FROM THE NATIONAL COMMANDER March 18, 2021

Started by JohhnyD, March 19, 2021, 01:16:18 AM

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Your opinion - National Convention - in person?

Yes!
10 (14.3%)
Both in Person and Virtual
39 (55.7%)
Virtual only
12 (17.1%)
Do not care!
9 (12.9%)

Total Members Voted: 69

Voting closed: April 18, 2021, 01:17:43 AM

JohhnyD

That leads me to the national conference, scheduled for August in Bellevue, Washington. Everyone's crystal ball for how coronavirus will be treating us five months from now is hazy at best. I would like your thoughts on the matter as to whether or not you are comfortable in coming to the conference in person. Even if conditions allow, if people are not comfortable in coming it will be wise for us to change to an all-virtual event like we had last year.

Expect to see a very short survey that asks you about your comfort level for the in-person event. Knowing your druthers will help me to make an educated decision on how we move forward.

Johnny Yuma

#1
In person, period. IMHO last year's online conferences were a pointless waste of time and I'd rather have no conference than a faux conference. I don't say this lightly as I know people who really worked hard to make them happen who really believe they were successful, but I can't disagree with them more.

I tried to participate in both my wing/region and National online conferences last year. I wasn't impressed with either, actually disappointed is more the word for them. Wing/Region was effectively a series of preloaded Youtube videos you watched at a specific time and never could get Teams to work correctly for the National conference. Besides 80 percent of a conference is the face to face networking that simply isn't there online. 
"And Saint Attila raised the Holy Hand Grenade up on high saying, "Oh Lord, Bless us this Holy Hand Grenade, and with it smash our enemies to tiny bits. And the Lord did grin, and the people did feast upon the lambs, and stoats, and orangutans, and breakfast cereals, and lima bean-"

" Skip a bit, brother."

"And then the Lord spake, saying: "First, shalt thou take out the holy pin. Then shalt thou count to three. No more, no less. "Three" shall be the number of the counting, and the number of the counting shall be three. "Four" shalt thou not count, and neither count thou two, execpting that thou then goest on to three. Five is RIGHT OUT. Once the number three, being the third number be reached, then lobbest thou thy Holy Hand Grenade to-wards thy foe, who, being naughty in my sight, shall snuffit. Amen."

Armaments Chapter One, verses nine through twenty-seven:

Jester

I think the hybrid is the way to go, honestly.  Most members never get to attend a national conference for various reasons, and there's no need to keep a close-hold onto the info that gets put out there for the select few that do. 

Paul Creed III

Before COVID, many of the higher education industry conferences that I attended offered both in-person and virtual attendance options, with the virtual being cheaper than the in-person option.
Lt Col Paul Creed III, CAP
Group 3 Ohio Wing sUAS Program Manager

Eclipse

CAP Conferences.

50% is time discussing things that already happened, with rose-colored glasses and asterisks.

50% is time spent discussing things that are never going to happen.

"That Others May Zoom"

JohhnyD

Quote from: Jester on March 19, 2021, 12:57:08 PMI think the hybrid is the way to go, honestly.  Most members never get to attend a national conference for various reasons, and there's no need to keep a close-hold onto the info that gets put out there for the select few that do. 
That is my opinion as well.

Stonewall

I have been to several national conferences and dozens of region and wing conferences. Similar to virtual "learning", which I have years of experience as well, NOTHING can replace in-person learning and conferences at these levels.

I am confident I will never be convinced virtual learning or similar events provide even 50% of the value that in-person events do. Call me old school or stubborn, that's my opinion based on my firsthand experiences.  Yours may differ based on your experiences and values. Further, we don't lead our units (read: people) from afar, why should we learn to lead and manage our units that way?

I voted "both options" because I'm not so stubborn to understand some may not have the opportunity to leave work/family or have the funds to go in-person. If someone gets 50% value, then to some that is worthwhile. But not this kid.
Serving since 1987.

Capt Thompson

Quote from: Stonewall on March 21, 2021, 08:05:58 PMI am confident I will never be convinced virtual learning or similar events provide even 50% of the value that in-person events do. Call me old school or stubborn, that's my opinion based on my firsthand experiences.  Yours may differ based on your experiences and values. Further, we don't lead our units (read: people) from afar, why should we learn to lead and manage our units that way?

For my day job, I do customer service for a company that does business continuity training for corporations. When COVID hit, we were apprehensive about moving all training online, fearing the exam passing rates would plummet if we moved away from in-person learning. I was tasked with tracking pass rates for every course, and the pass rate overall since last March, and was surprised to see that when we went to all virtual learning the overall pass rate increased by 6%.

With virtual learning, you eliminate travel stress, jet lag, financial burdens, etc, which lead to students being more relaxed and having more time in the evenings to go over their notes and prepare for the following day's work, which lead to exam rates going up.

Personally, I agree a conference should be in-person for the networking aspect, but the educational portion could surely be done online and as effective. The only difference is instead of pre-recorded breakout sessions, they should all be live with participants able to interact with presenters, which we didn't really have across the board last year.

Just my .02
Capt Matt Thompson
Deputy Commander for Cadets, Historian, Public Affairs Officer

Mitchell - 31 OCT 98 (#44670) Earhart - 1 OCT 00 (#11401)

TheSkyHornet

Quote from: Stonewall on March 21, 2021, 08:05:58 PMwe don't lead our units (read: people) from afar, why should we learn to lead and manage our units that way?

Unfortunately, I think there are a number of individuals, including those in leadership positions, who have adapted to that mindset and now choose to continue their role as a remote leader. It's become convenient to them, and they fail to see the impact it has on others.

Spam

So, to get to the meat of this, what is the real purpose of having a conference?

"Confer: to have discussions; exchange opinions."

At a conference, there are technical and social needs. The (non social/technical) missions include:

  • Briefing information on programs, trends, analyses, changes (information dissemination)
  • Gathering feedback on the same (information gathering)
  • Analysis and problem solving in a committee context (collaborative decision making)
  • Training on specific tools or gear (learning individually or as teams)


  • The first element certainly doesn't require a face to face element.
  • The second doesn't require it, but it helps (alternatively, feedback from an auditorium can descend into sheer mob behavior).
  • The third is a pointless function in large groups, depending on the topic (*coughOps or Command councils*cough). This is why CACs need to be focused on cadet officers and on specific indirect leadership ROEs.
  • The fourth is where face to face presence is most often needed - learning styles and modes should support hands on and practical familiarization with frequent and easy student/instructor question/answers, which remote telecons cannot support. People learn differently, and a remote cartoon does not effective training make.


Which then leads us to the non technical reasons for a conference:

  • "Networking". Often defined by non-ordered random interactions in hallways, rather than invited attendance in structured communities of practice (e.g. "AEO breakout rooms" to focus on specific collaborations). Can we do networking remotely? Arguably yes, by providing adequate "meet me" rooms to facilitate those unstructured discussions, and arguably no, because most CAP (and professional) remote conferences to date have only had one main session "room" and perhaps two to three breakout sessions. Done right, with dozens of meet me rooms focused on different topics this might work, but the cadet protection provisions would be a consideration (monitoring/moderating/ensuring rules of practice and presence).
  • "Team Building". Same sort of mechanics, but focused on moving from semi random networking and lessons learned interactions toward a specific goal (e.g. "SER Hurricane preseason Area Command room" to pursue goals for distributed cooperative training missions, and hammer out cross-border rules of engagement). This can be done remotely, if structured right.
  • Command presence, recognition and celebration/social needs. There is almost zero chance that a remote conference will meet the social animal needs of a big chunk of our membership. Not all - some of us could care less, as I do, for dining ins and overly fancy uniforms - but we need to recognize as Napoleon did that people will do all sorts of things for recognition. This element is about that nonmonetary pay, and simply mentioning someone by name on a phone call is shorting them their "pay".


So, I feel that there are ways to structure remote conferences to meet some (but not all) of these needs. We need to remember that we can absolutely succeed at management while failing at leadership when we don't consider all the elements.

R/s
Spam

"Leadership is of the spirit, compounded of personality and vision: its practice is an art. Management is of the mind, more a matter of accurate calculation, of statistics, of methods, timetables and routine; its practice is a science. Managers are necessary; leaders are essential".
Field Marshal Sir Bill Slim, Governor General of Australia, 1957

etodd

Ah, c'mon folks.  Admit it.  The real reason many prefer in person conferences is for the formal dinner and presentations. The few times they can put on the blues with all the bling and have plenty of photo ops.  ;)

(Someone always has to make every thread about uniforms. I'll be the one this time. LOL)
"Don't try to explain it, just bow your head
Breathe in, breathe out, move on ..."

Eclipse

#11
What a conference should not be...

...any attempt to exonerate or alleviate local Wings / Groups / Units from doing their jobs,
or time wasting filling with same.

No SLS/CLC/TLC/UCC/TCB, or M-O-U-S-E.

Nothing that can and should be performed at the local level, as that then robs those
leaders from both the responsibility and (more importantly) the opportunity to
train their troops.

If it's already been on twitter, Facebook, and cap.news, the people who care are aware,
and if they aren't, it's irrelevant to them.

And if you can't put on a conference in your dad's barn that isn't solely new information
and training improper for lower echelons, then you don't need one.

Protip: See the dying conference and tradeshow industry for details.

Further to this, if you want credibility about purpose and not accusations that
it's just a vacation,  put it at a conference center in fly-over anywhere,
away from recreational attractions, and only allow members to participate.

Paris may have its Cherry Blossoms, and Orlando may have Gardenias, but you
have not lived until you've experienced "ADM East Plant" on a Fall evening.


"But then no one would come..."

<<*shack*>>

"That Others May Zoom"

JohhnyD

Quote from: Eclipse on March 22, 2021, 03:58:50 PMWhat a conference should not be...

...any attempt to exonerate or alleviate local Wings / Groups / Units from doing their jobs,
or time wasting filling with same.

No SLS/CLC/TLC/UCC/TCB, or M-O-U-S-E.

Nothing that can and should be performed at the local level, as that then robs those
leaders from both the responsibility and (more importantly) the opportunity to
train their troops.

If it's already been on twitter, Facebook, and cap.news, the people who care are aware,
and if they aren't, it's irrelevant to them.

And if you can't put on a conference in your dad's barn that isn't solely new information
and training improper for lower echelons, then you don't need one.

Protip: See the dying conference and tradeshow industry for details.

Further to this, if you want credibility about purpose and not accusations that
it's just a vacation,  put it at a conference center in fly-over anywhere,
away from recitational attractions, and only allow members to participate.

Paris may have its Cherry Blossoms, and Orlando may have Gardenias, but you
have not lived until you've experienced "ADM East Plant" on a Fall evening.


"But then no one would come..."

<<*shack*>>
Talk about a broad brush!

Do tell, are you helping plan this years conference?

Jester

#13
Quote from: Spam 3/22/2021, 10:05:11 AM
    • The fourth is where face to face presence is most often needed - learning styles and modes should support hands on and practical familiarization with frequent and easy student/instructor question/answers, which remote telecons cannot support. People learn differently, and a remote cartoon does not effective training make.


    Learning styles have been debunked through evidence as nonexistent.  People may have learning preferences, but this business of "oh I'm a kinesthetic learner, I can't learn by someone telling me" is basically malarkey at this point.

    The Myth of Learning Styles: https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/04/the-myth-of-learning-styles/557687/

    We need to drive this pseudo-science out of existence, I see it touted as fact in far too many venues, including CAP.

    Otherwise: Is remote perfect? No. I teach kids in a hybrid format every single day.  It allows me to reach those who wouldn't be reached otherwise, that's really the only benefit. 

    I think that benefit of reaching the majority of the membership all on its own is worth the effort to do hybrid conferences, fully understanding the hassle involved.

PHall

Quote from: etodd on March 22, 2021, 03:28:46 PMAh, c'mon folks.  Admit it.  The real reason many prefer in person conferences is for the formal dinner and presentations. The few times they can put on the blues with all the bling and have plenty of photo ops.  ;)

(Someone always has to make every thread about uniforms. I'll be the one this time. LOL)

What do you mean "this one time"? 

Eclipse

Quote from: PHall on March 22, 2021, 06:44:08 PM
Quote from: etodd on March 22, 2021, 03:28:46 PMAh, c'mon folks.  Admit it.  The real reason many prefer in person conferences is for the formal dinner and presentations. The few times they can put on the blues with all the bling and have plenty of photo ops.  ;)

(Someone always has to make every thread about uniforms. I'll be the one this time. LOL)

What do you mean "this one time"? 

More often then not people show up to these because they are told "there's an award for you, and
it's the only way you can get it...".

The best situations are the ones where they drag people out that way and and then don't give them anything.
I know of several x-members who had that happen.

"That Others May Zoom"

Johnny Yuma

Quote from: etodd on March 22, 2021, 03:28:46 PMAh, c'mon folks.  Admit it.  The real reason many prefer in person conferences is for the formal dinner and presentations. The few times they can put on the blues with all the bling and have plenty of photo ops.  ;)

(Someone always has to make every thread about uniforms. I'll be the one this time. LOL)

Not me. I'd just as soon sit in my motel room eating room service or takeout than a Dining in all day long. I've done it, too.
"And Saint Attila raised the Holy Hand Grenade up on high saying, "Oh Lord, Bless us this Holy Hand Grenade, and with it smash our enemies to tiny bits. And the Lord did grin, and the people did feast upon the lambs, and stoats, and orangutans, and breakfast cereals, and lima bean-"

" Skip a bit, brother."

"And then the Lord spake, saying: "First, shalt thou take out the holy pin. Then shalt thou count to three. No more, no less. "Three" shall be the number of the counting, and the number of the counting shall be three. "Four" shalt thou not count, and neither count thou two, execpting that thou then goest on to three. Five is RIGHT OUT. Once the number three, being the third number be reached, then lobbest thou thy Holy Hand Grenade to-wards thy foe, who, being naughty in my sight, shall snuffit. Amen."

Armaments Chapter One, verses nine through twenty-seven:

Eclipse


"That Others May Zoom"