First comes the management category: that of your Radio Officer, the assistant Radio Officers, shift supervisors, and administrative people of any level or skill.
Then there is the technical group, such as installers, maintenance, engineers, consultants, technicians, who range from advice to hands-on work.
Most importantly, there is the operations group: those who actually operate the equipment. Not all operators operate all equipment. Some have highly specialized skills. Operating VHF and HF radios are quite different and utilize varying skills and experience. An excellent VHF Net Control Operator may not grasp the subtle, but critical, nuances of HF nets. A digital communications operator may have little or no voice operations experience. Obviously, not all volunteers can do the same thing, nor should they. The "cookie cutter syndrome" has killed more than one organization, so don't let it do that to you. Recognize and utilize the unique interests and talents of the volunteers. Don't expect all of them to possess the same skills or the same interests. That's why it is important to staff the three major levels: management, technical and operations.
---Stan Harter, KH6GBX
Then there is the technical group, such as installers, maintenance, engineers, consultants, technicians, who range from advice to hands-on work.
Most importantly, there is the operations group: those who actually operate the equipment. Not all operators operate all equipment. Some have highly specialized skills. Operating VHF and HF radios are quite different and utilize varying skills and experience. An excellent VHF Net Control Operator may not grasp the subtle, but critical, nuances of HF nets. A digital communications operator may have little or no voice operations experience. Obviously, not all volunteers can do the same thing, nor should they. The "cookie cutter syndrome" has killed more than one organization, so don't let it do that to you. Recognize and utilize the unique interests and talents of the volunteers. Don't expect all of them to possess the same skills or the same interests. That's why it is important to staff the three major levels: management, technical and operations.
---Stan Harter, KH6GBX
RSS Feed
