Recruiting Members

[NIN]

I neglected to take a photo of the 21 prospective cadets standing in our Basic Training Flight tonight....

But #WINNING! anyway.

[SkywalkerRA]

I'd be interested in hearing what senior squadrons have done that have been particularly successful at recruiting. I'm in a senior squadron and right now most of our new prospects come one by one through referrals, invitations from current squadron members, and someone who has thought about CAP and found us online. What are some of your best practices for senior squadrons? Thanks!!

[The CyBorg is destroyed]

I'd be interested in hearing what senior squadrons have done that have been particularly successful at recruiting. I'm in a senior squadron and right now most of our new prospects come one by one through referrals, invitations from current squadron members, and someone who has thought about CAP and found us online. What are some of your best practices for senior squadrons? Thanks!!

I served in one senior squadron.

95% of the members were pilots...not saying all senior squadrons are like this, but if you weren't a pilot (I wasn't, though I was an observer) they really weren't interested in taking you on.

[Raptormanf35]

My unit is like that in also the youngest there so it's always awkward but there nice.

[TheSkyHornet]

Personally, I'm totally fine with cutting the people that see CAP has a hobby--an opportunity to sit around the table and just B.S.

Go form a group, go outside, and start training. It's not happy hour at the bar. It sets a really bad tone when there's a gaggle of people of stand around drinking coffee the duration of a meeting and never do anything.

[NIN]

Personally, I'm totally fine with cutting the people that see CAP has a hobby--an opportunity to sit around the table and just B.S.

Go form a group, go outside, and start training. It's not happy hour at the bar. It sets a really bad tone when there's a gaggle of people of stand around drinking coffee the duration of a meeting and never do anything.

Thats usually a factor of the tone that the unit sets.

If the commander is setting the rate and direction of march right to Dunkin' Donuts, well, there ya go.

[FW]

Personally, I'm totally fine with cutting the people that see CAP has a hobby--an opportunity to sit around the table and just B.S.

Go form a group, go outside, and start training. It's not happy hour at the bar. It sets a really bad tone when there's a gaggle of people of stand around drinking coffee the duration of a meeting and never do anything.

As one who holds a "Coffee Distribution Officer" Master Rating, I see nothing wrong with the above...as long as they are B.Sing about best practices, mission prosecution, flying safety, etc.
Seriously, the social hour should be before or after the meeting. Plenty of time for that stuff then. 

[Chappie]

<SNIP> It sets a really bad tone when there's a gaggle of people of stand around drinking coffee the duration of a meeting and never do anything. <SNIP>

You mean "CC" doesn't stand for "Coffee Consumer"?     

[Raptormanf35]

I'm going for the aerospace master rating. I can't wait to get that little gold star lol

[NIN]

I neglected to take a photo of the 21 prospective cadets standing in our Basic Training Flight tonight....

But #WINNING! anyway.

Btw, that 21 is now 23.

[Hummingbird]

I was recruited through targeted recruitment by an LT about a year ago. On the way to school he mentioned CAP and explained it, and two months later i had officially joined (I unofficially showed up at meetings for about a month). Targeted recruitment however isn't working very well (except for one person who left a Marines youth group), but talking to their parents seems to hold more potential. Another option could possibly be creating pamphlets/fliers, perhaps an official one if possible. Until then, if anyone has any skills for creating good unoffical ones, please do and leave a link somewhere for others to print out. Maybe on Google Drive so that it can be downloaded and modified to fit specific squadrons.

[NIN]

I was recruited through targeted recruitment by an LT about a year ago. On the way to school he mentioned CAP and explained it, and two months later i had officially joined (I unofficially showed up at meetings for about a month). Targeted recruitment however isn't working very well (except for one person who left a Marines youth group), but talking to their parents seems to hold more potential. Another option could possibly be creating pamphlets/fliers, perhaps an official one if possible. Until then, if anyone has any skills for creating good unoffical ones, please do and leave a link somewhere for others to print out. Maybe on Google Drive so that it can be downloaded and modified to fit specific squadrons.

You mean, like this: http://bit.ly/RecruitingMaterials

[Robert Hartigan]

Recruiting is easy compared to retention. Help me understand why it is so difficult to turn a ready, willing, able and qualified commercial pilot into a CAP mission pilot? Based on my experience, there is a SQTR but no formal training program to take a member from new to mission contributor in any reasonable time. I know pilots that have added ratings to their FAA ticket while still waiting on Scanner qualification flights going on a year, now.

Almost to the point of "No need to recruit if they are just going to be ignored once in the door."

[Hummingbird]

I was recruited through targeted recruitment by an LT about a year ago. On the way to school he mentioned CAP and explained it, and two months later i had officially joined (I unofficially showed up at meetings for about a month). Targeted recruitment however isn't working very well (except for one person who left a Marines youth group), but talking to their parents seems to hold more potential. Another option could possibly be creating pamphlets/fliers, perhaps an official one if possible. Until then, if anyone has any skills for creating good unoffical ones, please do and leave a link somewhere for others to print out. Maybe on Google Drive so that it can be downloaded and modified to fit specific squadrons.

Yes, thank you. I had no idea this existed, and it will help an outstandingly large amount.
You mean, like this: http://bit.ly/RecruitingMaterials

[Spaceman3750]

Recruiting is easy compared to retention. Help me understand why it is so difficult to turn a ready, willing, able and qualified commercial pilot into a CAP mission pilot? Based on my experience, there is a SQTR but no formal training program to take a member from new to mission contributor in any reasonable time. I know pilots that have added ratings to their FAA ticket while still waiting on Scanner qualification flights going on a year, now.

Almost to the point of "No need to recruit if they are just going to be ignored once in the door."

Any unit should be able to organize a SAREX for the purpose of qualifying their people. Have you worked through the chain with your Wing ESO to determine what the process is in your wing?

[Hummingbird]

I'm still in high school and a lot of the other students I've talked to say that it sounds great, and don't show up at any of the meetings. I think you think that I'm talking about current pilots, however I could be wrong.

[SarDragon]

I'm still in high school and a lot of the other students I've talked to say that it sounds great, and don't show up at any of the meetings. I think you think that I'm talking about current pilots, however I could be wrong.

Mr. Hartigan is just pointing out different aspects of the big picture. He is addressing what many feel to be the greater problem, retention.

[Eclipse]

Recruiting is easy compared to retention. Help me understand why it is so difficult to turn a ready, willing, able and qualified commercial pilot into a CAP mission pilot? Based on my experience, there is a SQTR but no formal training program to take a member from new to mission contributor in any reasonable time. I know pilots that have added ratings to their FAA ticket while still waiting on Scanner qualification flights going on a year, now.

Almost to the point of "No need to recruit if they are just going to be ignored once in the door."

+1 As we see here on a regular basis, experienced members have issues of "access and understanding", for new members it's 10-fold.

The "culture of 'no^®" is still alive and well in CAP, Commanders are supposed to possess the experience, knowledge, and intestinal fortitude to
look "no" in the eye and wait for the proper response.  It's not fair to bring someone in with expectations of service, then toss them a PDF and say "work it out yourself",
that's literally a CC, PDO, and PO's job.

"But I don't have time for that...?

A - Shepherding the flock is a CC's primary job

B - more people = more time

"culture of 'no'" are registered trademarks of eClipseco Mining and Heavy Machinery Consortium.  All Rights Reserved.  Let eClipseco service all of your rhetoric and propaganda needs!

[Garibaldi]

Recruiting is easy compared to retention. Help me understand why it is so difficult to turn a ready, willing, able and qualified commercial pilot into a CAP mission pilot? Based on my experience, there is a SQTR but no formal training program to take a member from new to mission contributor in any reasonable time. I know pilots that have added ratings to their FAA ticket while still waiting on Scanner qualification flights going on a year, now.

Almost to the point of "No need to recruit if they are just going to be ignored once in the door."

Any unit should be able to organize a SAREX for the purpose of qualifying their people. Have you worked through the chain with your Wing ESO to determine what the process is in your wing?

Used to be in ARWG we could just contact the Wing ESO to get a mission number for an FTX or weekend training local SAREX, didn't have to be an AFAM or funded, just needed the mission number for sign offs. This was a good 20 years or so ago, though.

[Spaceman3750]

Recruiting is easy compared to retention. Help me understand why it is so difficult to turn a ready, willing, able and qualified commercial pilot into a CAP mission pilot? Based on my experience, there is a SQTR but no formal training program to take a member from new to mission contributor in any reasonable time. I know pilots that have added ratings to their FAA ticket while still waiting on Scanner qualification flights going on a year, now.

Almost to the point of "No need to recruit if they are just going to be ignored once in the door."

Any unit should be able to organize a SAREX for the purpose of qualifying their people. Have you worked through the chain with your Wing ESO to determine what the process is in your wing?

Used to be in ARWG we could just contact the Wing ESO to get a mission number for an FTX or weekend training local SAREX, didn't have to be an AFAM or funded, just needed the mission number for sign offs. This was a good 20 years or so ago, though.

Yeah, it's supposed to be that simple. Nowadays it's almost that simple in my wing, we do have to send up an ICS 201 and ideally we would have already planned it in the training plan for the year (so it's already budgeted), but it's generally pretty straightforward. I would hope it's the same in other wings and that you don't have to be a member of the secret cabal to get a number.