Officers' Quarters: Classic blunders
by Scott Andrews 
Sep 5th 2011 at 4:00PM
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook, available now from No Starch Press.
Last week, we heard about an incident where a player received a rather hostile in-game mail from an officer after missing a raid following the death of a relative. The issue stemmed from a lack of communication among the guild's officers.
Along that theme, this week's email describes a case where lack of communication -- and some other classic blunders -- escalated into a full-blown drama bomb.
Hey Scott,
So I'm an Officer in a medium sized guild. Our main focus is to simply have fun, help each other out, PVP, raid, and everything else in between. I've only recently become an Officer for our guild as decided by other Officers and the Guild Leader.
About a month ago we got a new recruit. Let's call him Jack. Jack is a personal friend of our guild leader which we thought was awesome. Having at least one person you know in the guild personally has always helped us stay grounded in and out of the game. My girlfriend is a recruit in the guild and one of my best friends is one of the Officers.
So about a week ago, I logged in to see that Jack had mysteriously been ranked up to Officer rank as well. This confused me. I had been in the guild for almost a year before I was even considered for a role of responsibility. I pulled out my phone and texted my Officer buddy, let's call him Bob, to come over. I explained to him that I didn't think it was very fair that Jack got to be an Officer when everyone else had to work their way up in the guild. To my surprise, Bob had no idea about Jack's promotion. There are only 3 people in our guild that can even rank someone up to Officer and that's our GL, Bob, and another high ranking Officer. Bob proceeded to contact our GL and found out that she had promoted Jack without consulting any of her officers first. Now Bob was pissed.
Bob and I started making some texts and contacted every other officer in the guild to see their view on things. Nearly every officer we talked to, agreed that Jack had not rightfully earned a promotion. After consulting all the other officers, Bob went in, and demoted Jack back down to where any other guildmember would be after only 3 weeks. Knowing that we may later deal with a backlash from our GL, we went on with the rest of our day.Hi, ACO.
That night we were at a buddies house hanging out when Bob got some very heated texts from our guild leader. She said we had no right to demote anyone that she promotes. Our reply was that he should have to work his way up in the guild like everyone else. She said that he was brought in to take care of some specific roles, (i.e. lowbie raid runs, organizing 5 mans, etc...). We said that she could have easily asked one of her many officers to take on those roles. She came back saying that her officers don't do anything and we are lazy. Bob and her went back and forth for a while arguing.
After things cooled down, Bob and I were left with a choice. Do we try and leave the dictatorship we were apart of, create our own guild, or attempt to make amends?
A few days went by and finally Bob and our GL got onto Vent and talked things out. So there is no mutiny to be had. At least not yet.
Now we are at a crossroads. Things are going alright now, but where do we go from here? It's not exactly easy to start your own guild anymore with the new leveling system, so what do we do if this happens again? How does a guild function when the guild leader doesn't consult her officers or delegate jobs for them. Our roles as officers are sketchy at best. With proper delegation of the roles, this whole issue could have been avoided. I would personally have no problem taking on more responsibility if asked to do so.
Back before guild levels, we may have been hasty and jumped ship right away. Now with guild perks, we are forced to pace ourselves and try to work things out. This could be viewed as a good or a bad thing.
So what now? What changes need to be made? What do the Officers and the GL need to do differently? Is there a time when the guild leader needs to step down when a mutiny is in their midst?
Thanks,
-- A Concerned Officer
Taking time to consider a situation rather than executing a hasty gquit is definitely the better of the two options. It appears in this case we have guild perks to thank. Overall, I believe that MMO communities would be better places if everyone took the time to think things through rather than merely acting on their gut emotions -- regardless of guild-based rewards.
As a measure of revenge, it may have felt good to demote your guild leader's friend without talking to her about it. At the most basic level, though, you were merely pursuing an eye for an eye -- the eye in this case being a significant leadership decision carried out without involving the guild's entire leadership. All you managed to accomplish by this was to deepen the disconnect between the officers and your guild leader.
On the bright side, the incident did bring out some issues that sorely need to be addressed before your guild can move forward.
Issue 1: Promotions
You've already told her how you felt about Jack's promotion. You need to worry more about the future at this point. What happens the next time the guild leader invites a friend to the guild?
Ask your guild leader what the official policy is for officer promotions. If she doesn't have one, request that she write one up. Doing so will force her to either create a fair policy or to admit that she'll just promote her friends whether they deserve the position or not. Either way, there shouldn't be any surprises later.
As an alternative, you could suggest that the officers work together to create a policy that everyone can live with.
Issue 2: Officer roles
Tell the guild leader that you as officers are open to expanding your responsibilities and that you're looking for guidance and delegation. Tell her that you want to do more -- it's just never been clear who should be doing what. Hopefully, she'll be grateful for this opportunity to share the guild's duties.
Once everyone has a role to carry out, the guild leader can feel better supported and the officer won't feel like they have sketchy positions within the community. And let's face it: Officers without specific duties tend to slack.
Issue 3: Communication
The third and final problem that I see is one of communication. All of this drama could have been prevented if the guild leader had consulted the officers about the promotion ahead of time.
I have a feeling, however, that she had no real justification for the rank-up and so decided to take the step without announcing it. Communication -- along with proper written policies -- makes it much more difficult for a guild leader to make decisions based on whims or personal preferences, which in the long run makes for a healthier and more stable guild environment.
In addition, if she had told the officers about her feelings earlier, then perhaps the anger and resentment wouldn't have built up to this degree.
The communication has to go both ways, however. You as officers need to express your opinions to the leadership as a whole, rather than using private communication channels to stir up outrage. It's a much more productive means of solving problems.
Lingering doubts
Promoting a friend to an officer position merely on the strength of a personal relationship is absolutely a classic blunder. The other two issues here reflect two of the three biggest mistakes new guild leaders make. Thus, I'm not confident that your guild leader actually knows her business.
There doesn't have to be a mutiny. However, if your guild leader is completely uncooperative about communicating and policy-making, maybe you should start to look for another guild or think about starting your own.
Keep a close eye on her in the future. Hopefully she has learned her lesson from this incident. It sounds like she has a lot to learn, actually. You can either stay and help her to lead the guild more effectively than in the past, or you can look for a guild with more experienced leadership at the helm. That's a decision you'll all ultimately have to make for yourselves.
/salute
Recently, Officers' Quarters has examined how strong new leadership can create a guild turnaround, the pitfalls of promising more than you can deliver, and lessons learned from Scott's own guild demise. Send your own guild-related questions and suggestions to scott@wowinsider.com.
Filed under: Officers' Quarters (Guild Leadership)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Brett Porter Sep 5th 2011 4:02PM
INCONCEIVABLE! Sorry... >.>
Xantenise Sep 5th 2011 4:42PM
You keep saying that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
Sage Sep 5th 2011 6:18PM
For completeness sake...
Man in Black: All right. Where is the poison? The battle of wits has begun.
Vizzini: But it's so simple. All I have to do is divine from what I know of you: are you the sort of man who would put the poison into his own goblet or his enemy's? Now, a clever man would put the poison into his own goblet, because he would know that only a great fool would reach for what he was given. I am not a great fool, so I can clearly not choose the wine in front of you. But you must have known I was not a great fool, you would have counted on it, so I can clearly not choose the wine in front of me.
Man in Black: You've made your decision then?
Vizzini: Not remotely. Because iocane comes from Australia, as everyone knows, and Australia is entirely peopled with criminals, and criminals are used to having people not trust them, as you are not trusted by me, so I can clearly not choose the wine in front of you.
Man in Black: Truly, you have a dizzying intellect.
Vizzini: Wait till I get going! Now, where was I?
Man in Black: Australia.
Vizzini: Yes, Australia. And you must have suspected I would have known the powder's origin, so I can clearly not choose the wine in front of me.
Man in Black: You're just stalling now.
Vizzini: You'd like to think that, wouldn't you? You've beaten my giant, which means you're exceptionally strong, so you could've put the poison in your own goblet, trusting on your strength to save you, so I can clearly not choose the wine in front of you. But, you've also bested my Spaniard, which means you must have studied, and in studying you must have learned that man is mortal, so you would have put the poison as far from yourself as possible, so I can clearly not choose the wine in front of me.
Man in Black: You're trying to trick me into giving away something. It won't work.
Vizzini: IT HAS WORKED! YOU'VE GIVEN EVERYTHING AWAY! I KNOW WHERE THE POISON IS!
Man in Black: Then make your choice.
Vizzini: I will, and I choose - What in the world can that be?
Man in Black: [Vizzini gestures up and away from the table. Roberts looks. Vizzini swaps the goblets]
Man in Black: What? Where? I don't see anything.
Vizzini: Well, I- I could have sworn I saw something. No matter. First, let's drink. Me from my glass, and you from yours.
[Vizzini and the Man in Black drink]
Man in Black: You guessed wrong.
Vizzini: You only think I guessed wrong! That's what's so funny! I switched glasses when your back was turned! Ha ha! You fool! You fell victim to one of the classic blunders - The most famous of which is "never get involved in a land war in Asia" - but only slightly less well-known is this: "Never go against a Sicilian when death is on the line"! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha...
Donhorn Sep 5th 2011 7:36PM
I love how awesome WoW Insider is at awesome. Last night I watched this (probably the greatest movie ever written) and today I see it on here again! Are you guys stalking me? o_O
Boobah Sep 5th 2011 11:02PM
"Man in Black: All right. Where is the poison? The battle of wits has begun."
Missing an important sentence, since it's pretty much the Man in Black's death strike:
"It ends when you decide and we both drink, and find out who is right... and who is dead."
Vizzini assumes that only one cup is poisoned; the idea that both are is, of course, inconceivable. The Man in Black, on the other hand, pushes Vizzini to this conclusion... but only after declaring the beginning of the battle; the very nature of the battle insures that the worst result for the Man in Black is a draw.
Amaxe Sep 5th 2011 11:32PM
The movie was actually a very good adaption of the book (which is rare).
Believe it or not, the book is actually funnier because there were a lot of humor which was left out because it wouldn't transfer over from book to film.
(Just remember the author was William Goldman, not S. Morganstern).
kreighund Sep 5th 2011 4:06PM
I once started a land war in Asia... it was a bad idea!
Donhorn Sep 5th 2011 7:37PM
I do so all the time in Risk, I usually end up winning too! I must be part Sicilian lol.
kreighund Sep 5th 2011 7:54PM
I ended up watching the movie tonight! Love it!
kef_kfb Sep 5th 2011 4:30PM
I think the officers here are as guilty as the guild leader. Instead of talking with the GL to figure out what was going on with the promotion they have done what they should NEVER do: reverse a decision of a superior.
You have to know that you can build up all the administerial structures you want, at the end of the day all guilds are dictatorships. Guild leader is the leader. Its his/hers guild what he/she says goes, he/she is the boss. Not to say you have nothing going for you as non-GL, if you dont like whats going on in the guild you have the ultimate trump card: you can leave.
The lack of communication is the problem here and its not unilateral, both parties (the leader and the officers) are to blame.
Noyou Sep 5th 2011 5:12PM
I can't stress this enough- once bob went in and demoted jack it was a free for all. Also, texting all the officers going behind the GMs back is the start of your mutiny. If you guys are so well organized go out and start your own guild. It is clear to me there is a definite fracture that probably won't be fixed with the current guild structure. As a team player I never look to see what someone else achieves and base my own on that. So they guild leader went out and gave someone she trusts a position of rank. Big deal. That doesn't take away what you or the other officers accomplished. You guys were not demoted or stripped of any power. Part of being in a position of rank is maturity.
feedback Sep 5th 2011 6:01PM
Agreed. The GL has all the power in the guild. While clear rules and policies tend to make a happier guild, at the end of the day one of the benefits of having your own guild is you get to do what you want (and live with the consequences). If someone wants a fairer guild than the one they're in, then do what the current GL did: start a guild.
As for this person's reluctance to start his or her own guild? Guild perks are the worst reason to not leave a guild. Quality people attract quality people. Quality people usually view guild perks as secondary to an overall good guild experience. People who stay in guilds for only the perks are stuck with the drama in that guild.
What I see here is a guild full of drama queens with an overgrown sense of entitlement.
Den Sep 5th 2011 9:13PM
It's so frustrating to read some of these. The simple answer that will resolve this stuff is usually to just have the guild structure/rules in writing. Make them public. Require people to read them before joining. At least if drama strikes, you can point to a document and say "It's been there, you read it, and you joined." Trust me, it DRASTICALLY cuts down on the drama.
Marsten Sep 5th 2011 4:37PM
Here's what you need to do. GQuit. GQuit like there's no tomorrow.
Your guild leader has shown that s/he cannot be trusted. They've given deliberate favours to someone, and did so in an underhanded manner. If he were a politician, that would be a tabloid story.
Tahotai Sep 5th 2011 4:38PM
I got to "Bob went in, and demoted Jack back down..." and I winced.
While your GL shouldn't have promoted him up int he first place, this is the worst imaginable way you could have handled it. You could have defused the entire thing by inviting all the officers and the GL into vent to talk things out.
Lsprof4 Sep 5th 2011 7:20PM
I saw that and figured there must have already been some problems before this even started
saddham Sep 5th 2011 5:14PM
Communication. That's all it always takes.
I doubt your guild leader had sinister intentions; you've never had an issue with her leadership up until this point. I'm sure your Guild Leader had a better reason for promoting Jack, but probably didn't feel that it was up to snuff. It's her fault for not talking it over with you.
It's your fault for acting no better. Going in and demoting a guild member without warning is one of the absolute worst things you could have done in this situation. You should have talked it over with your leader, and presented your side of the story. By doing something like this, you look just as shifty to her as her actions looked to you.
Clearer rules, more defined roles, and better communication between officers and your GL is what this guild needs.
Toranja Sep 5th 2011 5:18PM
Wow. And what the hell are the officers in her guild doing? Who in their right mind would promote those slackers, huh? I wonder if there's anything related to the random guy who's the GL friend that got promoted for no in-game reason.
/gquit
solecizm Sep 5th 2011 5:18PM
The officers here made their own 'classic blunder' which is viewing the officer rank as some kind of perk that has to be earned. That might be the case in some guilds, but in well-run guilds I've been a part of being an officer is a job, and it's not earned by long service, but by having the right skills and attitude. If large companies could only appoint internal staff to senior positions we'd have a pretty stagnant job market.
How do you know if someone has the right skills? It's hard, and usually takes a lot of time in-game getting to know them. The advantage of playing with real life friends is you already know them well - it doesn't take nearly as long to find out if they are (or are not) good officer material.
Noyou Sep 5th 2011 5:23PM
Amen to that. RL friends prove their worth long before they step into Azeroth.