like the style of the section headers. As much as I love Captain Planet, you need to remember that this is not a Smog article. You're not appealing to random users who read that ezine like a newspaper. You're trying to explain the active ATL roles to people who have just become the ATL. I think you should use more descriptive and less flavorful section headings.

EDIT: Grammar check time.

Additions in bold, removals in red.

Hide

Introduction:

Well partner, it looks like you drew the shorter straw in the Topic Leader nominations thread, and now you’re the TL'’s patsy. Essentially, your job is to lay in wait and then take over in should your the TL move away, go on vacation, or be mysteriously abducted by agents entirely unrelated to you. As such, you cannot offer personal submissions during the CAP process, since there is the potential you would advance your own option should the TL have to step down at that point. That is part of the job description and a technical limitation, but otherwise the ATL position has many advantages. ((connect these two paragraphs))

In fact, the only real limitation to the ATL position is the no-submissions rule. If you're in the ATL position, either the TL himself or herself trusts your judgment greatly, or else you were picked because the Policy Review Council gave you the second highest number of votes, and it'’s a function more of tradition than the TL's personal taste. In any case, someone values your opinion highly enough that they believe you will make a suitable stand-in should the need arise.

Therefore, yYou should consider it part of your duties to be a second set of eyes and ears on the CAP Project throughout its course. Your responsibilities include Kkeeping threads on track, offering opinions on submissions, and basically anything else a TL would be doing to focus a discussion are all also your responsibility. Be aware that you do not cannot override the Topic Leader'’s final decisions on slates, but you can and should exercise your knowledge to help push discussions along and add your own input.

Hoggish Greedly:
Maintaining Control

An active ATL is an extension and complement to the TL. However, an ATL is expected to have their own opinion and provide constructive feedback on discussion material. It is for this reason that Therefore an ATL has a limited some power to “"threadhog"” in order to keep the topic on track. If you'’re in a the concept discussion stage and people keep jumping to Counters counters or moves with no relevance, it'’s your job to step in, inform them they are getting off track, and redirect them to the matter at hand. When you offer feedback, there is always a the chance that the TL will disagree with you. In such a case, the TL's opinion will always mean more. Don't take this personally or fight with it, just accept it as fact. it will clash with the TL, and the TL does basically overrule you, but they are generally interested in your advice or your opinion. If they don'’t ask for your opinion, it'’s still good for both the process and the community that you state it anyway. policy to put your thought into the discussion. ATL’s have much broader latitude in discussions than most of the other posters since they, like the TL, are focused on the end-product and not necessarily the individual stage being discussed.

Duke Nukem:
Exercising Power

In addition to a duty to steering threads in the right direction, an ATL should also be wary of destructive users that will try to take over or otherwise hurt discussions. tendencies on the part of certain repeat offenders. You may encounter a poster who at every turn tries to drag flavor into competitive discussions or rages against a decision made in the previous thread. While you should expend the effort to keep the thread on track, sometimes you have to call in a moderator on particularly egregious matters. Don’t threaten an action in the thread, just do it in #cap or send a PM. While you are supposed to keep things on track, you should avoid acting like a moderator—that is, of course, unless you are a moderator, in which case nuke away. you shouldn’t mini-mod (unless you’re an ATL that also happens to be a CAP moderator, in which case nuke away.) Fostering good discussion occasionally means seeking out someone who can drop the hammer on a poster that repeatedly derails the project.

The Power is Yours:
Conclusion

Well, not in the absolute sense. You'’re still subordinate to the TL and their slates, but you shouldn'’t view the position of ATL as a liability something that prevents you from contributing. There is a long line of people who submit a stat spread or a name or a movepool in every CAP project, but none of them gets the power to directly focus the project at each step. The ATL is an opportunity to show the CAP Fforum that you have the kind of drive and dedication to get the top slot for the next CAP. For a while, we had Topic Leaders that were hands-off and ATL’s that were, if anything, even worse as the functionaries to a system of general complacency. With the strong TL model in place, ATL’s should also display the same leadership qualities. It often takes two people to right a ship, and aAt every turn, there seems to be someone willing to cry failure before the project is even half over, so it often takes two people to right the ship, as it were.

Always remember to communicate with your TL throughout the project. You’'re the second in command and should be working actively with the TL whenever possible. In the event that your TL has a bit more absenteeism than you do or is more difficult to communicate with, the duty falls on you to keep the project going until the TL makes their selections. Follow these guidelines and you will win the respect of your fellow contributors. The ATL is not a second-stringer, but a key player in the discovery process of each CAP project. Use your bully pulpit wisely and you won’'t be forgotten when the next project comes around.

Be careful with your apostrophes. All of them are of the wrong form and need to be fixed to the smogon standardized form (' and "). I think I got most of them, but check anyway just in case.

Also, when this is done (how much does it honestly need?), I can go ahead and HTML it so that someone can upload it to the website. This should definitely be on-site before the next CAP gets off its feet.

GP Check 1/?

 

[jumpluff]

Well, partner, it looks like you drew the shorter straw in the Topic Leader nominations thread, and now you’re the TL's patsy. Essentially, your job is to lay in wait and then take over should the TL move away, go on vacation, or be mysteriously abducted by agents entirely unrelated to you. As such, you cannot offer personal submissions during the CAP process, since there is the potential you would advance your own option should the TL have to step down at that point. That is part of the job description and a technical limitation, but otherwise the ATL position has many advantages. If you're the ATL, either the TL trusts your judgment or you were picked because the Policy Review Council gave you the second highest number of votes, and it's a function more of tradition than the TL's personal taste. In any case, someone values your opinion highly enough that they believe you will make a suitable stand-in should the need arise.

You should consider it part of your duties to be a second set of eyes and ears on the CAP Project throughout its course. Your responsibilities include keeping threads on track, offering opinions on submissions, and basically anything else a TL would be doing to focus a discussion. Be aware that you cannot override the Topic Leader's final decisions on slates, but you can and should exercise your knowledge to help push discussions along and add your own input.

Maintaining Control

An active ATL is an extension and complement to the TL. However, an ATL is expected to have their own opinion and provide constructive feedback on discussion material. It is for this reason that an ATL has some power to "threadhog" in order to keep the topic on track. If you're in the concept discussion stage and people keep jumping to Counters counters or moves with no relevance, it's your job to step in, inform them they are getting off track, and redirect them to the matter at hand. When you offer feedback there is always the chance that the TL will disagree with you. In such a case, the TL's opinion will always mean more. Don't take this personally or fight with it; just accept it as fact. If they don't ask for your opinion, it's still good for both the process and the community that you state it anyway. ATL's have much broader latitude in discussions than most of the other posters since they, like the TL, are focused on the end-product and not necessarily the individual stage being discussed.

Exercising Power

In addition to steering threads in the right direction, an ATL should also be wary of destructive users that will try to take over or otherwise hurt discussions. You may encounter a poster who at every turn tries to drag flavor into competitive discussions or rages against a decision made in the previous thread. While you should expend the effort to keep the thread on track, sometimes you have to call in a moderator on particularly egregious matters. Don’t threaten an action in the thread,; alert a moderator in #cap or send a PM. While you are supposed to keep things on track, you should avoid acting like a moderator—that is, of course, unless you are a moderator, in which case nuke away. Fostering good discussion occasionally means seeking out someone who can drop the hammer on a poster that repeatedly derails the project.

Conclusion

Although the ATL is still subordinate to the TL and their slates, you shouldn't view the position of ATL as something that prevents you from contributing. There is a long line of people who submit a stat spread or a name or a movepool in every CAP project, but none of them gets the power to directly focus the project at each step. The ATL position is an opportunity to show the CAP forum that you have the kind of drive and dedication to get the top slot for the next CAP. For a while, we had Topic Leaders that were hands-off and ATLs that were, if anything, even worse as the functionaries to a system of general complacency. With the strong TL model in place, ATLs should also display the same leadership qualities. At every turn, there seems to be someone willing to cry failure before the project is even half over, so it often takes two people to right the ship, as it were.

Always remember to communicate with your TL throughout the project. You're the second in command and should be working actively with the TL whenever possible. In the event that your TL has a bit more absenteeism than you do or is more difficult to communicate with, the duty falls on you to keep the project going until the TL makes their selections. Follow these guidelines and you will win the respect of your fellow contributors. The ATL is not a second-stringer, but instead a key player in the discovery process of each CAP project. Use your bully pulpit wisely and you won't be forgotten when the next project comes around.

2

Personally, I think this is ready for HTMLisation, if people are satisfied with the content. Dusk, you can find+replace check for the wrong punctuation marks. ’ :)

 

[Rising_Dusk]

I implemented all of Pluff's few edits and fixed the rest of the apostrophes. The HTML for the article is below. Also, I'm pretty sure the content is good; Deck is perhaps the most experienced ATL we have. ;)

<div class="author">Written by <a href="/forums/member.php?u=653">Deck Knight</a>. </div>

<ol class="toc">
<li><a href="#intro">Introduction</a></li>
<li><a href="#control">Maintaining Control</a></li>
<li><a href="#power">Exercising Power</a></li>
<li><a href="#conc">Conclusion</a></li>
</ol>

<h2><a name="intro">Introduction</a></h2>

<p>Well, partner, it looks like you  drew the shorter straw in the Topic   Leader nominations thread, and now  you're the TL's patsy. Essentially,   your job is to lay in wait and  then take over should the TL move  away,  go on vacation, or be  mysteriously abducted by agents entirely unrelated  to you. As such, you  cannot offer personal submissions during  the CAP  process, since there  is the potential you would advance your own  option  should the TL have  to step down at that point. That is part of  the job  description and a  technical limitation, but otherwise the ATL position  has many  advantages. If you're the ATL, either the TL trusts your  judgment or you were picked  because the  Policy Review Council gave you  the second highest number of  votes, and  it's a function more of  tradition than the TL's personal taste. In any  case, someone values your  opinion highly enough that they  believe you  will make a suitable  stand-in should the need arise.</p>

<p>You should consider it part of your duties to be a second set of eyes   and ears on the CAP Project throughout its course. Your responsibilities   include keeping threads on track, offering opinions on submissions,  and  basically  anything else a TL would be doing to focus a discussion.  Be  aware that you cannot override the Topic  Leader's final decisions  on  slates, but you can and should exercise your knowledge to help push   discussions along and add your own input.</p>

<h2><a name="control">Maintaining Control</a></h2>

<p>An active ATL is an extension and complement to the TL. However, an ATL   is expected to have their own opinion and provide constructive feedback    on discussion material. It is for this reason that an ATL has some   power to  "threadhog" in order to keep the topic on track. If you're  in  the concept discussion stage and people keep jumping to  counters or moves with no  relevance, it's your job to step in, inform   them they are getting off  track, and redirect them to the matter at   hand. When you offer feedback there is always the chance that the TL   will disagree with you. In such a case, the TL's opinion will always   mean more. Don't take this personally or fight with it; just accept it  as fact. If they don't ask for your opinion, it's still  good for both  the process and the community that you state it anyway.  ATL's have much  broader latitude in discussions than most of  the other posters since  they, like the TL, are  focused on the  end-product and not necessarily  the individual stage being discussed.</p>

<h2><a name="power">Exercising Power</a></h2>

<p>In addition to steering threads in the right direction, an ATL should   also be wary of destructive users that will try to take over or   otherwise hurt discussions. You may encounter a poster who at every turn   tries to drag flavor into competitive discussions or rages against a   decision made in the previous thread. While you should expend the effort   to keep the thread on track, sometimes you have to call in a moderator   on particularly egregious  matters. Don't threaten an action in the   thread; alert a  moderator in #cap or  send a PM. While you are supposed  to keep things  on track, you should avoid acting like a moderator—that  is, of course,  unless you are a moderator, in which case nuke away.  Fostering good  discussion occasionally means  seeking out someone who  can drop the  hammer on a poster that repeatedly  derails the project.</p>

<h2><a name="conc">Conclusion</a></h2>

<p>Although the ATL is still subordinate to the TL and their slates, you   shouldn't view the position of ATL as something that prevents you from   contributing. There is a long line of people who submit a stat spread or   a name or a movepool in every CAP project, but none of them gets the   power to directly focus the project at each step. The ATL position is an   opportunity to show the CAP forum that you have the kind of drive and   dedication to get the top slot for the next CAP. For a while,  we had   Topic Leaders that were hands-off and ATLs that were, if  anything, even   worse as the functionaries to a system of general complacency. With  the  strong TL model in place, ATLs should also display the same  leadership  qualities. At every turn, there seems to be someone willing  to cry  failure before the project is even half over, so it often takes  two  people to right the ship, as it were.</p>

<p>Always remember to communicate with your TL throughout the project. You're the second in command and should be working actively with the TL whenever possible. In the event that your TL has a bit more absenteeism than you  do or is more difficult to communicate with, the  duty falls on you to  keep the project going until the TL makes their  selections.  Follow these guidelines and you will win the respect of  your fellow contributors. The ATL is not a second-stringer, but instead a key player in the discovery process of each CAP project. Use your  bully pulpit wisely and you won't be forgotten when the next project comes around.</p>

 

[Deck Knight]

My only real concern regarding content is that I didn't go in-depth enough in TL-ATL relations and disputes, but honestly a lot of that is personality issues that no reasonable person could (or really should) cover in a general guide like this. It falls on the TL to pick an ATL they can work with at that point I think, and if they just go with whoever got second without thinking about it, it can't be helped.

We haven't really had any issues like that (save once I think Fuzznip saying I was a bit too eager/"helpful" in the early threads), but it's so circumstantial that there's either not enough experience with it (me basically trying to lead by example last CAP and possibly going overboard), or else again its an issue where worst case scenario is mods have to get involved because of destructive in-fighting.

I think it covers what it needs to cover and deals with the "stigma" of the position, which is the guide's purpose. Some of the complicated stuff is just going to be addressed as it comes up.

 

[Rising_Dusk]

Alright, with Tennis's blessing, I've uploaded this to the website so it can be visible for all to read. Cheers!