4 replies to this topic

[ataltos]

I sit at the top of my studio. I am sure a few of the rest of you do. But most of the players may never get the chance to sit in that chair. Sure, many will found a studio, they may get a few players to join, but in the end most will have to join an established, well funded studio, if they are competitive and want a chance in the big leagues. Our studio sits just on the edge moving between 10-15, twice breaking into the top 10. We have been in this position as long as I have been a member, almost 10 months. If nothing else we are consistent.

 

But that's not what I am here to discuss. I am here to talk about the task that is the worse part of being a boss. Sure we share studio fight selection, and diamond spending with the producers, but task I dread the most is when I have to kick someone out of the studio.

 

We have been lucky in a way. We have only had 2 players jump ship to join stronger studios. That also means that we lose most of our players to attrition. I understand, I have been that player, that person that doesn't get the chance to log on the first day. The second day is the attitude that 2 days won't be the end of the world. By the end of the week, you feel like, well maybe I didn't like the game as much as I thought I did. You turn around, you find another game and you move on. And there is nothing wrong with that. I play games for enjoyment, and a sense of accomplishment. When I am not getting that I find something else.

 

But that leaves the studio boss in a lurch. Back to that low loss of player rate. I mentioned before that our studio has only loss two players to other studios. We engender loyalty in our studio. Players join us and they stick with us. I have probably removed close to 30-40 members since I became boss in June. Some of them have been easy. The first 15, clearing space for a studio merger was a no brainer. But it took me nearly another month to remove the studios founder and first boss and I agonized over the decision. And then 2 days ago I had to remove one of our top 3 powerful players who was a member before I joined.

 

That brings me to the crux of this topic. The boss has to think about the other 29 people that are trying to reach a goal. They have to balance the needs of each player, their comfort in the studio, their satisfaction with the studios "brand" and the goals of the studio as a whole. I know I question each time - has RL caught up with the player, will they come back?? Will they be upset with me when they return?

 

But a well performing studio is about active players, not about keeping dead avatars around and the player with the pruning shears has the hardest task of all.

 

Thanks for listening. Let me know what you think. If you like it, I might continue writing on similar topics.

 

[Thantasia]

Very well written and thanks for the incite. I have already ran across one of these myself in the just over a month I have been playing.

 

The founder of our studio promoted me to boss and didn't log back in after that. I waited 2 weeks before I kicked them out to make room for another active player. I hated doing it but in the end it was a decision I had to make. What was best for the studio vs keeping the founder who is inactive in the studio just because they were the founder.

[Becky Lynch]

Moving this to suggestions and discussions since it;s not really a question and is more a general discussion.

[CaptC]

Back in April, I ran a zombie studio.  6 effectives out of 12 man roster. Like Thantasia, I had been a producer without a boss.  Like Thantasia, I agonized for weeks before kicking him out of studio.

 

Around then, I realized what Ataltos had - it was all about the activity. I built a process requiring activity. If you weren't active, the process described when you were warned, and when you got booted. It was all written down.  We share that process with each new player, within 24 hours of them joining us.  And we follow that process.  (Yes, there is room for real life events... We understand the real takes priority.  We aren't merciless.  We believe that loyalty goes both ways, from studio to player as well as from player to studio, and we will bend over backwards to accomodate.)

 

But players have to stay active, or let us know in advance why they temporarily cannot be active -- or those players risk leaving us.
 

So, do I still have angst about kicking a player?  Yes - I always feel I could have done something to keep them happy and playing.

 

Do I spend sleepless nights?  Not a whit, clear expectations were set when they joined.

 

Do I let inactive players hang around, reducing the studio effectiveness, forcing other players to pick up their slack?  No - inactive players leave according to a published process.

 

Since then, we have grown and prospered. We hit #1 on the challenge board for a brief time, and we are consistently #1 or #2 on temple challenges.  It is, indeed, all about the activity.

 

But a boss doesn't have to be subject to the whims of players who mysteriously move on.  You can control the exit process, and it will be good both for your own mental health, and for your studio.

Edited by CaptC, 04 December 2016 - 11:56 PM.

[CaptC]

...as a corollary, just a brief comment about how GOOD players leave a studio.

 

If you have decided to quit a game, but you have had some laughs, enjoyed a good time with a social group, you are being just a tiny bit of a self-centered jerk if you simply just stop playing. And if you are an important member of the studio, contributing significant combat power or expertise or diamonds, you are being more than just a bit of a jerk to quit without notice. 

 

So, a few suggestions if you decide to move on:

 

1) Tell at least the studio boss.

2) Donate all your cash and unrecoverable diamonds.

3) If you are completely sure you aren't coming back, sell off your stuff to give back even more.

4) Remove yourself from the studio or delete your character (unless the boss asks you to stay as a zombie they will give life with doubles.)