Quote from David on November 12, 2021, 3:13 pm

Staff are often asked about how promotions work and indeed on what basis we choose staff members, so we've composed an informative thread to address issues of this nature.

How staff are chosen, what's required and what we do:

How are staff members promoted?

RuneLister.com employs Meritocracy when choosing its staff members and Official Middlemen. Historically, there were Head Moderators - most notoriously the duo of Clashfan and Steph - who had both substantial influence and considerable power over promotions. 

Nowadays, whilst it is generally accepted that Administrators retain a fair deal of influence in regard to who is promoted, Administrators are simply first among equals. When voting on staff and Official Middleman occurs in the Upper Lounge, all Upper staff have one vote each, irrespective of whether they are an Administrator or Global Moderator. Again, contrary to popular belief, staff are not dictatorially chosen or denied, unless in rare cases by RuneLister.com.

How are Sectional Moderators chosen?

Moderator applications are now always open. We look for members that are mature, active, and involved in the community. Asking for a staff position isn't necessary. Be sure to keep your nose clean both on and off site as well. All staff and potential candidates undergo extensive background checks sometimes reaching into their lives off the web. 

When voting upon sectionals (where most mods start their tenure), all Moderators and Administrators will vote. Typically, RuneLister abstain from these polls as they are primarily concerned with technical issues. These polls cannot be dictatorially closed by one individual, though, in rare cases, an Administrator may veto a poll for various reasons, such as if there is controversy, allegations of bribery, etc. A 60% super-majority is used and must be met for the promotion to take place.​

How are Global Moderators chosen?

A Global Moderator will almost always serve as a Sectional Moderator first. This allows the Upper staff to assess how well they use their mod tools and whether or not they would be suitable to be given more powers. When demand requires it, a Global Moderator will be promoted. Promotions from regular user to Global Moderator is rare and only usually happens when a retired Global Moderator requests to return.​

What qualities are you looking for in a Moderator?

• Activity
• Adherence to the rules
• Reports made (and validity of)
• Quality of posts
• Helpfulness
• Attitude
• Integrity & trustworthiness
• Presence (quantity of)
• Maturity
• etc.

What is the Staff structure?
 

The staff structure is as follows:

RuneLister | Forum - RuneLister and 2 more pages - Personal - Microsoft​ Edge (gyazo.com)
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The Administrators

Tier 1: Special Administrators

Special Administrators are responsible for distinctive tasks which are not always visible to ordinary users. They are ordered here by seniority. Changes to the members of Tier 1 almost never occur, even compared to the already small number of Administrator promotions.

RuneLister
Owner, David / RuneLister
As the name suggests, RuneLister is the owner of RuneLister.com. Whilst RuneLister discusses certain initiatives and promotion candidates with other Administrators, he is primarily concerned with ensuring the site is running smoothly and is rarely involved in site management unless there is a concern other administrators cannot address. He is the arbiter of last resort for all inter-staff conflicts and has the final say in all major decisions, including Administrator promotions.

David,
Second in Command, Head of Donations
David is responsible for processing the site's donations, and is the creator and maintainer of the User Center, the Ranks and Username Images system, the Mobile and NextGen series of styles, and various other projects. As second in command, David has authority over all Administrators other than RuneLister. 

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Tier 2: General Administrators

Equally important to the Administration team, general administrators handle management of staff, staff recruiting, staff dispute resolution, IP bans, creation and altering of forums, and other administration required around the site. They are:

Quardeshim
Kasper
NoLove
Godsplan
Tommy
​

How are Administrators chosen?

The way Administrators are chosen varies. Unlike with the promotions of Sectionals and Globals, all Administrators - including RuneLister and David - are involved in choosing a new Administrator. Whilst an official poll is not conducted for such promotions, and indeed the decision is always ultimately RuneLister's, RuneLister traditionally consults other Administrators, requesting their opinion and position. 

• If you have any further questions, feel free to post them and I will do my best to answer them.​