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= Consul's Handbook =
= Consul's Handbook =
== Position Overview==
== Position Overview ==
The position of [[Consul]] is integral to the [[Dark Brotherhood]]. As Consul, you lead one of Six [[Clan|Clans]], the largest organizational unit in the Brotherhood. The Consul is the overall '''commander''' of those units, the face of a Clan with ultimate responsibility for those members falling on the Consul’s shoulders. Consul is the highest attainable position within a Clan, and as such, there is a degree of maturity and responsibility that one must have when becoming Consul.
The [[Consul]] of a [[Clan]] is the primary leader of the unit, and acts as a liaison between the [[Grand Master]], [[Dark Council]], and the Clan’s members. Reporting directly to the Grand Master and [[Deputy Grand Master]], Consuls are responsible for representing the interests of their units while ensuring a positive and engaging experience for their members within the larger [[Dark Brotherhood|Dark Jedi Brotherhood]]. A Consul’s authority over their Clans is limited only by the directions of the Grand Master and the requirements of the [[Covenant]].  


As overseer of any and all [[House|Houses]] in a Clan, the Consul ensures that all of its members are active and engaged while the various leaders within the Clan are meeting the needs of the members. A Consul will guide and direct the leaders in their Clan, training and helping those who are new to a position of power. Such training is key, as the Consul is charged with ensuring the long-term success of the Clan by having members trained to replace their generation.
With this power, however, comes even greater responsibility and accountability.  


Communication with newer members is vital as well. Consuls must both welcome the newest members of the Clan while ensuring both Clan and House [[Envoy|Envoys]] are maintaining their own high levels of communication. The Consul is also the voice of their Clan on the [[Dark Council]], ensuring that information is passed along both ways so that neither party is kept in the dark. The Consul represents the Clan and its members in discussions and votes on important issues within the Dark Council.
Consuls are part of the Electorate, which elects the Grand Master and [[Justicar]], and votes on proposed amendments to the Covenant. They are also responsible for guiding a Clan’s direction which ranges from setting and maintaining the fictional story arc of the clan, ensuring an active and engaged Summit, and awarding recognition to their membership. They are expected to, at a minimum, fulfill the Core Responsibilities of the Consul position.  


Lastly, the Consul must still be a source of activity for the Clan. Whether it be running his own competition or leading the Clan in Clan Feuds or DB-wide Vendettas, the Consul must make activity within his Clan a priority. Finally, a Consul will be expected to contribute to the ongoing projects that the Brotherhood has, as well as any Clan or House level special projects. When all is said and done, everything that you do as Consul should be for the betterment of your Clan.
== Core Responsibilities ==
We define the following responsibilities as ‘Core’ as they ensure a positive experience for the members within the clan and align with their expectations of their Consul.


== Expectations:  ==
=== Communication ===
* Oversee and ensure the cohesive operation of all Houses in the Clan
* Engage regularly with the Clan membership via Discord, email, and any other communication platforms used by the club.
* Work with the [[Grand Master]] and Brotherhood administrative staff to ensure that there is proper communication, activity and cohesion throughout
* Maintain a 24-hour turn around on communications with the Grand Master, Deputy Grand Master, and Dark Council on urgent matters.
* Report to the rest of the Dark Council and the Clan on a regular and consistent basis
* Be present on Clan communication platforms (Discord, Email etc.) so that members know that the Consul is available and approachable.
* Liaise between the Clan and the Dark Council: you represent your Clan on the Dark Council, and report important and significant Dark Council happenings to your Clan
* Have a basic understanding of the Chat Platform (Discord) and the administrative functions available as Consul. Understand how the Chat Platform (Discord) permissions work, as you will be the lead administrator on the Clan’s category. 
* Have read and be familiar with the various Alacrity documents available on the Dark Brotherhood website
* Promote competitions, both internal and external, in which your members may participate
* Run Competitions internally; with other Clans and organize Clan feuds
* Reward and promote members of the Clan where appropriate
* Responsible for training new Summit Leadership
* Provides constructive criticism for subordinate leaders
* Guide all leaders, from [[Proconsul]] to [[Battleteam Leader]], in their growth
* Welcome new members of the Clan and ensure smooth operation of Clan and House Envoys
* Manages any Clan Promotion Guidelines ([[APP]] through [[DJK]])
* Maintain a Clan Website
* Maintain and develop a Clan “identity” including recording of Clan history, detail possessions and all other fictional aspects pertaining to the Clan
* Ensure that the Clan information in all Brotherhood publications, such as the [[Dark Voice]], [[DSC]], [http://codex.darkjedibrotherhood.com/ Codex] and [[Dark Covenant|Covenant]], are up-to-date
* Conduct himself in a mature and professional manner, leading by example both in terms of activity as well as adhering to the rules of conduct set forth by the Dark Council
* Leading in and being part of various projects either at the Dark Council level, or Clan and House levels as well


==  Difficulties of being a Consul:  ==
=== Clan Management ===
The difficulties of a Consul can vary a great deal depending on the Clan itself and the Consul’s own personality. However, no matter the Clan, there will always be difficulties with such a position
* Generate opportunities for clan members to participate in competitions; whether at the [[Battleteam]], [[House]], Clan, or DJB levels.
* Ensure members are properly rewarded for their activities via awards and promotions.  
** All promotions and medal ladder awards must be processed within one week of a member earning them. The medal ladder includes a member's first DC, AC, SC, GC, SB, and AK. Promotions through EQ4 and medal ladder awards will be automatically generated by the site. A summit member should claim and submit a recommendation for each of them. In no case should a member wait more than one week from eligibility for a promotion through EQ4 or a medal through AK.
** Members should be evaluated for awards no less than twice a year. The MAA suggests members be rewarded every three months. More frequent awards may be appropriate depending on the type of award and the member’s activity.
** If you are a new Consul or onboarding new Summit members a best practice is to ‘audit’ or otherwise review the current standings of each member in the Clan to determine if additional awards are warranted.
* Empower the Clan Summit to better serve the members by relaying pertinent information from the Dark Council to the Clan Summit.
* Speak for the Clan Summit and members in Dark Council and Dark Summit discussions on changes to the clubs systems and policies.
* Prevent a single-point of failure by empowering your leaders. You cannot do it all nor can you expect your Summit to manage if they are not prepared.
** Ensure that the Proconsul is given the tools or guidance to fulfill the core responsibilities of a Consul.  
** Educate Quaestors, Aediles, and/or Battleteam Leaders on how to fulfill the requirements of their respective position.
** Find stretch opportunities for your Summit to fulfill the responsibilities of the next highest level while providing coaching and feedback.
* Publish a monthly report that covers news and information at both the DC and Clan level, and highlight sub-unit reports.
* Guide Clan Summits and members through major club events such as Great Jedi Wars or Rites of Supremacy.
* Mediate issues that arise when two members or leaders have a difference of opinion or escalate a situation.


* '''Clan Management'''
=== Dark Council Engagement ===
:It will be difficult to find a balance between having direct input on the day-to-day activities of a house and taking the “hands-off” approach. Ensuring that stable and trusted leaders are placed in each house will alleviate such difficulties. Communications with your House and Clan leaders are vital in this, as they should help greatly in helping to run the Clan.
* Represent the Clan by voting as a member of the Electorate on proposed changes and appointments produced by the Dark Council.
* Coordinate ad-hoc projects or events with the Dark Council and other Clan Leaders.


:Each of the Houses should be autonomous units, the [[Quaestor]]’s having say in the bulk of what occurs within their House. A Consul should be taking a more direct role in the running of a House when there appears to be a “problem”, such as lack of communication from your leaders in the House or glaring issues with House members. Should a Consul have to take an active role in the running of a House, it is a good indicator of a lack of leadership in the [[House Summit]].
== Above and Beyond ==
The following responsibilities are considered to be indicative of the club's more successful unit leaders.  


:In most cases however, the Consul shall be tasked with the role of the Clan as a whole, moving all members towards a goal. It should never involve day-to-day involvement in the individual Houses.
* Lead by example during Great Jedi Wars or Rites of Supremacy:
** Participate in competitions while offering assistance to members who might be new, tepid, or confused by events and competition details.
* Engage with Clan Summit and Clan members beyond just cursory link-sharing in Clan-level events or competitions.
** Don’t just paste a url of a competition into chat and say: “Go do the events!” Work down-stream with the Summit to reach out to members individually or in small groups to encourage and empower them to participate.
* Organize Clan Projects that empower Clan Summits to provide better activity and service to members of the Clan.
** This can be Wiki work, Role Playing activities, or worldbuilding project work that gets members involved with aspects of the Clans assets.
* Actively manage the on-going Clan storyline and allow the clan members to help design and lead the direction of the Clan’s plot.
* Use Metric data on units published by the Dark Council to strategize on how to better improve the Clan’s health.
* Identify and develop your succession plan. While it’s easy to identify a Consul > Proconsul > Quaestor > Aedile > Battleteam Leader path for succession, reality is seldom so simple. Locating those individuals who have aspirations to higher level leadership, creating opportunities for them, and training them in how to lead (regardless of their current role) ensures a diverse pool of future candidates that can be called upon.


* '''Time Management'''
== Managing Your Clan ==
:There will come points when a Consul becomes overwhelmed with the amount of work and attention that is needed to both run a Clan as well as complete the various tasks that the job entails. With an active [[Proconsul]], sharing certain duties and projects can ease such difficulties. Furthermore, although distasteful to some, having a running checklist of things that need to be done and providing goals (Time-wise) towards achieving those goals can help immensely. This not only provides a single source of reference to see what is going on at any given point in time, you can also use the checklist (Or a modified version of it) and share it with your Clan and House leaders so that all can be in the loop. This will save countless amounts of work by preventing repetitive information being sent out to different people.
Each clan is unique, just as each Consul is unique. What may have been a great success with Clan A may not generate any interest from Clan B. It is important for you to find the balance between your objectives and the desires of your Clan.


:The Consul’s role on the Dark Council will also take time and energy. It is important that the Consul understand his limits and that the Clan comes first in any and all matters. The temptation to be involved in every aspect of the Brotherhood is great, but a Consul needs to recognize when he is being pulled too thin and make sure his energy is focussed on his primary tasks: overall clan development and activity. It can be difficult to manage time between the Clan and the Dark Council, but it is a skill that a Consul must dutifully perfect.
As you begin to manage your clan the following three key areas of focus, '''time management skills''', '''delegation''', and '''getting organized''', are critical to creating a balanced experience.  


* '''Interacting with Clan Members'''
=== Time Management ===
:A Consul must have a high degree of patience and be able to deal with all members in a respectful manner. A Clan consists of a wide variety of personalities and cultures, each with their own ideas and thoughts. Listening and responding to all inquires and conversations in a calm and rationale manner are key to healthy relationships with the Clan members. You’ll also be expected to lead from the front, so to speak. The Consul, although generally not expected to by the membership, should be active in the various competitions that are going on. This helps build the, “Hey, the Consul is one of us” mentality, and provides you with a better base to deal with members.
The first and most readily controllable variable is setting realistic expectations for '''yourself'''. No one knows your schedule better than you do. And since you are aware of it, you can be in control of it and compensate accordingly.  


:Communication is key to having a healthy interaction with Clan members. Sending out regular e-mails over the Clan mailing lists shows that you are both active, and working for the Clan. The e-mails do not have to just be “official” announcements, but they can also be something light-hearted or fun. Also, joining your Clan Discord channel on a regular basis is also ideal so that you can interact with everyone first hand.
For example, say you know that you work 9am-6pm EST and can’t access a computer or have the ability during that time or that you work night shifts from 6PM-4AM CST and are limited to mobile access only during that time. Perhaps you have a really busy week preparing for midterms/finals. Transparently share details of your schedule with your Summit, then let them know if things deviate or change. This allows them to better cover accordingly for you or communicate to members or external leadership on your behalf. This also demonstrates personal accountability while establishing personal time constraints. Transparency and communication are your best weapon.


* '''Interacting with non-Clan Members'''
The second thing you can control to be better at managing your time is to set up “office hours” or “sessions” where you let people know you’ll be available. This could be as simple as “Hey, I’m jumping on voice chat from 7-9PM EST. Feel free to join while I work on this report!” If that kind of social communication isn’t your strong suit or comfort level, you can also set aside time (thirty minutes here, an hour or two there) just to be available.
:While you’re responsible for your Clan, there will also be times when you must deal with members from outside of your Clan, and have to mediate between Clan members and non-Clan members. A Consul is responsible for their Clan, and as such, should defend it from disruptive behaviours of members from other Clans. It is also prudent to work with the rest of the Dark Council to resolve such cases in a fast and stress-free manner so that everyone can go on and continue having fun.


:You shall also interact with non-Clan members in other capacities, many times when working on projects for either the Dark Council, or for the Brotherhood in general. At all times, you are representing your Clan, and as such, you must act with both maturity and a level head. How you interact with others will have a direct impact on how they perceive your Clan. In all dealings with members from another Clan, also ensure that their Consul is aware of such interactions, whether positive or negative.
Even if no one joins or asks or follows up with you, you’re setting an example as a leader on how to be transparent with your time and availability, which will lead to better and more open communication and improve your perception as a leader.  


* '''Discipline'''
Lastly, be aware of time zones, including your own. The DB supports members and leaders from all across the globe. If you have members that are in European or Indo-Pacific time zones, but you live in Canada on EST, it’s important to be aware that they feel like they can still reach you or someone from the Summit. This should not be interpreted as, “you need to be available across all time zones. Rather, it’s how you communicate and enable the means of those members to contact you. Whether that’s, send me a DM and I’ll respond when I’m awake or please send an email.
:There comes a point when a member crosses a line or one of your leaders has to be removed. Your decisions may be unpopular as well as cause a strain on the Clan. Such unpopular decisions may involve having to remove friends or long-time veterans. Although seemingly distasteful at the time, such acts are for the benefit of the Clan. Once again, being calm in such situations is critical. Take as much time as you can, and try to get as much information as you can, but make a decision. Also, you must be firm once a decision is made. An indecisive '''commander''' is worse than a '''commander''' that makes bad decisions.


== Effects of the Position:  ==
=== Delegation ===
A Consul influences an entire Clan and his actions can impact the entire Brotherhood as well. A Consul’s actions or inactions relate directly to how that Clan is viewed by the Brotherhood as a whole. For members new to the club, he is an example of the ideal member, as well as a guide to any questions that the member may have.
When you delegate authority, you are empowering your Summit to be leaders, not just followers.  


For the entire Clan, a Consul is their own ideal on how to conduct themselves with the rest of the Brotherhood. A Consul leads through example, maintaining a high degree of activity both through communications with the Clan as well as being a driving force in competitions involving their Clan. A Consul’s personal drive trickles down through the ranks, pushing the rest of the Clan onwards. A Consul’s relationship with his Clan reflects on how his Clan relates to others.
Delegating tasks can be one of the hardest things for a leader in any role to do. It involves a lot of trust in others, a willingness to take control out of your own hands, and the accompanying worries of something not working out the way you had hoped. However, any Consul unwilling to delegate tasks to their Summits is setting themselves and their team up for failure.


Between the Clans, a Consul can forge an understanding that brings about activity as well as initiate an exchange of information. Within the Dark Council, a Consul ideally interacts with other Council members and brings any concerns or comments to them in a calm and mature manner, fostering a strong bond that carries down to the members of the Clan. A Consul can touch almost every facet of the Brotherhood and help mould it for the better. In fact, due to this, the Consul brings much to the members of his Clan and the Brotherhood as a whole. Some of the legendary Consuls of the past were extremely influential in the shape that their respective Clans have taken, and also made an impact throughout the entire Brotherhood due to their actions.  
Dividing up your workload becomes easier when you have a list. This can be on a piece of paper at your desk, a digital tool like Google Keep or Apple Notes, but making a list helps visualize what work needs to get done. Then, it becomes easier to identify which tasks are more important, less important, have deadlines, or are open-ended. This allows you to then prioritize tasks, which helps with assigning the right tasks to the right people.
You never want to have a “single-point of failure” when it comes to task management. If you are worried that someone might not complete their assigned task or responsibility on time, make sure you have a backup plan. In the example of assigning a task to a Quaestor, make sure for example that the Aedile would be able to cover. After that, you have a Proconsul that can step in and assist. If all three somehow fail to complete the task, that’s where you as Consul can step in and make sure it’s delivered.


On the flip side, there have been Consuls that have not performed anywhere near what they should have done. This is most delicately demonstrated right after the [[Exodus]] from the [[Emperor's Hammer]], where the chaos of inadequate leadership almost caused a few Clans to go under. The threat of a bad Consul is a nightmare that all want to avoid, so don’t be that nightmare.
In any variant of the above scenario, it is important to always close out a thread with feedback. If something did not go the way you wanted it to, make sure they know what they could do better next time. You never want to talk down or belittle a subordinate, but it’s important that they know that the task was not done how you envisioned it. Your opportunity as a leader is identifying when a task needed to be completed as you envision (e.g., creation of a container competition where all sub-competitions have the same start and end date) versus where it’s appropriate for the leaders you delegated to too insert their own unique perspective (e.g., we need a new story arc for the clan and a QUA creates a plot to conquer a planet and you were thinking of a battle with a crime lord).  


==  Position Organization:  ==
It’s equally important to '''listen''' to what they have to say as well. Maybe you could have done a better job communicating to them what you wanted. Feedback is a two-way street. Having open conversations like these, however, will go a long way to trusting others with responsibility and being a good delegator. Not only that, but when successful you’ll build confidence in your Summit and help make sure they’re ready to take on different and more tasks.
The Consuls’ position lies on the Dark Council, making you the direct link in terms of communication between the Dark Council and your Clan members. Without this position it would be extremely difficult for the other Councillors to pass along information to the different sub-units of each Clan, quite possibly extending their work by an order of magnitude. The organization of the Brotherhood, and how a Consul interacts with each unit, shows it as such:


'''Grand Master and Deputy Grand Master'''
Be careful not to over-delegate. At the end of the day, it’s the Consul’s job to make sure everything that needs to be done is done. If an important task isn’t being completed, the Consul should be willing and able to step in if necessary to ensure it doesn’t fall through the cracks.
* "It is the Consul’s job to keep the leaders of the Dark Brotherhood appraised of the situation with your Clan. These are your “bosses”, and as such, must know that you are doing your job at all times, and to the best of your abilities.


'''Dark Council (including Consuls)'''
=== Getting Organized ===
* There are ten others, not including yourself, who are a part of this unit. However, on a consistent basis, you are in direct contact with only a few of these members
It’s hard to be an effective leader that manages their time and is great at delegation when you’re not able to maintain a basic, healthy level of organization. Consuls have a lot of responsibility when it comes to the various data, reports, information, and sensitive information passed on from the Dark Council or other club leadership. The best way to stay organized is to utilize tools such as a Calendar, a notepad, a spreadsheet, or even something as advanced as a scrum or Kanban board—whatever “tool” you are comfortable using.  
** '''Consuls''' – As it is necessary to foster good relations with the other Clans, Consuls interact with one another on a daily basis, using one another as resources for help or as a point of contact should there be any problems with members from each Clan
** '''Master at Arms''' – As Consul, you are in constant contact with the [[MAA]] as he deals with all position appointments, medals and promotions. The bulk of all "awards" go through the MAA, and as such, the Consul is consistently interacting with the MAA
** '''Headmaster''' – The Envoys are an integral part of the Clans, with their ultimate head being the [[Headmaster]]. As such, you must also interact with the HM on a consistent basis to ensure that all of your Envoys are doing their jobs in a proper manner. The HM is also a good resource of information concerning stats such as the percentage of Apprentice’s who are being promoted


'''Proconsul'''
Google Calendar is a free, excellent resource, however, that lets you set reminders with custom triggers such as “notify me 1 week before we are supposed to have our Clan Artifacts submitted to the Regent” or “remind me every 3 months to do an audit of awards given out to members of the Clan”.  
* The [[Proconsul]] is your “right-hand”, and as such, the lines of communication must be constantly open. The job of a Proconsul depends specifically on the Consul, but no matter their description, they must always be in contact with the Consul. The Proconsul should be conferred with on all decisions concerning the Clan


'''Quaestors'''
However you choose to organize yourself, even if it’s sticky notes left on your monitor or written in sharpie on the inside of your hand, will be key to being an effective leader at any level.
* Much like your Proconsul, you should be in contact with your [[Quaestor|Quaestors]] at all times. Through them you will know the state of your Houses in a much more intimate fashion. As well, you must at all times ensure that the Quaestor is performing their job up to your standards, and is a positive force in the House


'''Aediles'''
This should be shared with your Summit as well. As we discussed above, you should be delegating and encouraging your Summit leaders to plan and execute their own activities. You do not want to create a situation where you’re preparing to launch a clan level event only for it to conflict with house level competitions that are already in flight.


'''Battleteam leaders'''
Further, you should seek to add Dark Council level events (e.g., GJW, RoS, etc.) so yourself and your Summit can plan accordingly.


'''General membership'''
=== Interacting with Clan Members ===
* While important in their own rights, these “positions” do not interact with the Consul on a formal basis in a consistent fashion. Your Quaestor is directly in charge of these members, and should be in contact with them at all times. As Consul, your interaction with these members is on a more informal basis, through Discord, message boards or mailing lists and not direct one-on-one discussions. However, it is still imperative that a Consul maintains close relations with all of his members, no matter their current position.
A Consul must have a high degree of patience and be able to deal with all members in a respectful manner. A Clan consists of a wide variety of personalities and cultures, each with their own ideas and thoughts. Listening and responding to all inquiries and conversations in a calm and rational manner is key to maintaining healthy relationships with members of the Clan and any guests you might foster in your public communications channel. The Consul, although generally not expected to do so by members, should be active in the various competitions that are ongoing. This helps build the, “Hey, the Consul is one of us” mentality, and provides you with a better baseline to align with members. It also helps you spot-check what works or doesn’t work for you/your members and allows you to provide constructive feedback to the competition runners. This becomes very important when dealing with Vendettas, cross-Clan events, or a club-wide competition.
As shown, the Consuls’ position is quite high, further highlighting its’ important nature.


==  Specific Duties  ==
Communication is key to having a healthy interaction with Clan members. This can be accomplished in a few key ways such as:
Although most of the duties involved with the Consulship will vary due to the dynamic nature of the Brotherhood and the Clans, certain duties are common to all. The below list will give you a general idea of what to expect on a regular basis:
* Being active or present on Discord, the club’s primary communication platform
* Having a fairly quick turn around on email communications from both members and leadership
* And publishing regular Clan reports that feature interaction with members, highlighting their accomplishments, giving insight into larger-club events and news, and in acknowledging the work of the sub-unit leaders.


* Welcoming new members to the Clan. This is simply done by keeping an eye in your email inbox and checking when the MAA sends an email showing a transfer request from either the [[SA]] or the Rouges. Keeping an email '''template''' is pretty effective at speeding up this process.
=== Interacting with non-Clan Members ===
While you’re responsible for your Clan, there will also be times when you must interact with members from outside of your Clan, and might encounter situations where you have to mediate between Clan members and non-Clan members. If you can’t resolve a dispute on your own, reach out to the Consul(s) of the members involved and see if they can help. The Justicar is also available to help mediate disputes between members.  


* Ensure that all Envoys within your Clan are active and keeping in constant contact with the newest members of the Clan. The Alacrity document, [[Clan Summit Management of Envoys]], is a must-read for Consuls on how to effectively manage their Envoys.
At all times, you are representing your Clan, and as such, you are expected to act with both maturity and a level head. How you interact with others will have a direct impact on how they perceive your Clan.  


* Overseeing promotion and medal requests done by the House Summits. Generally keep an eye on whom the House Summits award medals and promos to. Although not required, it may be helpful to keep a chart on which members have received what, as to help pinpoint those members that do activity but are for some reason overlooked, or to spot trends with inactivity and other such helpful information.
=== Discipline ===
While the DJB is a place for friends and fun, it’s still ultimately an organization that has protections in place for its community and its members. In some cases, one of your members and/or leaders might violate the clubs codes of conduct (the Covenant). The most common examples tend to be altercations that take place in chat rooms/DMs (Discord) or intentionally/unintentionally cheating in a competition (Plagiarism, copying trivia answers, etc.). In each of these examples, it’s important to remain calm, isolate the facts, and make sure you are in open communication with the Justicar or their staff, and any and all relevant parties.  


* Keep track of general over-all activities of each House. Self-explanatory, this is needed to gauge general activity for each House.
In a real-time chat, for example, do not be afraid to leverage your admin and put a “that’s enough” or “let’s change topics,” into chat. In extreme cases, a Consul (as the primary admin of a Clan’s channel) can mute a chat or individuals. This can help “slow” things down so that everyone can get onto the same page. In events like this, it’s important to follow up afterwards as well to make sure everyone on '''both''' sides understand what happened and why someone was triggered or set off.  


* Keep track of all activity done by the House Summits. This is to ensure that they are both doing their jobs and to ensure that they are making life better for the general membership. Also offer constructive criticism on how they are doing their jobs
Other times, simply isolating the facts or gathering information helps reveal the truth of what might have transpired. Never jump to accusations or throw blame until evidence has been presented.  


* Keep a firm idea of what each House Summit member’s status is towards a promotion and/or medal. Vitally important, there is nothing worse than losing a good House Summit member because you haven’t been keeping track of all the work that they’ve been doing. Your Summit members are very likely the most active members of your Clan, so they should be recognized and awarded as such.
== Collaboration With Other Leaders ==
The Consul role balances between strategic engagement with the Dark Council and tactical execution of activities at the Clan level. Collaboration is critical to staying informed of upcoming events, both at the Brotherhood and peer Consul level, and maintaining consistency in your Clan’s activities. What follows are examples of collaboration with the various leaders of the Brotherhood.  


* Keep track of general status of all House competitions. This is to ensure that the House Summits are giving the members fun/interesting stuff to do, which gives them a chance to be active (Thereby qualifying them for awards).
=== Grand Master and Deputy Grand Master ===
* While you are granted a significant amount of latitude to manage your Clan it is important to keep the Grand Master and Deputy Grand Master informed of overall plans for activities, story lines, and requests for engagement from the various Dark Council members
* Similar to a real-life job, as your ‘boss’, they’re also available to mentor you and provide guidance. They provide a safe space, free of judgment, to discuss ideas for your Clan and how you would execute them.
* You should consult with the Grand Master and Deputy Grand Master before selecting a Proconsul or initiating any major changes in your Clan.


* Run and keep track of all Clan-wide competitions. This gives the opportunity for the Clan members to possibly get a higher quality level of medal, as well as stand out more visibly to the rest of their House/Clan.  
=== Dark Council and Other Consuls ===
* '''Consuls''' – As it is necessary to foster good relations with the other Clans, Consuls interact with one another on a daily basis, using one another as resources for help or as a point of contact should there be any problems with members from each Clan.  
* '''[[Master at Arms]]''' – As Consul, you are in regular contact with the MAA staff as they review all position appointments, medals, and promotions. If you believe a member has earned a medal higher than a Sapphire Blade or may be ready for an Elder promotion, consult with the MAA. Otherwise, go ahead and submit your recommendation through the website for their review.
* '''Other Dark Councilors''' – As a Consul, you are likely to have at least occasional interactions with other members of the Dark Council, including the [[Voice]], [[Herald]], [[Fist]], [[Regent]], and Justicar. You will be their primary points of contact for matters affecting your Clan that fall within their respective domains.  


* Keep close track of all DB-wide activity towards DB-wide competitions. Keeping track of the status of the membership in regards to activity during major DB events (Such as a [[GJW]] or a [[RoS]]) is very important. Not only will the activity of the members make the determination on how your Clan places with respect to others, it also opens up a large opportunity to allow the membership to earn prestigious medals and traditionally opens doors to promotions as well.
=== [[Proconsul]] ===
* The Proconsul is the second in command of a Clan. They are not just the Consul’s assistant, but serve as a viable backup to the role when needed, and bridge the gap between the Consul and the House Summits.
* Proconsuls may also be called upon to vote as temporary members of the Electorate in the absence of their Consul.  


* Keep track of general communications between the Clan members (Via Discord, email, and message boards). This is a vital task. Keep control of the various methods of communications, as miscommunications are often the leading cause of the vast majority of problems that take place within the DB.
While they are not guaranteed the position of Consul, Consuls are expected to train them to be able to fulfill any and all of the responsibilities in the event of something happening to the Consul.  


* Make an effort to be available via Discord, email, and message boards. This is to make you more accessible to the general membership, making them feel more comfortable with talking to you about anything that they wish. It’s a leadership function.
==== Core Requirements ====
* Perform any of the core requirements of a Consul.
* Assist the Consul as a liaison to the members and Clan Summit.
* 24-48 hour turnaround on communications (Discord, Email, etc.)


* Compile monthly Internal Reports for the GM, [[DGM]] and their Assistants. The due dates occasionally vary, but generally, this is required once a month. The GM generally will give you a format for your report to follow as to let them know what’s going on with the Clan. At the very minimum, you’ll want to put in the status of the Clan as a whole, the status of the various Houses, activities done within the month, the status of various projects, and people of interest within the Clan (Either good or bad interest).
==== Above and Beyond ====
* Discuss Dark Summit and Clan Summit matters with the Consul in private, while always supporting them in public.
* Work with other units and the Dark Summit to find solutions to common problems or challenges that arise across units.  
* Be willing to cover for any Clan Summit members, including Quaestor, Aediles, and Battleteam Leaders when needed.
* Mediate/resolve conflicts or disagreements between Clan summit and/or members.


* Send out regular Consul reports to your Clan. These should be focused primarily on Clan-wide news, ongoing projects and pertinent news concerning the rest of the Dark Brotherhood. It should also highlight the current competitions as well as point to members who have been going above and beyond what is required of them.  
=== [[Quaestor | Quaestors]] / [[Aedile | Aediles]] / [[Battleteam Leader | Battleteam Leaders]] ===
* Much like your Proconsul, you should be in contact with your House Summit at all times. Through them you will know the state of your Houses in a much more intimate fashion. As well, you must at all times ensure that the House Summit is performing their job up to your standards, and is a positive force on their unit.


* Attempt to run at least one major inter-Clan competition per year. This allows for a vast amount of activity, and generally are very spirited affairs. This usually is a serious undertaking, as the preparations for this take a few months to completely work out for all the Clans involved. This also helps to develop your skills in running and helping to manage a large project.
=== General Membership ===
* While it may seem counterintuitive, this is the most important role within the Brotherhood. The general membership far surpasses the individuals in leadership and are the reason the organization exists. They participate in competitions, create works of fiction and art, game, and socialize.  
* It is important to keep a pulse on what activity your Clan wants to participate in as it will vary with time. Are they focused on gaming this quarter whereas last quarter it was fiction? Are a group of them attempting to raise their ranks in a specific society (e.g., Shroud Syndicate)? This will inform what types of competitions you want to run to maximize their enjoyment.


* Attempt to run at least one major intra-Clan competition per year. This usually involves a House War or similar premise and this usually pits the Houses against each other in a struggle for bragging rights. Again, this sort of thing usually brings a vast amount of activity in. This should be planned carefully.
== Operational Expectations ==
Although most of the duties involved with the Consulship will vary due to the dynamic nature of the Brotherhood and the Clans, certain duties are expected from all Consuls. The below list will give you a general idea of what your daily engagement may look like:


* Assist the other Dark Council members with various DB-wide projects. The Dark Council at any given point in time have various large projects going on that they need assistance with in bringing off. As a member of the Council, and a representative of your Clan, it is your duty to lend a helping hand, as well as familiarize yourself with other high-level responsibilities and personalities within the Brotherhood.
* Welcoming new members to the Clan. This is simply done by keeping an eye on your email inbox and checking when the MAA sends an email showing a transfer request from either the SA or the Rogues. It is recommended that you maintain and leverage the system-generated welcome email template to open the lines of communication with new members joining your Clan.
* Overseeing promotion and medal requests done by the House Summits. Generally keep an eye on whom the House Summits award medals and promos to. It is recommended to house a shared document to track previous discussion on recognition for your Clan members.
** It will be your responsibility to submit awards that are beyond the range of your House Summit to submit (e.g., Sapphire Blade). You should still have your House Summit write the recommendation, review it for accuracy, and then post on their behalf.
* Track House competitions being created by the Summit and members and the corresponding participation levels.
* Provide coaching to your House Summits, whether it’s feedback on member engagements to how to structure competitions. Feedback is a two-way street, seek feedback from your House Summit on your performance. Be open-minded and ensure that your Summit has a “safe place to fail”, which is to mean, they will make mistakes as they’re learning. Do not seek to punish errors but see them as opportunities to help improve your Summit.
** Remember, your House Summit should be your future Clan Summit.
* Run and keep track of all Clan-wide competitions. This gives the opportunity for the Clan members to possibly get a higher quality level of medal, as well as stand out more visibly to the rest of their House or Clan.
* Monitor all DB-wide activity, specifically DB-wide competitions. Keeping track of the status of the membership in regards to activity during major DB events (such as a GJW or RoS) is very important. Not only will the activity of the members make the determination on how your Clan is positioned with respect to others, it also opens up a large opportunity to allow the membership to earn prestigious medals and traditionally opens doors to promotions as well.
* Keep track of general communications between the Clan members via Discord and email). This is a vital task. Do not assume a single forum of communication will reach all members. Assume that a message will need to be communicated multiple times for awareness and action (e.g., Vendetta prep and participation)
** Be mindful of frequency, while it should be your objective to have high participation the Brotherhood is built around member’s participating in the time and means that engage them.
** Make an effort to be regularly available via Discord and email. This is to make you more accessible to the general membership, making them feel more comfortable with talking to you about anything that they wish. It’s a leadership function.
* Compile quarterly reports for the Grand Master, Deputy Grand Master and their assistants. The Grand Master generally will give you a format for your report to follow as to let them know what’s going on with the Clan. At the very minimum, you’ll want to put in the status of the Clan as a whole, the status of the various Houses, activities done within the month, the status of various projects, and people of interest within the Clan whether good or bad.
* Send out regular Consul reports to your Clan, preferably monthly. These should be focused primarily on Clan-wide news, ongoing projects, and pertinent news concerning the rest of the Dark Jedi Brotherhood. It should also highlight the current competitions as well as point to members who have been going above and beyond what is required of them.
* Attempt to run at least one major inter-Clan competition per year. This allows for a vast amount of activity, and generally are very spirited affairs. This usually is a serious undertaking, as the preparations for this take a few months to completely work out for all the Clans involved. This also helps to develop your skills in running and helping to manage a large project.
* Assist the other Dark Council members with various DB-wide projects. The Dark Council at any given point in time has various large projects going on that they need assistance with. As a member of the Council, and a representative of your Clan, it is your duty to lend a helping hand, as well as familiarize yourself with other high-level responsibilities and personalities within the Brotherhood.
* Attempt to perform a meaningful project that will benefit the Clan. This can take many forms, so this is up to you. However, your superiors expect you to bring a higher level of involvement to the Clan, and anything that you can do to enhance the well-being of your Clan will be viewed favorably. Use your imagination, and you should be ok.
* Assign special projects to various Clan members. This mainly deals with various projects that you’d like to be done, but either don’t have the necessary time or most likely don’t have the skill set to handle the project. This benefits the Clan, and provides an opportunity for the member that is executing the project to shine in front of a lot of important people, which will be helpful when promotion or medal recommendation time comes along.
* Assist with running major House-wide competitions. This is mainly as a back-up to the House Summits, although if you wish you can provide more input. Definitely an important task, as more minds working on a common project tend to improve the quality of the project. Also ensure that you train new leaders in how to run an effective competition.


* Keep in constant contact with the rest of the Dark Council, commenting and advising on any topics of discussion that are brought up.
== Position Checklist ==
 
* Ensure you vote, on behalf of your Clan, concerning any policy changes or other areas of concern in which the Dark Council must decide upon. Before voting however, you should first poll your own Clan to gauge their thoughts on the specific subject. Such discussions should be done in a prompt fashion so as to not delay the voting procedure by an inordinate amount of time
* Attempt to perform a meaningful project that will benefit the Clan. This usually comes as a desire to help your own Clan. This can take many forms, so this is up to you. However, your superiors expect you to bring a higher level of involvement to the Clan, and anything that you can do to enhance the well-being of your Clan will be a very good thing for you to do. Use your imagination, and you should be ok.
 
* Assign special projects to various Clan members. This mainly deals with various projects that you’d like to be done, but either don’t have the necessary time or most likely don’t have the skill set to handle the project (Web sites and programming duties are usually two big ones). This obviously helps the Clan with the fruit of their works, but gives a chance for the member that is doing the project to shine in front of a lot of important people, which will be extremely helpful when the promotion or medal recommendation time comes along.
* Manage a Clan promotional guideline for those who are between the ranks of Apprentice and Dark Jedi Knight, while also helping put together or oversee a Master/Student program for your Clan.
 
* Assist with the running of major House-wide competitions. This is mainly as a back-up to the House Summits, although if you wish you can provide more input. Definitely an important task, as more minds working on a common project tend to help the quality of the project. Also ensure that you train new leaders in how to run an effective competition
 
* Enter in medal and promotion requests for House Summits that they are not able to submit on their own. Self-explanatory, this is for those times when the House Summits would like to promote or award medals to a person that is outside of their promotional or awarding authority. It’s up to you to verify the veracity of these requests, as well as determining the eligibility of the candidate before submitting the request over for processing. This also gives you the chance to add in a few words yourself to the candidate.
 
== Position Checklist==
This is something that you should act upon immediately upon your appointment to Consul. The rest will follow and should be accomplished within the suggested time frame:
This is something that you should act upon immediately upon your appointment to Consul. The rest will follow and should be accomplished within the suggested time frame:


* '''Immediately after your appointment:'''
=== Immediately after your appointment ===
** Email the former Consul, and talk to them so that you can receive any and all of the old information that the former Consul had access too. It is also a good way to get yourself quickly caught up on the state of the Clan.
* Contact the former Consul, and talk to them so that you can receive any and all of the old information that the former Consul had access to. It is also a good way to get yourself quickly caught up on the state of the Clan.
** Get in contact with the Grand Master and discuss your role as Consul and what is expected of you. This is a good opportunity to discuss your Clan with someone not a current member, but who has knowledge of it.
** A best practice is to set up a shared folder (e.g., gDrive) to house this information between leaders to avoid file size restrictions in Discord or email.
** Using the archive function of Google Groups, access the Dark Council group and go through previous discussions so that you may be caught up on any recent topics.
* Get in contact with the Grand Master and discuss your role as Consul and what is expected of you. This is a good opportunity to discuss your Clan with someone who is not a current member, but who has knowledge of it.
** Email your Proconsul, if one is in place, and send a general email giving your expectations and what you hope to accomplish during your tenure. Also giving a brief description of your general contact time frames, what method of contact best works for you, and general working/command style would be of great help to them. Requesting a status update on anything that you should be aware of (Projects in motion, etc.) should be requested at this time.
** Take this opportunity to align yourself on any Dark Council level discussions that may require your input.
** If no Proconsul is in place, your first task would be to immediately set about to look for one, and submit that member for consideration to the GM and DGM for final approval.
* Communicate with your Proconsul, if one is in place, and advise him or her of your expectations and what you hope to accomplish during your tenure. Also, give a brief description of your general contact time frames, what method of contact best works for you, and general working/leadership style would be of great help to them. Requesting a status update on anything that you should be aware of—Projects in motion, etc.—should be requested at this time.
** Email your House Summit members. Give them a general run down giving your expectations and what you hope to accomplish during your tenure. Also giving a brief description of your general contact time frames, what method of contact best works for you, and general working/command style would be of great help to them. If you were previously a Quaestor within the Clan, getting your replacement in the House should be a top priority. Requesting a status update on anything that you should be aware of (Projects in motion, etc.) should be requested at this time.
** If no Proconsul is in place, your first task would be to appoint a Proconsul or open applications for the position, and then submit that member for consideration to the Grand Master and Deputy Grand Master for final approval.
** Send the proper emails or messages to the proper persons regarding moderator access to the Clan message boards, as well as Ops access to the Clan Discord channel. If there are any other things that you may need administrator, ops, or moderator status to do your work, now is the time to do so.
* Email your House Summit members. '''Give them a general run down giving your expectations and what you hope to accomplish during your tenure'''. Also, give a brief description of your general contact time frames, what method of contact best works for you, and general working/leadership style would be of great help to them. If you were previously a Quaestor within the Clan, appointing your replacement should be a top priority. Requesting a status update on anything that you should be aware of—Projects in motion, etc.—should be requested at this time.
** Send a general email Clan-wide giving a general overview of what you expect to achieve and your general vision for the Clan should be sent. This will give everyone a chance to see you in a command role, and this email is critical.
* Familiarize yourself with the Discord commands for managing your Clan text and voice channels. Seek to understand if there are any hidden channels available only to Clan title holders to ensure you’re not accidentally added when permissions are synced.
** Gather up a listing of any other projects, competitions, or other un-done work by the outgoing Consul and get them sorted out and attempt to complete them. This is especially critical for competition award medals that are awaiting the Consuls’ power to award or promotion requests that require your intervention to approve.
* Publish a report providing an overview of what you expect to achieve and your general vision for the Clan. This will enable others to offer support based upon their experiences as well as a public promise you are making on what activities you’ll deliver on. It will be important to track and share progress on these promises as you progress in your role.
** Run a quick competition. Mainly of the fast and easy kind, this is usually traditional amongst the Clans.
* Compile a list of any other projects, competitions, or other uncompleted work by the outgoing Consul and triage them. This is especially critical for awards and promotions that are awaiting the Consul’s input.
 
** This is important to ensure Clan story lines are maintained. It’s rare that you’ll assume command at a time where a story arc is finished. The Clan members should get to bring the existing story arc to conclusion.
* '''Within two weeks of your appointment:'''
* Run a quick competition. Mainly of the fast and easy kind, this is usually traditional amongst the Clans.
** Ensure that any empty spots in the Clan and House leadership are now filled.
 
** Ensure that you are on all the right distribution lists, and that you have moderator/admin access to the correct locations (Message boards, etc.)
=== Within two weeks of your appointment ===
** Have a solid idea of the current strengths and weaknesses of the Clan, and have a plan to fix what needs to be fixed.
* Ensure that any empty spots in the Clan and House leadership are now filled.
** Work with your Proconsul on a checklist of what needs to be done with the Clan, and divide up the work between the both of you.
* Ensure that you are on all the right distribution lists, and that you have moderator/admin access to the correct locations.
** Complete any tasks that were left undone by the previous Consul, if possible.
* Have a solid idea of the current strengths and weaknesses of the Clan, and have a plan in place to address what needs to be fixed.
** Award any medals or promotions that were pending by the previous Consul.
* Work with your Proconsul on a checklist of what needs to be done with the Clan, and divide the work between you both.
** Conclude your first competition and award the proper medals.
* Complete any tasks that were left uncompleted by the previous Consul, if possible.
** Have a clear short-term goal of what you want to do with the Clan, and commence working towards it.
* Award any medals or promotions that were pending by the previous Consul.
** Ensure that the House Summits are reporting properly to you.
* Conclude your first competition and award the proper medals.
** Run a Clan-wide [[AWOL|AWOL check]], if one hasn’t been done recently.
* Have a clear short-term goal of what you want to do with the Clan, and commence working towards it.
** Send a report to the GM/Dark Council indicating the state of the Clan as you see it and give updates of your tasks, goals and the current leadership
* Ensure that the House Summits are reporting properly to you.
* '''Weekly Tasks:'''
* Send a report to the Grand Master/Dark Council indicating the state of the Clan as you see it and give updates of your tasks, goals and the current leadership.
** Ensure that you get reports from the House Summits.
 
** Properly note the activity done by the House Summits.
=== Weekly Tasks ===
** Ensure that any newly arriving members get a greeting email from you (This may be a daily thing).
* Ensure that you communicate with your House Summits on projects, status updates, and general engagement.
** Keep in regular contact with your members, through e-mails, Discord and reports
* Properly note the activity done by the House Summits.
* Ensure that any newly arriving members receive a greeting email from you; this may be a daily thing.
* Keep in regular contact with your members.
 
=== Monthly Tasks ===
* Compile the monthly Clan report.
** This should include status on all projects underway within the Clan and/or are upcoming to garner interest.
* Evaluate all of your subordinate leaders, ensuring that they are capable of performing their duties.
* Award any medals and/or promotions for the month’s activities. While you may issue awards on a quarterly to 6 month basis, newer members should receive more timely awards based upon their activity to encourage their engagement.
** New members should generally receive merit awards in order, starting with a Dark Cross. The site will generated "claimable" recommendations for a member's first DC, AC, SC, GC, SB, and AK when they have accrued sufficient [[XP Policy|Medal XP]] for each. You should award those medals within one week of the creation of the claimable recommendation. Leadership or project work a member has done since their last medal may be used to upgrade a medal beyond what they have earned solely through XP.
* Ensure that there are plans for a decent amount of competitions and such for the Clan in the coming month(s).


* '''Monthly tasks:'''
=== Quarterly Expectations ===
** Compile the monthly Clan internal report for distribution to the GM, DGM and their Assistants
* Ensure that one major intra or inter-Clan competition is being worked on.
** Evaluate all of your subordinate leaders, ensuring that they are still capable of doing their jobs
* Ensure that the Clan Summit has been properly rewarded for their work.
** Get reports from all Envoys in your Clan on the specifics of what they have done with newer members
* Ensure that any big projects are kept on track. A detailed status report is essential.
** Award any medals and/or promotions for the month’s activities.
* Try to ensure that at least one Clan-wide project has been completed.
** Go back through your checklist and ensure that you did not miss anything that is pending.
** Go back through your email inbox and ensure that you did not miss anything that is pending.
** Ensure that there are plans for a decent amount of competitions and such for the Clan in the coming month.
** Ensure that you get a report on any big projects that are on-going.
* '''Quarterly Expectations:'''
** Ensure that one major intra- or inter-Clan competition is being worked on.
** Ensure that your House Summit has been properly awarded for their work.
** Ensure that your Proconsul has been properly awarded for their work.
** Ensure that any big projects are kept on track. A detailed status report would be very helpful.
** Try to ensure that at least one Clan-wide project has been completed.


* '''Annual Expectations:'''
=== Annual Expectations ===
** Give a “State of the Clan” report to the rest of the Dark Council. Putting in as much relevant statistics and completed projects in the report as possible are not required, but highly desired.
* Write a “State of the Clan” report for your members and the Dark Council including relevant statistics, and completed projects.
** Give a separate “State of the Clan” report to the Clan in general. This report will not include most of the statistics that are present in the previous report, but will instead on concentrating on the various accomplishments of the Clan, the various Houses, and the members of the Clan. A section detailing your plans for the upcoming year would be greatly desired.


==  Document(s)  ==
==  Document(s)  ==
Consul's Handbook ([http://alacrity.darkjedibrotherhood.com/h_con.doc .doc])
[https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-44Vdc_Gd3ZEQz2lgVJHitfxeydRZlJO/view?usp=sharing| Consul's Handbook]
 


[[Category:Guides]]
[[Category:Guides]]

Latest revision as of 15:32, 11 February 2023

Real World Perspective.
This article is part of the series:
Handbooks
Position Handbooks

Grand Master's Handbook

Fist of the Brotherhood Handbook

Consul's Handbook

Proconsul's Handbook


Consul's Handbook

Position Overview

The Consul of a Clan is the primary leader of the unit, and acts as a liaison between the Grand Master, Dark Council, and the Clan’s members. Reporting directly to the Grand Master and Deputy Grand Master, Consuls are responsible for representing the interests of their units while ensuring a positive and engaging experience for their members within the larger Dark Jedi Brotherhood. A Consul’s authority over their Clans is limited only by the directions of the Grand Master and the requirements of the Covenant.

With this power, however, comes even greater responsibility and accountability.

Consuls are part of the Electorate, which elects the Grand Master and Justicar, and votes on proposed amendments to the Covenant. They are also responsible for guiding a Clan’s direction which ranges from setting and maintaining the fictional story arc of the clan, ensuring an active and engaged Summit, and awarding recognition to their membership. They are expected to, at a minimum, fulfill the Core Responsibilities of the Consul position.

Core Responsibilities

We define the following responsibilities as ‘Core’ as they ensure a positive experience for the members within the clan and align with their expectations of their Consul.

Communication

  • Engage regularly with the Clan membership via Discord, email, and any other communication platforms used by the club.
  • Maintain a 24-hour turn around on communications with the Grand Master, Deputy Grand Master, and Dark Council on urgent matters.
  • Be present on Clan communication platforms (Discord, Email etc.) so that members know that the Consul is available and approachable.
  • Have a basic understanding of the Chat Platform (Discord) and the administrative functions available as Consul. Understand how the Chat Platform (Discord) permissions work, as you will be the lead administrator on the Clan’s category.

Clan Management

  • Generate opportunities for clan members to participate in competitions; whether at the Battleteam, House, Clan, or DJB levels.
  • Ensure members are properly rewarded for their activities via awards and promotions.
    • All promotions and medal ladder awards must be processed within one week of a member earning them. The medal ladder includes a member's first DC, AC, SC, GC, SB, and AK. Promotions through EQ4 and medal ladder awards will be automatically generated by the site. A summit member should claim and submit a recommendation for each of them. In no case should a member wait more than one week from eligibility for a promotion through EQ4 or a medal through AK.
    • Members should be evaluated for awards no less than twice a year. The MAA suggests members be rewarded every three months. More frequent awards may be appropriate depending on the type of award and the member’s activity.
    • If you are a new Consul or onboarding new Summit members a best practice is to ‘audit’ or otherwise review the current standings of each member in the Clan to determine if additional awards are warranted.
  • Empower the Clan Summit to better serve the members by relaying pertinent information from the Dark Council to the Clan Summit.
  • Speak for the Clan Summit and members in Dark Council and Dark Summit discussions on changes to the clubs systems and policies.
  • Prevent a single-point of failure by empowering your leaders. You cannot do it all nor can you expect your Summit to manage if they are not prepared.
    • Ensure that the Proconsul is given the tools or guidance to fulfill the core responsibilities of a Consul.
    • Educate Quaestors, Aediles, and/or Battleteam Leaders on how to fulfill the requirements of their respective position.
    • Find stretch opportunities for your Summit to fulfill the responsibilities of the next highest level while providing coaching and feedback.
  • Publish a monthly report that covers news and information at both the DC and Clan level, and highlight sub-unit reports.
  • Guide Clan Summits and members through major club events such as Great Jedi Wars or Rites of Supremacy.
  • Mediate issues that arise when two members or leaders have a difference of opinion or escalate a situation.

Dark Council Engagement

  • Represent the Clan by voting as a member of the Electorate on proposed changes and appointments produced by the Dark Council.
  • Coordinate ad-hoc projects or events with the Dark Council and other Clan Leaders.

Above and Beyond

The following responsibilities are considered to be indicative of the club's more successful unit leaders.

  • Lead by example during Great Jedi Wars or Rites of Supremacy:
    • Participate in competitions while offering assistance to members who might be new, tepid, or confused by events and competition details.
  • Engage with Clan Summit and Clan members beyond just cursory link-sharing in Clan-level events or competitions.
    • Don’t just paste a url of a competition into chat and say: “Go do the events!” Work down-stream with the Summit to reach out to members individually or in small groups to encourage and empower them to participate.
  • Organize Clan Projects that empower Clan Summits to provide better activity and service to members of the Clan.
    • This can be Wiki work, Role Playing activities, or worldbuilding project work that gets members involved with aspects of the Clans assets.
  • Actively manage the on-going Clan storyline and allow the clan members to help design and lead the direction of the Clan’s plot.
  • Use Metric data on units published by the Dark Council to strategize on how to better improve the Clan’s health.
  • Identify and develop your succession plan. While it’s easy to identify a Consul > Proconsul > Quaestor > Aedile > Battleteam Leader path for succession, reality is seldom so simple. Locating those individuals who have aspirations to higher level leadership, creating opportunities for them, and training them in how to lead (regardless of their current role) ensures a diverse pool of future candidates that can be called upon.

Managing Your Clan

Each clan is unique, just as each Consul is unique. What may have been a great success with Clan A may not generate any interest from Clan B. It is important for you to find the balance between your objectives and the desires of your Clan.

As you begin to manage your clan the following three key areas of focus, time management skills, delegation, and getting organized, are critical to creating a balanced experience.

Time Management

The first and most readily controllable variable is setting realistic expectations for yourself. No one knows your schedule better than you do. And since you are aware of it, you can be in control of it and compensate accordingly.

For example, say you know that you work 9am-6pm EST and can’t access a computer or have the ability during that time or that you work night shifts from 6PM-4AM CST and are limited to mobile access only during that time. Perhaps you have a really busy week preparing for midterms/finals. Transparently share details of your schedule with your Summit, then let them know if things deviate or change. This allows them to better cover accordingly for you or communicate to members or external leadership on your behalf. This also demonstrates personal accountability while establishing personal time constraints. Transparency and communication are your best weapon.

The second thing you can control to be better at managing your time is to set up “office hours” or “sessions” where you let people know you’ll be available. This could be as simple as “Hey, I’m jumping on voice chat from 7-9PM EST. Feel free to join while I work on this report!” If that kind of social communication isn’t your strong suit or comfort level, you can also set aside time (thirty minutes here, an hour or two there) just to be available.

Even if no one joins or asks or follows up with you, you’re setting an example as a leader on how to be transparent with your time and availability, which will lead to better and more open communication and improve your perception as a leader.

Lastly, be aware of time zones, including your own. The DB supports members and leaders from all across the globe. If you have members that are in European or Indo-Pacific time zones, but you live in Canada on EST, it’s important to be aware that they feel like they can still reach you or someone from the Summit. This should not be interpreted as, “you need to be available across all time zones. Rather, it’s how you communicate and enable the means of those members to contact you. Whether that’s, send me a DM and I’ll respond when I’m awake or please send an email.

Delegation

When you delegate authority, you are empowering your Summit to be leaders, not just followers.

Delegating tasks can be one of the hardest things for a leader in any role to do. It involves a lot of trust in others, a willingness to take control out of your own hands, and the accompanying worries of something not working out the way you had hoped. However, any Consul unwilling to delegate tasks to their Summits is setting themselves and their team up for failure.

Dividing up your workload becomes easier when you have a list. This can be on a piece of paper at your desk, a digital tool like Google Keep or Apple Notes, but making a list helps visualize what work needs to get done. Then, it becomes easier to identify which tasks are more important, less important, have deadlines, or are open-ended. This allows you to then prioritize tasks, which helps with assigning the right tasks to the right people.

You never want to have a “single-point of failure” when it comes to task management. If you are worried that someone might not complete their assigned task or responsibility on time, make sure you have a backup plan. In the example of assigning a task to a Quaestor, make sure for example that the Aedile would be able to cover. After that, you have a Proconsul that can step in and assist. If all three somehow fail to complete the task, that’s where you as Consul can step in and make sure it’s delivered.

In any variant of the above scenario, it is important to always close out a thread with feedback. If something did not go the way you wanted it to, make sure they know what they could do better next time. You never want to talk down or belittle a subordinate, but it’s important that they know that the task was not done how you envisioned it. Your opportunity as a leader is identifying when a task needed to be completed as you envision (e.g., creation of a container competition where all sub-competitions have the same start and end date) versus where it’s appropriate for the leaders you delegated to too insert their own unique perspective (e.g., we need a new story arc for the clan and a QUA creates a plot to conquer a planet and you were thinking of a battle with a crime lord).

It’s equally important to listen to what they have to say as well. Maybe you could have done a better job communicating to them what you wanted. Feedback is a two-way street. Having open conversations like these, however, will go a long way to trusting others with responsibility and being a good delegator. Not only that, but when successful you’ll build confidence in your Summit and help make sure they’re ready to take on different and more tasks.

Be careful not to over-delegate. At the end of the day, it’s the Consul’s job to make sure everything that needs to be done is done. If an important task isn’t being completed, the Consul should be willing and able to step in if necessary to ensure it doesn’t fall through the cracks.

Getting Organized

It’s hard to be an effective leader that manages their time and is great at delegation when you’re not able to maintain a basic, healthy level of organization. Consuls have a lot of responsibility when it comes to the various data, reports, information, and sensitive information passed on from the Dark Council or other club leadership. The best way to stay organized is to utilize tools such as a Calendar, a notepad, a spreadsheet, or even something as advanced as a scrum or Kanban board—whatever “tool” you are comfortable using.

Google Calendar is a free, excellent resource, however, that lets you set reminders with custom triggers such as “notify me 1 week before we are supposed to have our Clan Artifacts submitted to the Regent” or “remind me every 3 months to do an audit of awards given out to members of the Clan”.

However you choose to organize yourself, even if it’s sticky notes left on your monitor or written in sharpie on the inside of your hand, will be key to being an effective leader at any level.

This should be shared with your Summit as well. As we discussed above, you should be delegating and encouraging your Summit leaders to plan and execute their own activities. You do not want to create a situation where you’re preparing to launch a clan level event only for it to conflict with house level competitions that are already in flight.

Further, you should seek to add Dark Council level events (e.g., GJW, RoS, etc.) so yourself and your Summit can plan accordingly.

Interacting with Clan Members

A Consul must have a high degree of patience and be able to deal with all members in a respectful manner. A Clan consists of a wide variety of personalities and cultures, each with their own ideas and thoughts. Listening and responding to all inquiries and conversations in a calm and rational manner is key to maintaining healthy relationships with members of the Clan and any guests you might foster in your public communications channel. The Consul, although generally not expected to do so by members, should be active in the various competitions that are ongoing. This helps build the, “Hey, the Consul is one of us” mentality, and provides you with a better baseline to align with members. It also helps you spot-check what works or doesn’t work for you/your members and allows you to provide constructive feedback to the competition runners. This becomes very important when dealing with Vendettas, cross-Clan events, or a club-wide competition.

Communication is key to having a healthy interaction with Clan members. This can be accomplished in a few key ways such as:

  • Being active or present on Discord, the club’s primary communication platform
  • Having a fairly quick turn around on email communications from both members and leadership
  • And publishing regular Clan reports that feature interaction with members, highlighting their accomplishments, giving insight into larger-club events and news, and in acknowledging the work of the sub-unit leaders.

Interacting with non-Clan Members

While you’re responsible for your Clan, there will also be times when you must interact with members from outside of your Clan, and might encounter situations where you have to mediate between Clan members and non-Clan members. If you can’t resolve a dispute on your own, reach out to the Consul(s) of the members involved and see if they can help. The Justicar is also available to help mediate disputes between members.

At all times, you are representing your Clan, and as such, you are expected to act with both maturity and a level head. How you interact with others will have a direct impact on how they perceive your Clan.

Discipline

While the DJB is a place for friends and fun, it’s still ultimately an organization that has protections in place for its community and its members. In some cases, one of your members and/or leaders might violate the clubs codes of conduct (the Covenant). The most common examples tend to be altercations that take place in chat rooms/DMs (Discord) or intentionally/unintentionally cheating in a competition (Plagiarism, copying trivia answers, etc.). In each of these examples, it’s important to remain calm, isolate the facts, and make sure you are in open communication with the Justicar or their staff, and any and all relevant parties.

In a real-time chat, for example, do not be afraid to leverage your admin and put a “that’s enough” or “let’s change topics,” into chat. In extreme cases, a Consul (as the primary admin of a Clan’s channel) can mute a chat or individuals. This can help “slow” things down so that everyone can get onto the same page. In events like this, it’s important to follow up afterwards as well to make sure everyone on both sides understand what happened and why someone was triggered or set off.

Other times, simply isolating the facts or gathering information helps reveal the truth of what might have transpired. Never jump to accusations or throw blame until evidence has been presented.

Collaboration With Other Leaders

The Consul role balances between strategic engagement with the Dark Council and tactical execution of activities at the Clan level. Collaboration is critical to staying informed of upcoming events, both at the Brotherhood and peer Consul level, and maintaining consistency in your Clan’s activities. What follows are examples of collaboration with the various leaders of the Brotherhood.

Grand Master and Deputy Grand Master

  • While you are granted a significant amount of latitude to manage your Clan it is important to keep the Grand Master and Deputy Grand Master informed of overall plans for activities, story lines, and requests for engagement from the various Dark Council members
  • Similar to a real-life job, as your ‘boss’, they’re also available to mentor you and provide guidance. They provide a safe space, free of judgment, to discuss ideas for your Clan and how you would execute them.
  • You should consult with the Grand Master and Deputy Grand Master before selecting a Proconsul or initiating any major changes in your Clan.

Dark Council and Other Consuls

  • Consuls – As it is necessary to foster good relations with the other Clans, Consuls interact with one another on a daily basis, using one another as resources for help or as a point of contact should there be any problems with members from each Clan.
  • Master at Arms – As Consul, you are in regular contact with the MAA staff as they review all position appointments, medals, and promotions. If you believe a member has earned a medal higher than a Sapphire Blade or may be ready for an Elder promotion, consult with the MAA. Otherwise, go ahead and submit your recommendation through the website for their review.
  • Other Dark Councilors – As a Consul, you are likely to have at least occasional interactions with other members of the Dark Council, including the Voice, Herald, Fist, Regent, and Justicar. You will be their primary points of contact for matters affecting your Clan that fall within their respective domains.

Proconsul

  • The Proconsul is the second in command of a Clan. They are not just the Consul’s assistant, but serve as a viable backup to the role when needed, and bridge the gap between the Consul and the House Summits.
  • Proconsuls may also be called upon to vote as temporary members of the Electorate in the absence of their Consul.

While they are not guaranteed the position of Consul, Consuls are expected to train them to be able to fulfill any and all of the responsibilities in the event of something happening to the Consul.

Core Requirements

  • Perform any of the core requirements of a Consul.
  • Assist the Consul as a liaison to the members and Clan Summit.
  • 24-48 hour turnaround on communications (Discord, Email, etc.)

Above and Beyond

  • Discuss Dark Summit and Clan Summit matters with the Consul in private, while always supporting them in public.
  • Work with other units and the Dark Summit to find solutions to common problems or challenges that arise across units.
  • Be willing to cover for any Clan Summit members, including Quaestor, Aediles, and Battleteam Leaders when needed.
  • Mediate/resolve conflicts or disagreements between Clan summit and/or members.

Quaestors / Aediles / Battleteam Leaders

  • Much like your Proconsul, you should be in contact with your House Summit at all times. Through them you will know the state of your Houses in a much more intimate fashion. As well, you must at all times ensure that the House Summit is performing their job up to your standards, and is a positive force on their unit.

General Membership

  • While it may seem counterintuitive, this is the most important role within the Brotherhood. The general membership far surpasses the individuals in leadership and are the reason the organization exists. They participate in competitions, create works of fiction and art, game, and socialize.
  • It is important to keep a pulse on what activity your Clan wants to participate in as it will vary with time. Are they focused on gaming this quarter whereas last quarter it was fiction? Are a group of them attempting to raise their ranks in a specific society (e.g., Shroud Syndicate)? This will inform what types of competitions you want to run to maximize their enjoyment.

Operational Expectations

Although most of the duties involved with the Consulship will vary due to the dynamic nature of the Brotherhood and the Clans, certain duties are expected from all Consuls. The below list will give you a general idea of what your daily engagement may look like:

  • Welcoming new members to the Clan. This is simply done by keeping an eye on your email inbox and checking when the MAA sends an email showing a transfer request from either the SA or the Rogues. It is recommended that you maintain and leverage the system-generated welcome email template to open the lines of communication with new members joining your Clan.
  • Overseeing promotion and medal requests done by the House Summits. Generally keep an eye on whom the House Summits award medals and promos to. It is recommended to house a shared document to track previous discussion on recognition for your Clan members.
    • It will be your responsibility to submit awards that are beyond the range of your House Summit to submit (e.g., Sapphire Blade). You should still have your House Summit write the recommendation, review it for accuracy, and then post on their behalf.
  • Track House competitions being created by the Summit and members and the corresponding participation levels.
  • Provide coaching to your House Summits, whether it’s feedback on member engagements to how to structure competitions. Feedback is a two-way street, seek feedback from your House Summit on your performance. Be open-minded and ensure that your Summit has a “safe place to fail”, which is to mean, they will make mistakes as they’re learning. Do not seek to punish errors but see them as opportunities to help improve your Summit.
    • Remember, your House Summit should be your future Clan Summit.
  • Run and keep track of all Clan-wide competitions. This gives the opportunity for the Clan members to possibly get a higher quality level of medal, as well as stand out more visibly to the rest of their House or Clan.
  • Monitor all DB-wide activity, specifically DB-wide competitions. Keeping track of the status of the membership in regards to activity during major DB events (such as a GJW or RoS) is very important. Not only will the activity of the members make the determination on how your Clan is positioned with respect to others, it also opens up a large opportunity to allow the membership to earn prestigious medals and traditionally opens doors to promotions as well.
  • Keep track of general communications between the Clan members via Discord and email). This is a vital task. Do not assume a single forum of communication will reach all members. Assume that a message will need to be communicated multiple times for awareness and action (e.g., Vendetta prep and participation)
    • Be mindful of frequency, while it should be your objective to have high participation the Brotherhood is built around member’s participating in the time and means that engage them.
    • Make an effort to be regularly available via Discord and email. This is to make you more accessible to the general membership, making them feel more comfortable with talking to you about anything that they wish. It’s a leadership function.
  • Compile quarterly reports for the Grand Master, Deputy Grand Master and their assistants. The Grand Master generally will give you a format for your report to follow as to let them know what’s going on with the Clan. At the very minimum, you’ll want to put in the status of the Clan as a whole, the status of the various Houses, activities done within the month, the status of various projects, and people of interest within the Clan whether good or bad.
  • Send out regular Consul reports to your Clan, preferably monthly. These should be focused primarily on Clan-wide news, ongoing projects, and pertinent news concerning the rest of the Dark Jedi Brotherhood. It should also highlight the current competitions as well as point to members who have been going above and beyond what is required of them.
  • Attempt to run at least one major inter-Clan competition per year. This allows for a vast amount of activity, and generally are very spirited affairs. This usually is a serious undertaking, as the preparations for this take a few months to completely work out for all the Clans involved. This also helps to develop your skills in running and helping to manage a large project.
  • Assist the other Dark Council members with various DB-wide projects. The Dark Council at any given point in time has various large projects going on that they need assistance with. As a member of the Council, and a representative of your Clan, it is your duty to lend a helping hand, as well as familiarize yourself with other high-level responsibilities and personalities within the Brotherhood.
  • Attempt to perform a meaningful project that will benefit the Clan. This can take many forms, so this is up to you. However, your superiors expect you to bring a higher level of involvement to the Clan, and anything that you can do to enhance the well-being of your Clan will be viewed favorably. Use your imagination, and you should be ok.
  • Assign special projects to various Clan members. This mainly deals with various projects that you’d like to be done, but either don’t have the necessary time or most likely don’t have the skill set to handle the project. This benefits the Clan, and provides an opportunity for the member that is executing the project to shine in front of a lot of important people, which will be helpful when promotion or medal recommendation time comes along.
  • Assist with running major House-wide competitions. This is mainly as a back-up to the House Summits, although if you wish you can provide more input. Definitely an important task, as more minds working on a common project tend to improve the quality of the project. Also ensure that you train new leaders in how to run an effective competition.

Position Checklist

This is something that you should act upon immediately upon your appointment to Consul. The rest will follow and should be accomplished within the suggested time frame:

Immediately after your appointment

  • Contact the former Consul, and talk to them so that you can receive any and all of the old information that the former Consul had access to. It is also a good way to get yourself quickly caught up on the state of the Clan.
    • A best practice is to set up a shared folder (e.g., gDrive) to house this information between leaders to avoid file size restrictions in Discord or email.
  • Get in contact with the Grand Master and discuss your role as Consul and what is expected of you. This is a good opportunity to discuss your Clan with someone who is not a current member, but who has knowledge of it.
    • Take this opportunity to align yourself on any Dark Council level discussions that may require your input.
  • Communicate with your Proconsul, if one is in place, and advise him or her of your expectations and what you hope to accomplish during your tenure. Also, give a brief description of your general contact time frames, what method of contact best works for you, and general working/leadership style would be of great help to them. Requesting a status update on anything that you should be aware of—Projects in motion, etc.—should be requested at this time.
    • If no Proconsul is in place, your first task would be to appoint a Proconsul or open applications for the position, and then submit that member for consideration to the Grand Master and Deputy Grand Master for final approval.
  • Email your House Summit members. Give them a general run down giving your expectations and what you hope to accomplish during your tenure. Also, give a brief description of your general contact time frames, what method of contact best works for you, and general working/leadership style would be of great help to them. If you were previously a Quaestor within the Clan, appointing your replacement should be a top priority. Requesting a status update on anything that you should be aware of—Projects in motion, etc.—should be requested at this time.
  • Familiarize yourself with the Discord commands for managing your Clan text and voice channels. Seek to understand if there are any hidden channels available only to Clan title holders to ensure you’re not accidentally added when permissions are synced.
  • Publish a report providing an overview of what you expect to achieve and your general vision for the Clan. This will enable others to offer support based upon their experiences as well as a public promise you are making on what activities you’ll deliver on. It will be important to track and share progress on these promises as you progress in your role.
  • Compile a list of any other projects, competitions, or other uncompleted work by the outgoing Consul and triage them. This is especially critical for awards and promotions that are awaiting the Consul’s input.
    • This is important to ensure Clan story lines are maintained. It’s rare that you’ll assume command at a time where a story arc is finished. The Clan members should get to bring the existing story arc to conclusion.
  • Run a quick competition. Mainly of the fast and easy kind, this is usually traditional amongst the Clans.

Within two weeks of your appointment

  • Ensure that any empty spots in the Clan and House leadership are now filled.
  • Ensure that you are on all the right distribution lists, and that you have moderator/admin access to the correct locations.
  • Have a solid idea of the current strengths and weaknesses of the Clan, and have a plan in place to address what needs to be fixed.
  • Work with your Proconsul on a checklist of what needs to be done with the Clan, and divide the work between you both.
  • Complete any tasks that were left uncompleted by the previous Consul, if possible.
  • Award any medals or promotions that were pending by the previous Consul.
  • Conclude your first competition and award the proper medals.
  • Have a clear short-term goal of what you want to do with the Clan, and commence working towards it.
  • Ensure that the House Summits are reporting properly to you.
  • Send a report to the Grand Master/Dark Council indicating the state of the Clan as you see it and give updates of your tasks, goals and the current leadership.

Weekly Tasks

  • Ensure that you communicate with your House Summits on projects, status updates, and general engagement.
  • Properly note the activity done by the House Summits.
  • Ensure that any newly arriving members receive a greeting email from you; this may be a daily thing.
  • Keep in regular contact with your members.

Monthly Tasks

  • Compile the monthly Clan report.
    • This should include status on all projects underway within the Clan and/or are upcoming to garner interest.
  • Evaluate all of your subordinate leaders, ensuring that they are capable of performing their duties.
  • Award any medals and/or promotions for the month’s activities. While you may issue awards on a quarterly to 6 month basis, newer members should receive more timely awards based upon their activity to encourage their engagement.
    • New members should generally receive merit awards in order, starting with a Dark Cross. The site will generated "claimable" recommendations for a member's first DC, AC, SC, GC, SB, and AK when they have accrued sufficient Medal XP for each. You should award those medals within one week of the creation of the claimable recommendation. Leadership or project work a member has done since their last medal may be used to upgrade a medal beyond what they have earned solely through XP.
  • Ensure that there are plans for a decent amount of competitions and such for the Clan in the coming month(s).

Quarterly Expectations

  • Ensure that one major intra or inter-Clan competition is being worked on.
  • Ensure that the Clan Summit has been properly rewarded for their work.
  • Ensure that any big projects are kept on track. A detailed status report is essential.
  • Try to ensure that at least one Clan-wide project has been completed.

Annual Expectations

  • Write a “State of the Clan” report for your members and the Dark Council including relevant statistics, and completed projects.

Document(s)

Consul's Handbook