Staff Employment: April 2013

[Professor Oak]

We are opening up a staff recruitment round for the next few weeks given we are under-staffed at the moment. As usual, you must have been a member of this site for at least 3 weeks in order to be considered. Please note, if you have been a Moderator in the past, please specify in the application and you may get re-instated without the need of undergoing the test. However, this is subject to how long ago it was and how long you were active as a Moderator.

The process is similar to previous recruitment rounds except the "Test" phase might be slightly different as I'm sure we're all sick of William and his Charmander by now. It may involve a different scenario plus a small quiz at the end to test you knowledge of various aspects of the site.

The recruitment process occurs in three phases.

Phase 1
A simple application which does not have to be long or fancy. Simply post beneath and address each of the bullet points. Please do more than a few scant sentences though.

• Why do you want to be a Moderator at ZapdosZulu?
  
  
• Are you an active member of this site and do you have some understanding of the rules and procedures of the site to be able to moderate threads?
  
  
• Have you had any past experience as a staff member on another roleplaying site or have you taken up a role of responsibility in the past?
  
  
• Do you have any additional skills that could be useful in developing the site?
  
  

[ul][li][b]Why do you want to be a Moderator at ZapdosZulu?[/b]

[/li][li][b]Are you an active member of this site and do you have some understanding of the rules and procedures of the site to be able to moderate threads?[/b]

[/li][li][b]Have you had any past experience as a staff member on another roleplaying site or have you taken up a role of responsibility in the past?[/b]

[/li][li][b]Do you have any additional skills that could be useful in developing the site?[/b]

[/li][/ul]

Phase 2
Involves a simple training/probation period to make sure you are familiar with all the roleplaying rules and most importantly understand how our Battle System works. A staff member will arrange a Test if they accept your application. This test will be a learning phase, so don't worry if you make a mistake. You will be guided through the entire process so just do your best.

Phase 3
Finally, once you have completed your test, there will be a short probation period where you will be given the title of Trainee Moderator and a coloured name. You will be allowed to moderate real threads and will be watched closely by our staff team. If you meet the activity requirements and make a good impression, you will then receive your full Moderator status.

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Although this is a vigorous recruitment process to ensure that in the future our Moderators are active and possess the vital skills, this should not discourage you in any way from applying. There will be some great opportunities to design some elements of the site. As usual, we love our artistic members so emphasizing your graphics skills will help your application. You may also be aware that Proboards v5 is coming soon so if you have any coding experience, we'd love to hear from you.

[Ŀėx.]

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• Why do you want to be a Moderator at ZapdosZulu?
  I'd like to be of assistance. I really like the site and I want to contribute and keep it going. At first I was intimidated by your battle system and messing it up. ;-; So I've been practicing with Tiki, who is wonderful.
  ♥ the thread is here ♥
  I hope to create instances in people's threads that take them delightfully by surprise and stretch them as roleplayers and make them proud of their team. Like the staff here has done for me.
  I've been roleplaying for a long time. Various genres. So I have some experience. I like coming up with ideas too.
  
  
• Are you an active member of this site and do you have some understanding of the rules and procedures of the site to be able to moderate threads?
  Yes and yes. I've been here for a year, gotten to know some awesome people. Won member of the month once. Is it cheating to copy and paste what they wrote? ;D
  

  Lex is the epitome of a fantastic member; an active member of the community, she is helpful, kind and very generous - offering free icons for those who ask. A constant presence on site and in the Cbox, Lex is someone who is friendly to everyone, even making group threads to connect with other characters and their roleplayers. Posting wise, she is very active and makes her posts always fun to respond to, giving her Pokémon fun and unique personalities to play with. Lex, you have totally earned this well deserved honor! Congratulations on being our Member of the Month for June 2012!

  
  
• Have you had any past experience as a staff member on another roleplaying site or have you taken up a role of responsibility in the past?
  I have been a mini-mod on a few Pokemon RP sites in the past. Mostly just took care of modding posts with wild Pokemon and trainers. It went well. I don't take up the responsibility lightly. The last time I've modded for a site was around 3 years ago.
  I've been a head writer for a start-up pet-site (http://www.kaylune.com/). Managing other writers and editing their work. We worked on a lot of descriptions.
  
  
• Do you have any additional skills that could be useful in developing the site?
  I do art sometimes (pixel, graphic, illustrations, web design, editing). I know a bit of fancy html. I can also animate things. I've done icons, sprites, drawings, and table graphics/code for people on the site (I still owe a few). x3 Examples of my work are on Narice's profile, on my dA, and in my thread in the Trainer Shops. My art muse is pretty flighty though so you have to catch it while it's hot.

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[Tiki]

Why do you want to be a Moderator at ZapdosZulu?

I want to be a moderator because I have been watching different interactions between moderators, interaction between moderators and members, and I want to help out at modding members' role plays, and other auxiliary services such as moving pokemon, updating moves, game corners, and events.

Are you an active member of this site and do you have some understanding of the rules and procedures of the site to be able to moderate threads?

Currently active for one year. I have done some unmodded group battle before. I know that I should take out IV/EV in damage calculations, and consider held items and abilities as well as rules like switching out or using an item and calling a move.

Sample 1

Sample 2

Have you had any past experience as a staff member on another roleplaying site or have you taken up a role of responsibility in the past?

On a different pokemon forum, I have done wild pokemon modding, you can pm me if you want to see samples.

As for responsibility, not so much lol.

Do you have any additional skills that could be useful in developing the site?
I have taken some basic java and C++ before... I don't think they're the same coding as forums, haha. but since i can't offer computer art skills, I'll give this lol.

[Professor Oak]

Looks like we have our first victims applicants.

Both of you have written strong applications and I expecially like the evidence and examples provided. It's great to see that you've applied early and as a result, I'll probably make the test a little easier given you are the first ones to be given the new scenario, but it'll still be more challenging than what the test used to be.

Good luck! Please read the test rules first before beginning your tests here:

Lex

Tiki

[Deleted]

• Why do you want to be a Moderator at ZapdosZulu?
  
  Being able to give something back is a very important part of being in a community and I want to help pulling my weight. You made this experience a pleasant one for me and many others, but no one is an endless resource of great RP material and expecting so is selfish, so I want to mod so our great mods can catch a break every now and then, hopefully I will become a great mod myself in time.
  
  
• Are you an active member of this site and do you have some understanding of the rules and procedures of the site to be able to moderate threads?
  
  I believe so, when I started here I asked a lot of questions because I like understanding how things work. I am willing to listen and learn when needed.
  
  
• Have you had any past experience as a staff member on another roleplaying site or have you taken up a role of responsibility in the past?
  
  I run a few Potter sites in the past; this is by first experience with pokemon.
  
  
• Do you have any additional skills that could be useful in developing the site?
  
  I know proboard codes pretty well, not that I you properly need it, but I can help fix stuff, making boards and more in that direction.
  
  

[Hunter]

• Why do you want to be a Moderator at ZapdosZulu?
  Although my first trial at Moderator for this site wasn't the best and I've had a shaky history in the past, Being a Moderator on this site has always been my highest aspiration. I'm deeply sorry to those people whose feet I've stepped on in the past and I can understand why grudges can be held against me. I've seen many members come and go as Staff members who have had countless chances, I've only had one. I hate to beg, but at least give me one more chance.
  
  
• Are you an active member of this site and do you have some understanding of the rules and procedures of the site to be able to moderate threads?
  I've proven that my activity is of a high standard and that I'm loyal to this site. I understand the rules and procedures of the site. The Battle System has grown with me over time and it's simple to handle.
  
  
• Have you had any past experience as a staff member on another roleplaying site or have you taken up a role of responsibility in the past?
  I've been roleplaying for years now, over that time I've racked up quite a history of being a staff member. Not only was I a Moderator but I've also been a Moderator on different sites, Global Moderator and even Administrator. I understand the responsibility it takes to be a Moderator and will prove that
  
  
• Do you have any additional skills that could be useful in developing the site?
  I've been working on my spriting skills and trying to teach myself how to code and do all sorts of other interesting stuff.
  

[/justify][/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Professor Oak]

Lin, I do have a few initial concerns about your level of activity over the last few months. In particular, I did a search of your last 20 or so posts and there was a bit of a gap between Oct 27 and Mar 24. However, I do understand that things have been moving slowly in recent months and up until Oct 27, you've been a regular contributor to the site with raffles in your shop, participated regularly in the Game Corner area and you've made good progress in the roleplay given you only joined us in August 2012.

Considering all of this, I am prepared to let you sit your test with the hope that you will be able to maintain a consistent level of activity over the next few months. Please find your test thread below:

Lin Nakatora

Hunter, thank you for your application. I am happy that you have applied given that I believe anyone should be free to apply for staff provided that they meet the requirements.

However, as I have discussed with you, there are concerns in my mind that there are some unresolved issues with regard to your relationship with other staff members. Until such time that I can see evidence that you have made efforts to mend your relationships with others, I cannot progress your application at this stage.

Given that your aspirations to be a Moderator continue to exist, my advice to you would be to try and patch things up by roleplaying with many of the other members including the staff where opportunities arise (obviously not against their will). Eventually, once you can convince others that you are a loyal and dedicated member to the site, you can ask that the other staff members vouch for you. If you can provide some written references from the other staff to say that you would make a good Moderator, this will significantly enhance your application and will be solid evidence to testify that you have tken active steps to improve your relationship with others.

While it's not possible to get along with everyone on this site, a lot of the current staff still have their doubts and this is going to negatively affect your ability to work with them as a team.

Also, I'd like to point out that it is true that we have offered second chances to other people but I think that we have given the same opportunities and the same number of chances to you. It is without doubt that you have played up in the past and I know the reason for your initial ban from latani was that you were disrespectful towards her. However, we have allowed you to continue roleplaying here and provided you with what I consider I third chance after you deleted your old account, created a new one whilst not being entirely truthful to a few of the staff of your identity.

I am proud to say that we do give people equal opportunity on this site and on the whole, we have made the fairest and correct decisions in most cases. However, we have much higher standards for our Moderators and I think this is the point that you are missing. Most of our staff members have never had any blemishes to their record and unfortunately, this is just the benchmark you are judged against when I consider potential Moderators.

I hope you do take my advice on board and I hope you understand where I am coming from. I do encourage you to keep trying but please also take the active steps in addressing the current weakness in your application. Sorry but this time I am unable to progress your application.

[Deleted]

Figured I would at least try. If I do not get picked I understand and will just keep trying until I do manage to get picked but I figured it could not hurt to try.

• Why do you want to be a Moderator at ZapdosZulu?I was a trainee a while back but because a few things came up I was unable to remain a trainee but since then things have calmed down and I really enjoyed being a mod not to mention that fact that I would like to help out with some of the projects on the site.
  
  
• Are you an active member of this site and do you have some understanding of the rules and procedures of the site to be able to moderate threads? Minus the recent disappearance which I admit was pretty long I was an active member of the site and now that things have gotten a lot better I will be able to get on far more often than the last couple of months.
  
  
• Have you had any past experience as a staff member on another roleplaying site or have you taken up a role of responsibility in the past?
  I am an admin on Munkapedia which is a Alvin and the Chipmunks wiki for the past few years even though it is small me and one other member until recently were just about the only two running it so I have staff experience plus I was a trainee here for a while.
  
  
• Do you have any additional skills that could be useful in developing the site? I know some HTML a tiny bit of C++ and I can use MS Paint but do not know how to make sprites although I would love to learn how to do so.
  
  

Edit: Forgot to mention I will be gone from today until Thursday so if by some miracle I do get accepted I just wanted to give you a heads up. Have a good day and see you guys either Thursday or Friday depending on when I get back from my Grandparents.

[❆Nishi~chan❆]

• Why do you want to be a Moderator at ZapdosZulu?
  
  You guys have been helping me along the way up until where I am now and also gave me alot of advise when I'm stuck so I want to do the same and give back to this site and make it last.
  
  
• Are you an active member of this site and do you have some understanding of the rules and procedures of the site to be able to moderate threads?
  
  I understand the rules but the challenge lies with the battle system for me and if my muse is high or not. I am active but since I am in the last year of school, it has been taking up my time but I am making an effort.
  
  
• Have you had any past experience as a staff member on another roleplaying site or have you taken up a role of responsibility in the past?
  
  Yes I have roleplayed before which can be seen here I used to run my own sites but the ran dead sadly and is staff on Bakugan WC even if it is advertiser. (Could have gone higher but I didn't want to)
  
  
• Do you have any additional skills that could be useful in developing the site?
  
  I do graphic and web designing. Exsample P.S: Don't know how to do sprites.
  
  

[Megan]

Why do you want to be a Moderator at ZapdosZulu?

Modding isn't just a job, or a title it is an art. I have had the privilege of being part of the Trainee course twice. The first time I had been demoted because I had missed some important correction in the staff board that I had not been aware of. Which had been my fault completely and I take responsibility for that. The second time I had resigned myself because my schedule had gotten extremely hectic between November and March as I think you could see by my recent posts, but I am back and ready to go!

I want to be a moderator to help make people's experience at ZapdosZulu memorable and a place that they always want to come back too! I want to bring life to NPC's and Wild Pokemon and help make the site flourish and a thriving community!

Are you an active member of this site and do you have some understanding of the rules and procedures of the site to be able to moderate threads?

Oh most definitely! I have gone through the Moderation test already as found here so I am well aware of the rules and what needs to be done. I know I have made mistakes, though I have been made aware and hopefully fixed them adequately!

Have you had any past experience as a staff member on another roleplaying site or have you taken up a role of responsibility in the past?

As I have mention I have already gone through the trainee period here. I am also a moderator on a Wolf Proboards knows as Wold Night Saga I am Marmezda/Marmy on there if you want to look around at all.currently the member of the month there no big deal but that moderation job won't get in the way at all!

Do you have any additional skills that could be useful in developing the site?

Well I am working on my drawing skills, nothing I really want to share with the internet world yet xD Though I have a few that I will link. #1 which is a female wolf drawn and colored by myself for my character on Wolf Night Saga. I then have a picture of Corla Megan's squirtle. I really hope to get more skilled and be able to draw other's characters! I can draw pokemon a lot easier probably cause I can draw animals a lot better!

Plus I know the new V.5 coding pretty well or to some extent so when proboards does shove us into the new V.5 that I am not a fond of I at least have some of that experience!

[Professor Oak]

Sorry for the wait everyone. Having consulted with the other admins about some of the applicants, I am ready to announce the following outcomes.

Megan, you can by-pass the test and progress straight to the Trainee Moderator phase and continue where you left off. I'd like to see if you can keep your activity level consistent and proving that, we will promote to a Moderator position.

Marchbaby, since you've just come back from an extended period of absence, the other admins and I are a bit concerned with your activity and whether you can maintain it for the next few months. In light of this and because we had quite a number of strong applications this time around, I cannot progress your application further. However, I do encourage you to keep trying. You've been a loyal member of the site for a number of years and I am sure that one day, if you are able to string together a few consistent months, you will have your opportunity again.

Finally, ❆Nishi~chan❆, I am pleased to say that you have progressed to the test phase of the process. Please find your test thread below:

zapdoszulu.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=teststaff&thread=10035


I'd like to now close staff applications. Thank you to everyone who applied and congratulations to those who made it through to the next phase. For those who didn't, I hope that I have provided some valid reasons and enough guidance for you to improve on your applications in the future. I'm sure that if you keep at it, there will be plenty of opportunities in the future.