Admin application system

[Pringles]

Hey guys.

So the purpose of this thread is to let you know about what things I believe that should be implemented or edited in the current application(s) system.

Before starting to read this thread, keep in mind that this is just my point of view so feel free to give your opinion whether you agree or disagree with it.

So let's start by making a comparison between job applications and Ambrosian applications. In both cases, you are supposed to provide informations such as your age, your country, your language level (English in this case) and so on. In a job application for example you are basically obliged to provide a résumé containing your personal information while in Ambrosian forum you are required to provide similar informations in an application form. But the difference between these two cases is that in the first case, you are basically obliged to provide your previous experience(s) within the résumé.

So the first thing that should be implemented in the application form are the previous experiences. It might sound stupid or useless, but wouldn't this be easier for everybody to evaluate somebody's potential by including the previous experience(s) within the application?

An other important part that should be implemented in the application form or rules is the concept of interview that we can find in almost every job application. The manager of the server should basically be obliged to interview the applicant(s) and to evaluate his motivation and his intentions. I know that some Head Admins have already done that in the past but I don't believe that all of them have been doing that. The interview would also be a good way to ask other things that won't be found in the application thread.This wouldn't only be a perfect tool to evaluate somebody's motivation or intentions but also a good way to start a relation between the manager of the server and the applicant.

But the problem doesn't involve the applicant and the manager but also the ones who give their opinion regarding the application. Most of them give their opinion regarding the Why do you think you should become an admin? (motivation letter) part of the application thread or regarding the relation they have with the applicant but I don't basically believe that these elements should be taken in consideration while giving an opinion because these elements should be evaluated in some other part, like in the ones stated above. I think that the member who is willing to give his opinion should only talk about other elements that may help the manager to evaluate the applicant such as activity and maturity for example. Let's not forget that the opinion should be well constructed and not be an other useless post. So the thing that should be implemented is a rule regarding the length and the quality of the opinion. This doesn't mean that the opinion should please the applicant nor that it should be constructed in a perfect English language but I believe that all the opinions should be important in the manager's eyes and that's why I believe that all the opinions should respect some criteria.

I have also noticed that the current application form contains a wide range of ambiguities. Some questions that can be found the current application forms such as Your country? or aren't self-explanatory since this particular question could either mean the native country or the residence one.

Anyway this is just my opinion as I stated at the beginning of the thread so feel free to contradict it or to provide some other ideas that could complete it.

Here you are a rewritten version of the application form that doesn't include any ambiguity in my eyes.

[plainbox]Nick in game and aliases:
How old are you?
Where do you live?
How would you evaluate your English level (0-10)?
Do you speak any other language(s)?
Do you use a legal Steam account?
What is your Steam ID?
How much time can you be online per day?
How long have you been playing in Ambrosia?
Do you have any previous experience(s)?
Are you currently administrating on another community?:
Why do you think you should become an admin (at least 100 words)?[/plainbox]

[tajski]

I haven't seen any major changes to the current "system" that we use apart from two or three things that probably should of been implemented in the first place. What I disagree upon is the idea of lenghty and quality looking "why should you pick me" answers. This is a multi-gaming as well as multi-language community. I know you've said that the answers shouldn't be in perfect English however there's people that do not require to write a lot to get their point across (me ) therefore no, I completely disagree on making the (at least 100 words) idea also asking for Steam ID? I do not give out my ID that much unless it's mandatory and for what specific reason? You going to check every applicant's VAC-free accounts? It's bloody obvious that if someone has a VAC ban on their account, they won't be allowed to play on the server (talking about 1.6), or at least that's what I think, I'm not quite sure tho.

Any other things that you've added to the application are pretty unnecessary.

[Pringles]

Well I basically respect your opinion and I'm ready to read others but there are some things I have to disagree with.

You firstly said that these are not major changes, but don't you think sometimes a small detail can change everything? Some people don't basically understand that they have to provide some informations instead of others and I believe that a rewritten version of the application form could solve this issue.

You also disagreed with a point that I didn't even state in my thread. You basically understood that the length and the quality should come from the applicant but I wasn't talking about the applicant in this case but about the member who decides to give his opinion about the application. The 100 words was an other thing that I didn't really talk about but that I still implemented in the application form. Moreover, the Steam ID is already required in the current application form, it's just a rewritten version of the question.

[tajski]

Yes, you've rewritten them by adding two or three things which are honestly unnecessary.

You basically understood that the length and the quality should come from the applicant but I wasn't talking about the applicant in this case but about the member who decides to give his opinion about the application.

[plainbox]Why do you think you should become an admin (at least 100 words)?[/plainbox]

I was referring to this. There people in this community that can persuade or get their point across for others to understand only using a few words. An example would be my forum moderator application and yours. You've written quite a lot whereas I've only stated what was important to me. People understand as to why I've applied and they also understand your reasoning as well therefore putting a restriction of at least 100 words is just not needed, in my honest opinion.

[Red Wolf]

Agree on what fragment said, no need for a 100 words restriction.
All others, i agree, especially the interview part. I remember once i was interviewed by novemberrain and eros on how I would react in certain cases.

['PL']

These are ludicrously small details that in 1/10 chances will affect a server manager's opinion. A community of our caliber has no need to restructure the admin application appeal format, with the inclusion that most applicants we receive hardly ever write anything that is understandable nor impactful for some of the current playerbase to generate an opinion just from a 100 word paragraph. Not to mention what you define the fields as previous experience and interview runs, do you really have replicated this empiricist methodology before and distinctively proven to be effective for resources like time and effort to review applicants individually. Because if a server manager consider that someone is capable to be given privileges, why add on top of that layers to expand the complexity for an applicant. I like to let you know, that is 2015 and the quality of applications that hit ambrosia are awfully mediocre which don't need additional waiting curves for administrator rights. If you had to per say use this system in earlier periods of the community where quality and profundity of every individual was at the peak, where one minor mistake changed the perception of the community towards an individual, I would gladly support it.

Now let me rerun why this format is too incompatible with current time:

Starting with a mustdo 100 word paragraph is simply over the top. I have not seen anyone after 2013 that written something so interesting where his ingenuity did put a placeholder for my opinion about him. I can say that a 100word paragraph is not that much from one side, but in a collective hindsight, most applicants will do very poorly which could lead worsening their applicant status. So the community liberally gave any individual to write how much he thinks and can to convince the entire community to vouch or not for his administrator progression. If you chose to write essay, you can. If you want to shortly sum up your reflective professional portfolio with the usage of minimal slang and humor, nobody will care really. 

Then we have this interview:
Some head admins I have recollection to practice interview synchronization is sami, stevko and rawrplus. And it wasn't an interview than what it was just a introductory conversation where the head admin engraves his trust in the new administrator. It has rather positive attributes as you presented but with the cost of the head admin's time and energy management to him repetitively say his speech. The automatic message that every trial administrator receive is 50% fitting for that interview, and all of the questions the new administrator has can excommunicate them with the few general topics that are out there in the admin hq sections. If more questions arise, I don't remember a head admin in which that special circumstance won't come by and help that new admin. But that should be the last resort if anything.

And lastly previous experiences,
I understand that more information can generate more enrichment for the server manager's opinion, but such field as previous experiences have tendency to be misinterpreted and straight up abused. Me and you have witness multiple people that lie about previous ranks and positions in other communities so it can help "their" cause. And for that reason, I took the time to join many communities to keep track of people, and it came pretty obvious that this field is the number one abused perimeter in any administrator application in any community I have been. If he has solid evidence and would really like to turn to previous and past positions he can, but I will in most cases just make a big argument about that and veto his application.

[Pringles]

Thanks for taking your time @'PL'.

I guess that I have nothing else to say since you have managed to contradict every single argument that I made in this thread. I didn't really take in consideration the current quality of the applications while my purpose was to improve that quality by implementing some minor changes to the current application system.

I also reckon that people should be free either to persuade or not after reading Fragment's post and yours but I personally believe that persuasion is an essential element in an application thread since one is supposed to prove that he is motivated by the same way one would prove his motivation in a motivational letter.

The interviews would however be a good idea in order to improve the quality of the administration team by introducing some other criteria that were present in the past. But I basically didn't take in consideration the facts that it might be time consuming for the server manager or even unnecessary in some cases.

I guess that you have the right to close the thread.

['PL']

@P o p a y

I'm gonna lock and move this thread, if you have anything of auxiliary nature that you wish to shed some light upon the topic creator and it's replies, please feel freely to do so.

[Rawrplus]

I think the previous experiences tab isn't too bad of an idea though.