CAP Membership - All Management no Doing/Play?

[Spaceman3750]

Has CAP as an organization become so inundated with paperwork, program management, and technicalities that members spend more time on these things than they do on actually accomplishing the missions?

I was thinking about this the other day. Due to staffing numbers and my own personal CAP goals I wear a variety of hats such as CDS, logistics officer, comm officer (I'm about ready to jettison this one as soon as I get my more comm-oriented guy back on board), professional development officer, emergency services officer, etc. If I were to break down my CAP time into dealing with CAP management (inventory, ORMS input, Level I summaries, Form 11s, ES records, SUIs, working with the rest of the command staff to make all the wheels turn together and keeping it all from blowing up in my face, etc) versus executing CAP's missions and goals (working at a mission, lending a hand with cadet programs, participating in a community event, etc) I spend WAY, WAY more time on the former than the latter.

Obviously, part of that has to do with my position - as the deputy commander for seniors, most of what I do is helping the squadron commander make things work, but I still think that we have become so obsessed with the paperwork (fill out this form, get this signature, are we compliant with CAPR X 2-1a?, etc) that we spend more time on that (as a whole) than the things the organization is here to accomplish.

Not that it's good or bad, that's just the state of the organization as I see it. Thoughts?

[Eclipse]

Due to staffing numbers and my own personal CAP goals

The answer is in your question.

It's not really an issue of CAP being buried in administrivia, it's that we have far too few people doing too much, either because they are poor, micro-managing commanders and department heads, or the unit is short handed.

Taken separately, the duties of any one department aren't really that big a deal, especially spread out over a year, but when they same guy is doing 4 jobs, all with annual reporting requirements due the same week, that "guy" gets burned out.

Yes, we need to streamline operations and eliminate a lot of redundant redundancy, but most of CAP's challenges in this area are fixed with more people.

[EMT-83]

Honestly, lots of that stuff runs on autopilot. PD at the squadron level can be done in your sleep, and just how often does the inventory change? Yes, things do get more intense occasionally.

I wear several hats, including Deputy Commander for Seniors. I don't micromanage the staff and still have plenty of time to play.

[Spaceman3750]

I don't micromanage the staff and still have plenty of time to play.

Well, I have time to play, that's not it. My point is the load of administration vs. doing.

[Eclipse]

On the "no play" issue.  I agree, but it's voluntary.

If you want the reigns of staff or command, your "play" has to come after everyone else's - in most cases that is typical for any manager.

[lordmonar]

The paper work has always been there.....you just may not have noticed or your wing allowed you to slide by for a long time.

If anything.....there is less paper work now then there was 5 years ago.....we have added more things that the individual member has to accomplish on a monthly basis and more training annually or up front....and of course we had to do a lot of catch up training when these new requirements were started.

But every organisation has paper work and every organisation has a few headshed sort of people who do it to keep the program running.

If you find that YOU are doing more and more paper work.....it is because you are wearing too many hats.  The solution is recruit and train, recruit and train, recruit and train......of course this means that someone will have to pick up this new duty to get it started....but once you do and you keep up with it....then the you will have more time to do the fun stuff.