I
chose to volunteer, because its not the con itself that fascinates me,
it's not the celebrities, its the fans. There is nowhere else you can go
to meet such passionate, intelligent, hardworking, fun-loving people!
Some will have worked endless hours for months creating a costume that
represents something they feel very passionate about. That passion is
typically not biased towards politics, they don't care about your race,
sexual orientation or religious or political affiliation. They are just hard working,
open minded, down to earth, loving individuals that are fun to be
around. That is why I chose to volunteer, I guess you could say that I geek for
geeks.
While these posts are not necessarily for my kids and most of my posts have an objective. This one is simply my experience at Salt Lake Comic Con and is more for my own benefit. Then again, maybe they can learn from standing up for what is right, as well as setting and attaining goals.
This is the reason I accepted the call to be the Senior Volunteer Manager at FanX Jan. 2015. I wanted to perpetuate that atmosphere and help the volunteers enjoy themselves and feel the same joy that I first felt when volunteering for SLCC. To try and put the fun back into it. The fun that was lost for me at the fall 2014 event. While the previous volunteer director was a dictator, his replacement would be far worse. At some point following the Fall 2014 event, there were names drawn and a vote to find a replacement. I know their were at least two SLCC staff members that voted for me to be the replacement. While many people misunderstood and think this was the position I held. Let me clarify, The co-founder of SLCC appointed himself the new volunteer director. I reported to him.
When the September event was over, I planned on never volunteering for SLCC again. It had been too taxing, too time consuming and the volunteer director took the fun out of it by being too much of a dictator. That is where I had planned on leaving it.
Until...
I was on vacation with my family at Disneyland in November of 2014 when I received an email asking if I would be interested in being the new volunteer manager. I remember it distinctly because I was riding the Ferris wheel at California adventure. I was taken aback and had to give it some serious thought. After several days and some deep contemplation and conversation with my wife, I finally decided to accept. The number one reason for being there at all and staying involved was for my fellow volunteers. I wanted them to be able to have an enjoyable time, and to feel appreciated for all of their hard work and dedication. I made some personal goals. Things I hoped to accomplish. These personal goals were:
1) To be an advocate for the volunteers, to be in their corner and fight for them. Be it through perks, organizational set-up, or to simply allow the managers over each department to actually do their job without someone micromanaging their every move.
2) To learn the inner workings of Salt Lake Comic Con. To see what made it tick, Ever since I was a kid, I always loved taking things apart to see how they worked. This was the same idea.
3) To learn how to deal with the co-founders personality type. I had dealt with his personality type before when I was a co-scout master. Only instead of seeing it through and facing the challenge, I quit when I should have stuck it out and learned how to deal with the marketing manager personality type. I am a firm believer in karma. That we are here to learn certain things. And I've since learned that if I don't face something and learn from it, that I am only putting it off until later. Which is why I believe this is one of the reasons karma placed this position in my path, so I could learn how to deal with this personality type.
After getting home from vacation, I set an appointment and went in to interview with the founders of SLCC, for what I understood to be a mere formality. The interview with The Founder went really well. He and I clicked right away and even through the negotiating process, I felt we were very humble and respectful towards one another. As far as money, I had no idea what to ask for and instead had him come up with a number. And felt fine with the amount that he offered. I did have a few things that I wanted to be included though. That all area managers get their rooms covered by SLCC. I really didn't like that, as an area manager at the last two conventions, I was required to be there 16-18 hours per day and still had to pay for my own hotel room. As traveling to and from home would add another few hours to my already long day. Another thing I asked for were a number of tickets to give to a foster youth organization. Having been homeless at sixteen, I can appreciate the efforts of the Utah youth village towards the youth under their care. That something like the Salt Lake Comic Con Community could make a big difference to them. An opportunity to meet and hang out with people in this community could have a significant, positive impact in their lives. Possibly preventing them from considering the worst.
The interview with the co-founder didn't go nearly as well. He didn't seem to like me from the start. It felt as though he had already made up his mind before the interview had even started. That he had someone else in mind for the position, and simply wanted me out of there as soon as possible. So it didn't matter how the interview went, his mind appeared already made up. I have a hunch it was the current volunteer manager he really wanted from the get go. But that they needed someone to help with the transition from the old volunteer team to the new. So this transition is what I feel I was used for.
After the interview with the co-founder I was introduced as the new volunteer coordinator to the Media One team. Who promptly and professionally congratulated me and assigned me a log-in account for the software that was to be used to organize the event. They also gave me a crash course on how it worked. I was then informally, interviewed by other staff and given a key to the building, business cards ordered and assigned an email. After chatting with other staff members for a bit I headed home, ready to do my part to get this event organized in the short two months remaining before it started. I was also given a T-shirt to wear to the big formal announcement of the event that was to take place the following day. It was difficult to take the time off from work to be there but I made it and was excited to see many of my fellow volunteer friends at that event. I had already began to contact a few senior level volunteers from the previous team that were humble and whose attitudes seemed to match those of the SLCC staff. I was entrenched in the work that day, with the short time available before the January event when I received an email from the Founder following the press conference.
In order to avoid any violation of a non-disclosure agreement I may have signed, I will paraphrase what the email said:
Tony,
He said he wanted to get back with me regarding the interview last night. Things had gone nicely but the co-founder would like another meeting with me before things were finalized. That they had another candidate that they wanted to interview for the position before making a final decision. He stated that he heard there had been some "misunderstandings" by the staff in issuing me a key, business cards and an email. That regardless of their decision they still definitely wanted me involved in some high level position.
Thanks,
Founder
Needless to say, I was devastated. This message took the wind right from my sails. I was ready to reply to the email, asking them politely, to withdraw my name from consideration. However, I was talked back into it by my close friend and SLCC roommate that I had asked to be my number one through the process. I should've taken queue that this was what my interaction with SLCC would be like for the next few months. There were several other people considered for the senior level position. The Fear Factory Manager was considered number one for a while and held that position until she became overwhelmed between running all of the duties she had done at previous events as well as fighting the co-founder to lead the volunteer side of things.
Through this all though, I was expected to attend every staff and volunteer meeting and was even given tasks and duties associated with leading the management team. Although I hadn't yet been officially given a title, I saw what needed to be done and went ahead and worked with other staff to make sure the ball got rolling on those things.
There was one other person who was hired and brought in to help co-manage with me. He was closely involved in the previous volunteer management team as well. However, after the first meeting, he cordially and professionally backed out. He was a very good candidate and I would have loved to work with him. Though, after seeing how the co-founder managed, how he avoided every serious inquiry during and after the meeting. How he would just dance around everyone's concerns or told a joke to avoid it. This individual backed out, citing time constraints and missing time with family through the holidays. While those were very valid concerns, he admitted to me that his primary concern was that while everyone at SLCC was professional and would be awesome to work with, the co-founder is a C rate manager. I personally feel that the co-founder should stick with what he is good at, marketing. He is a marketing genius, unparalleled in my experience. That and hire a professional volunteer director.
I was still "sitting tight" all the way through December. All the while watching the clock tick away. There wouldn't be time to order the volunteer gear. I kept hounding about deadlines to at least get a pin made and other items that would need time to be made. The co-founder said that he "didn't see any need to hurry." I had seen how long it took to get all the volunteer swag ordered in time before the previous event and we had a good six months to get all that stuff ordered. This time, we had less than two months.
The co-founder is one of the worst communicators I have ever worked with. He only ever returned about 30% of my communications. This was my primary obstacle in helping this event be a success from the volunteer standpoint. Regardless of this obstacle, I had set a goal to help the volunteers have fun and to help make this event a success. I was committed. The previous volunteer director at least maintained open communication with all volunteers. While everyone assumed that I was his replacement. I was not, but I was placed as the senior volunteer manager. The co-founder placed himself in the position of the volunteer director. I did lead the senior management team. I believe this placement was primarily due to my experience at the past three conventions and my experience of the inner workings of the previous volunteer directors team. As when he left, he burned all bridges and left them high and dry, not really knowing what to do.
One of the things that I felt strongly about that was on my agenda was to make sure that the volunteers would not be assigned by their looks. I wanted to make sure that pictures of volunteers would not be taken and I made sure that the person in charge of assigning volunteers was unbiased. She did and to my knowledge is still doing a great job assigning volunteers.
I wasn't allowed to chose volunteer managers to manage areas, but was allowed only to suggest them. The co-founder was the one who made that final call. The last manager to be chosen to lead an area was chosen only days before the event. Hardly enough time to figure out what needed to be done and set a plan in place...
Okay, so I did at that the previous two events, but that isn't for everybody. I was assigned to the vendor hall at the previous FanX and a few hours in was promoted to run the lines for autograph row. And the September 2014 event I was supposed to run the vendor hall again but ended up running merchandise redemption as well.
Most people however are not built to take on something last minute and instead need time to plan it out and think about how to accomplish what needs to be done. It's is no surprise to me that the manager who only had days to prepare, failed and ended up taking the fall for something that wasn't entirely his fault.
One of the things I do have to give the co-founder kudos for, was taking the blame for that and the firing of other managers in those situations.
A few of the things we had to fight the co-founder on:
I'm not sure why the co-founder would claim to be something he is not but in one of the volunteer meetings I recall the him saying something about being deeply spiritual and dropping some Mormon lingo. I asked a staff member who better knew him if the co-founder was religious, the response I got was, "No, not at all."
One of the cool things we were able to enjoy at one of the management meetings was having Paul Draper come talk to us about management. It was a great opportunity that I am grateful for.
The other senior level managers, didn't know what to do and couldn't get direction from the co-founder, so I directed them to work on and write up the manual. They did an excellent job putting it together and it acted as a training reference since the training website never came to fruition.
At one of the meetings I had been given 50 Friday tickets to give away as I saw fit. I imagine this was do mostly to my request in my interview with the founder. That I wanted to give them to the Utah Youth Village However, since my contact there never returned any of my calls or texts, I carefully distributed them among the upper and lower level managers, focusing on those who were working hard and showing initiative.
When I say the co-founder is not very good with people, this is an example of what I mean. He sent out an email on Christmas Eve. Essentially putting everyone to work through Christmas Day.
Paraphrased:
Tony,
In the email he asked me to define my job description and responsibilities as I understood them, That he didn't think we were on the same page. That before we continued any further, we would each need to write up what it is that we each thought was our role at the upcoming event, and have it back to him asap, before we do anything else.
Merry Christmas!
Co-founder
Isn't that something you are supposed to do before you hire someone? You know, define what you want them to do or at least, what you want them to accomplish? This is poor management on his part. And then he concludes this correspondence with a "Merry Christmas!" I hadn't planned on letting him take away Christmas day from me but ended up having some time in the afternoon to write this response:
The hours leading up to the event were relentless with volunteer communication almost constant. The need for a good method of communication was paramount. So I had the co-founder set up a volunteer group and had him also set-up one for each of the other areas including one for the upper management and staff to collaborate. The reason he had to set them up was mutually understood. The previous volunteer director left on terrible terms, deleting everything in his wake. Which means that the group and names that had been in one group were all gone. We had to start from scratch. While I never would take that drastic a step I understood it to be a very important one that SLCC staff be directly in charge of those facebook groups. I did have to fight with him to set up many of the groups as well, causing those groups to have to create their own, which the co-founder later rebuked them for. Ironically, of all of the facebook groups that I set up I have since been kicked out of almost every one.
A strategy they have since used to block my view of anything that is currently going on is to have one of the current Sr. level managers unfriend and block me, She became the primary account to communicate to all of the volunteers in the one group I am still a part of. So I won't see anything that is posted. I don't know why they took this step. Except that the previous volunteer director left on bad terms so perhaps, since I wasn't "invited back", they expected me to retaliate in a similar way. The irony to me is that I recruited and helped place many of the managers in the short time allotted. Even Senior managers. Some I had to really, REALLY fight for to get their positions, and all are now treating me as though communication with me is taboo. Even one of the managers who lives in my neighborhood, counts me as a friend, we even attend the same chapel. Yet for some reason, because I wasn't invited back, I am ostracized.
One of the extra perks my roommate and I provided for the volunteers, out of our own pockets, was some beanies that we had made with the FanX logo embroidered onto it. These were to be given to volunteers that had gone above and beyond, as a way for us to show our appreciation. As I had done at each of the other events I was involved with. This seemed to be the extra incentive that really got volunteers going. I made sure that each staff member and every manager got one, then the roommate and I made sure that each of them knew to be our eyes and ears to make sure that any volunteers who went above and beyond received one. We were eventually reimbursed for this perk which was greatly appreciated. Why beanies? I'm bald and rely on them heavily during cold weather. They are kinda my thing. I'm actually wearing one now.
One of the things I really liked from the previous volunteer management team was the raffle that took place following the event. So I set out to make this happen. I announced that there would be a post event raffle in the Staff and Managers FB group I made sure the co-founder was okay with this, then organized, announced and set up a method to make it happen. The Media One team donated several of the tablets used during the convention to raffle off. Several other items were collected by the Managers from the Vendor hall. I asked them to set up a formal method of asking for these donations in their introductory sch-peel they give to each vendor when offering their assistance. The co-founder was able to get one of the main artists to donate many of his extra prints. I had also been working to to get the founders to donate much of the extra stuff that was just being stored in the SLCC warehouse. Shirts, pins, metal water bottles/mugs and lots AND LOTS of other stuff.
One other perk I pushed very hard for was to get the founders to also agree that every manager, both upper and lower to have all access to enter and eat in the green room with the celebrities. I was very excited for this perk as it had made a big difference to me at the previous event.
The day before the event was a blur. Helping to get things set up and organized. Seeing how the main office got set up, how all of the back stage things ran. The organization, or lack thereof functioned. Helping whenever and where ever possible. The vendor hall, signage, coat check, merchandise redemption, volunteer check in, both volunteer and attendee bag stuffing, curtains, tables, and furniture etc. There really is a lot that goes into setting it all up. The one that is in charge of that is a staff member that really, for the most part, goes under appreciated. She does most everything by way of organizing for everyone. I made an extra point to give her recognition and thanks whenever possible.
The co-founder was gracious enough to give me ten red carpet event tickets and ten tickets to the paid Dr.Who panel to give away to the volunteers. I involved all managers via text to carefully place all of those tickets. I took some time to find out, of the stellar volunteers recommended, which were Dr. Who fans. and was able to place those tickets with volunteers who would really, really appreciate them. Including two senior level managers whose kids were very big Dr. Who fans.
Here area few of my experiences during the con:
I'm not exactly sure about the origins of this pin, but the story of how I ended up with it goes like this. I was in the celebrity autograph area helping with line control when I noticed a stir near a captain and manager. I approached the situation to see if I could help deescalate the situation. When I got closer I could hear that this man was being outright refused a service that he was requesting. Not wanting anyone to have a negative experience I intervened. I introduced myself and asked him to tell me what the matter was. He was very kind and thoughtful with his many kind words. He started over, telling me that he had hand made, this shadow box and intended on giving it to his terminally ill child. And was really hoping to get it autographed by the star wars celebrities. He already had Ray Parks signature on it and the trouble was that he was volunteering at the Sundance festival in Park city and had to return to his post and wouldn't be able to wait for Carrie Fisher to start signing autographs in several hours. He was simply asking for a place to store it and that he would be back to pick it up the next day. Since I had access to the office, I took the situation from the Manager that couldn't help him and told the guest that I would take care of it for him. I walked him to the office and while we walked he told me the story. That he had collected and made this shadow box himself that he had decided to give it to his terminally ill child as a surprise, to uplift his spirits. He said that he would be back the next day when Carrie Fisher would be doing more signings. I promised him that I would take care of it for him until then. He then explained to me that he belongs to a society that looks to reward people doing good for one another and pinned this on my collar. Although confused, I graciously accepted.
The next day I was able to get the photo from the photo op with Mr. Lloyd and have a staff member escort me to him to have it autographed. I am not usually star struck but in this case I guess I turned bright red as I was able to chat with him for a minute while he signed it. The staff member made a comment afterwards that she had never seem me blush, I smiled and thanked her very much for all that she had done. To this date, my first and only photo op and autograph. What a humble guy, I really admire him.
Despite the best efforts to plan for the Studio C autograph hour, which always takes place at their booth in the vendor hall, it always turns into an issue. It was planned that the booth would be placed on the far edge of the vendor hall line so we could route their line through the main hall. Salt palace staff said that we couldn't do that, so we had to come up with a plan. And since the Salt palace was involved I had to make the idea official, so I involved the fire marshal to avoid having an issue that might potentially have the Salt palace shut down. The line ended up running smoothly and this time, escorting them from their van to their booth for autographs, then from their booth to their panel went much smoother than in it had in times past.
One of the staff members who voted for me to be in the high level position I was, informed me afterwards that the only reason she hesitated was because she wanted my help running line control for her during the event for the larger lines. I did my best to help run the line control for her or at least set it up. She had spent late hours into the night taping lines on the floor where she anticipated the lines to be. I showed up early to go over those details with her. She was starting to get worried as to how this was all going to be pulled off when the crew I recruited to help run line control for her showed up in one mass of about two dozen volunteers. The look of relief on her face was priceless. I was able to stay for a while to help get the lines set up and the volunteers trained in on how she wanted the lines to run. To my knowledge, those lines ran as smoothly as anticipated.
Red Carpet event and how I achieved one of my goals, that is, understanding the co-founders personality type:
I had been having open communication with the manager in charge of this event and had even been helping her set up for the event. For example, doing things like recruiting several volunteers to help transport the couches from all over the salt palace. She was going to make sure that I got VIP tickets for my wife and I to this event. I didn't see this as a big deal as I was a VIP as well at the previous event and this time around I was an actual staff member, not just an area manager. So it was quite a surprise to me that when I showed up to the event I was only allowed general admission. Not only that, none of the area managers I entered the party with and even Media One VP's were given VIP access. I was sure this was an oversight and assured all of the managers I was entering the event with, that I would sort it out. So I called and texted the gal in charge of the event. Only to find out that the co-founder had limited my access. Not only that, he let me know at this time just whom he had really wanted as the senior volunteer manager because she was in the VIP area with him. I was in contact with her and many other staff members, trying to sort it out, and get the area managers and Media One team the VIP access I felt they had earned. It was through all of this communication that the co-founder made clear to me that he didn't want me involved. This was his way of communicating this to me. That his first choice was the current Senior volunteer manager. The co-founder sent his wonderful assistant down to talk to me. She is a really great person and I respect her not only for her great personality and wonderful composition, but that she has mastered dealing with the co-founder. She knows how he works and he listens to her. And through all this, I learned that with his personality type, only certain people are allowed in. You have to fit a certain criteria to be "in" as well. This is how I achieved my third goal. To learn and understand the co-founders personality type.
I left that night enraged. That he would treat all of the managers, even the ones he plagiarized the entire concept of SLCC from and not allow them VIP access. This was the last straw, I was going to tell him exactly how I felt. I knew that this would be my last convention if I were going to stand up to him. But of all the people he was using and abusing, I had the least to lose. I waited until the following morning to try and cool down, to get some perspective and ask my roommate his advise. To make sure I wasn't off base in my assessment. He was there the night before and witnessed the entire thing. He confirmed to me in few words that I was correct in my assessment.
So I bit the bullet and sent him this email:
I fought tooth and nail with the co-founder to set up what I knew would work, based on what I had seen from my experience. He finally admitted at the final meeting of the senior management team after the event was finished, that he didn't know how to run a volunteer organization, that he had ordered a couple of books on it from amazon. He didn't say he read them, only that he had ordered them. He still has a lot to learn. I hope he learns to take queues from my replacements, They should do well, so long as they fight for the volunteers as their advocates. I should mention that the structure is now just six volunteer managers. Interestingly enough, all of whom are female.
Saturday night raffle:
The Vendor hall Managers had collected far more than I had anticipated. And the best part was, it was all really good stuff! The volunteers were in for a big treat! Despite my terrible experience with the co-founder the night before and his lying about it that day. I was determined to follow through and make this as positive an experience as possible for the volunteers. There were enough things that everyone in attendance got at least three items. Some ended up with far more. Everyone received at least one T-shirt. I really wanted one of the cool metal water bottles for myself, as the one that I received at the previous event had worn out. But I figured since I was staff and was being paid, that none of this stuff was for me. My goal was to make sure that all of the volunteers felt appreciated. I feel that this was pulled off in a grande way. My favorite part of the raffle was going up and down the aisle giving really cool things to the volunteer crowd.
In preparation for the post event volunteer party, I had the vendor hall managers put out formal requests to the vendors. Asking them if they would like to donate any items to the volunteer raffle. I had also asked the Founder and co-founder for items in the SLCC warehouse that we could give away as well. We ended up collecting more than we could give away in one night! I was pretty stoked about that. I was so excited to make the volunteers happy and to feel appreciated for all of their hard work and dedication. So after the raffle, something needed to be done with all of the extra items that didn't get raffled off. One of the vendor hall managers stepped up and decided to store the items and to try and contact the winners of many of the items that weren't present to collect them. He held on to and stored them for over a month before the co-founder requested that the items be brought back to SLCC HQ. Which I obliged to do. I collected the items from this managers home, drove them over the 40 miles to HQ and hauled them all into the building. The co-founder at one point started riffling through things looking for something, then outright accused me of stealing things from the materials that I had asked the managers to collect, for the volunteers. At that point I felt obligated to track the items down, as I would never steal anything, especially from the volunteers I collected these items for. These rewards were specifically for the volunteers and I intended to use them as such. I called the manager who last had the items in question, once he was able to get back to me, he explained that the items were brought back to HQ, only days after the event. I talked to staff members who confirmed this and the items were found in the warehouse. During all this, the co-founders' sweet, amazing and humble assistant took him aside and explained to him what was obviously oblivious to him. That he had accused me of stealing and that he should apologize. After which he came out to where I was working, apologized for accusing me of stealing those items, and then in the same breath, accused me of stealing them again. Even after the items had been located he didn't apologize. He has this attitude that he is never wrong, he is kind of a jerk and gets away with this behavior by surrounding himself with people that "fear" his wrath. No one seems to ever stand up to him. Which is why I think I wasn't invited back, that, and the fact that I am not female. All of the Sr. volunteer managers are female.
After the raffle late Saturday night. there were several volunteers who stayed to help box up the remaining things that weren't given away. I wish I could remember who had stayed to help but I was too exhausted to take note. I am still very grateful to the few Volunteers and Managers who stayed to help me finish cleaning and packing up that room. After we were finished, I went in to collect my things from the office when I noticed that The last staff member working that night was still hard at work packing things up to get moved out of the Salt Palace. Her move-in/move-out team had dwindled to just a few exhausted helpers. She broke down to tears because all of the staff that had pledged their support to her were long gone. That is when I dug deep and found the energy to stay even longer into the night and help her until she was able to go as well. There were 5-6 of us that stayed and packed the remaining boxes and other items into the moving van.
I was again falsely accused on another day. The day of the volunteer after party. I was to transport all of the items from the raffle that had not been given away and a few other pre designated items and bring it all to the party using the key I had been given. I called the co-founder before I left HQ to tell him which items I had gathered and loaded, to ask if he wanted me to include anything else. He insisted I stay there that he would swing by and we could go over things together. When he arrived, I was sitting in the massage chair as I had just done a lot of heavy lifting. The first thing he did was look around and go over and lock the Founders office door, then look at me accusingly. Not only had I been 100% honest with him about any and everything I had ever done. I never, not once, used my key without staff knowing I was going to be there, and what for.
After that had passed, I asked if their were anything else we might be able to give away in the raffle that day. He was gracious enough to include some more T-shirts and posters which he helped me load. He is a confusing person to try and understand. He can go from being a real jerk, to a really nice person in nothing flat and then back again.
At the final follow up meeting for the upper level managers, gratitude was expressed by the co-founder, who finally admitted that he had no idea how to run a volunteer organization. That he had bought some books from amazon on it. He announced to us that we were also each going to be given one of the left over celebrity autographs. I was not initially going to accept the autograph until the co-founder finally announced that he was going to pay all of the upper level managers. It was really only enough to cover our own costs but the way I look at it. It was more total, between all of us, than I had initially negotiated for myself. So I count that as a win. As I was ready to pay them all, if the co-founder did not. After Everyone had been paid, I felt I could accept the autograph, as it then didn't represent some sort of compensation. Being a huge Star trek fan, I chose a Leonard Nemoy autograph. None of the other upper level managers but myself and my hotel roommate had negotiated pay. I had been fighting all along, that at least all upper level managers be paid. The roommate and I had made it a point to make sure that at least the upper level managers each had their rooms paid for by SLCC. It was a fight and it came down to us simply telling them, that he and I would pay for the rooms ourselves but we just asked to get them at cost. SLCC did finally end up paying for the upper level managers rooms. I asked if the convention had been a financial success, the answer I received by the co-founder, was that yes, it had been. I was concerned about this for two reasons. One, I want SLCC to be able to continue to support the community and two, part of my pay was dependent upon whether or not the convention came out in the black or in the red. However, at a later date, the co-founder lied and told me that the convention had not been a financial success. That way he could avoid paying me the extra bonus he had promised. There are a thousand ways to run books to make it look all red or all black. I'm sure he just told me what he wanted to have to pay me less.
At one point after I was no longer involved. The co-founder tried to make all of the banked 'any day' tickets, 'Thursday only' tickets. This was a reward that the volunteers had earned and were able to 'bank' them and apply them to the next event. This is an example of one of the many things I would have made sure to intervene and keep from happening. Hopefully the new Volunteer managers will be able to keep things like this from happening in the future.
My conclusion. To all of my fellow SLCC volunteer friends. Things I wish I had known before I started volunteering at SLCC.
1) They are a 'for profit' organization.
2) The co founder can be an eccentric jerk.
Having said that, this was one of the funnest hobbies I have ever had. It was very time consuming and emotionally taxing, not only on myself but my family as well.
Conclusion with my three Goals in mind:
A few pics from the event:
While these posts are not necessarily for my kids and most of my posts have an objective. This one is simply my experience at Salt Lake Comic Con and is more for my own benefit. Then again, maybe they can learn from standing up for what is right, as well as setting and attaining goals.
This is the reason I accepted the call to be the Senior Volunteer Manager at FanX Jan. 2015. I wanted to perpetuate that atmosphere and help the volunteers enjoy themselves and feel the same joy that I first felt when volunteering for SLCC. To try and put the fun back into it. The fun that was lost for me at the fall 2014 event. While the previous volunteer director was a dictator, his replacement would be far worse. At some point following the Fall 2014 event, there were names drawn and a vote to find a replacement. I know their were at least two SLCC staff members that voted for me to be the replacement. While many people misunderstood and think this was the position I held. Let me clarify, The co-founder of SLCC appointed himself the new volunteer director. I reported to him.
When the September event was over, I planned on never volunteering for SLCC again. It had been too taxing, too time consuming and the volunteer director took the fun out of it by being too much of a dictator. That is where I had planned on leaving it.
Until...
I was on vacation with my family at Disneyland in November of 2014 when I received an email asking if I would be interested in being the new volunteer manager. I remember it distinctly because I was riding the Ferris wheel at California adventure. I was taken aback and had to give it some serious thought. After several days and some deep contemplation and conversation with my wife, I finally decided to accept. The number one reason for being there at all and staying involved was for my fellow volunteers. I wanted them to be able to have an enjoyable time, and to feel appreciated for all of their hard work and dedication. I made some personal goals. Things I hoped to accomplish. These personal goals were:
1) To be an advocate for the volunteers, to be in their corner and fight for them. Be it through perks, organizational set-up, or to simply allow the managers over each department to actually do their job without someone micromanaging their every move.
2) To learn the inner workings of Salt Lake Comic Con. To see what made it tick, Ever since I was a kid, I always loved taking things apart to see how they worked. This was the same idea.
3) To learn how to deal with the co-founders personality type. I had dealt with his personality type before when I was a co-scout master. Only instead of seeing it through and facing the challenge, I quit when I should have stuck it out and learned how to deal with the marketing manager personality type. I am a firm believer in karma. That we are here to learn certain things. And I've since learned that if I don't face something and learn from it, that I am only putting it off until later. Which is why I believe this is one of the reasons karma placed this position in my path, so I could learn how to deal with this personality type.
After getting home from vacation, I set an appointment and went in to interview with the founders of SLCC, for what I understood to be a mere formality. The interview with The Founder went really well. He and I clicked right away and even through the negotiating process, I felt we were very humble and respectful towards one another. As far as money, I had no idea what to ask for and instead had him come up with a number. And felt fine with the amount that he offered. I did have a few things that I wanted to be included though. That all area managers get their rooms covered by SLCC. I really didn't like that, as an area manager at the last two conventions, I was required to be there 16-18 hours per day and still had to pay for my own hotel room. As traveling to and from home would add another few hours to my already long day. Another thing I asked for were a number of tickets to give to a foster youth organization. Having been homeless at sixteen, I can appreciate the efforts of the Utah youth village towards the youth under their care. That something like the Salt Lake Comic Con Community could make a big difference to them. An opportunity to meet and hang out with people in this community could have a significant, positive impact in their lives. Possibly preventing them from considering the worst.
The interview with the co-founder didn't go nearly as well. He didn't seem to like me from the start. It felt as though he had already made up his mind before the interview had even started. That he had someone else in mind for the position, and simply wanted me out of there as soon as possible. So it didn't matter how the interview went, his mind appeared already made up. I have a hunch it was the current volunteer manager he really wanted from the get go. But that they needed someone to help with the transition from the old volunteer team to the new. So this transition is what I feel I was used for.
After the interview with the co-founder I was introduced as the new volunteer coordinator to the Media One team. Who promptly and professionally congratulated me and assigned me a log-in account for the software that was to be used to organize the event. They also gave me a crash course on how it worked. I was then informally, interviewed by other staff and given a key to the building, business cards ordered and assigned an email. After chatting with other staff members for a bit I headed home, ready to do my part to get this event organized in the short two months remaining before it started. I was also given a T-shirt to wear to the big formal announcement of the event that was to take place the following day. It was difficult to take the time off from work to be there but I made it and was excited to see many of my fellow volunteer friends at that event. I had already began to contact a few senior level volunteers from the previous team that were humble and whose attitudes seemed to match those of the SLCC staff. I was entrenched in the work that day, with the short time available before the January event when I received an email from the Founder following the press conference.
In order to avoid any violation of a non-disclosure agreement I may have signed, I will paraphrase what the email said:
Tony,
He said he wanted to get back with me regarding the interview last night. Things had gone nicely but the co-founder would like another meeting with me before things were finalized. That they had another candidate that they wanted to interview for the position before making a final decision. He stated that he heard there had been some "misunderstandings" by the staff in issuing me a key, business cards and an email. That regardless of their decision they still definitely wanted me involved in some high level position.
Thanks,
Founder
Needless to say, I was devastated. This message took the wind right from my sails. I was ready to reply to the email, asking them politely, to withdraw my name from consideration. However, I was talked back into it by my close friend and SLCC roommate that I had asked to be my number one through the process. I should've taken queue that this was what my interaction with SLCC would be like for the next few months. There were several other people considered for the senior level position. The Fear Factory Manager was considered number one for a while and held that position until she became overwhelmed between running all of the duties she had done at previous events as well as fighting the co-founder to lead the volunteer side of things.
Through this all though, I was expected to attend every staff and volunteer meeting and was even given tasks and duties associated with leading the management team. Although I hadn't yet been officially given a title, I saw what needed to be done and went ahead and worked with other staff to make sure the ball got rolling on those things.
There was one other person who was hired and brought in to help co-manage with me. He was closely involved in the previous volunteer management team as well. However, after the first meeting, he cordially and professionally backed out. He was a very good candidate and I would have loved to work with him. Though, after seeing how the co-founder managed, how he avoided every serious inquiry during and after the meeting. How he would just dance around everyone's concerns or told a joke to avoid it. This individual backed out, citing time constraints and missing time with family through the holidays. While those were very valid concerns, he admitted to me that his primary concern was that while everyone at SLCC was professional and would be awesome to work with, the co-founder is a C rate manager. I personally feel that the co-founder should stick with what he is good at, marketing. He is a marketing genius, unparalleled in my experience. That and hire a professional volunteer director.
I was still "sitting tight" all the way through December. All the while watching the clock tick away. There wouldn't be time to order the volunteer gear. I kept hounding about deadlines to at least get a pin made and other items that would need time to be made. The co-founder said that he "didn't see any need to hurry." I had seen how long it took to get all the volunteer swag ordered in time before the previous event and we had a good six months to get all that stuff ordered. This time, we had less than two months.
The co-founder is one of the worst communicators I have ever worked with. He only ever returned about 30% of my communications. This was my primary obstacle in helping this event be a success from the volunteer standpoint. Regardless of this obstacle, I had set a goal to help the volunteers have fun and to help make this event a success. I was committed. The previous volunteer director at least maintained open communication with all volunteers. While everyone assumed that I was his replacement. I was not, but I was placed as the senior volunteer manager. The co-founder placed himself in the position of the volunteer director. I did lead the senior management team. I believe this placement was primarily due to my experience at the past three conventions and my experience of the inner workings of the previous volunteer directors team. As when he left, he burned all bridges and left them high and dry, not really knowing what to do.
One of the things that I felt strongly about that was on my agenda was to make sure that the volunteers would not be assigned by their looks. I wanted to make sure that pictures of volunteers would not be taken and I made sure that the person in charge of assigning volunteers was unbiased. She did and to my knowledge is still doing a great job assigning volunteers.
I wasn't allowed to chose volunteer managers to manage areas, but was allowed only to suggest them. The co-founder was the one who made that final call. The last manager to be chosen to lead an area was chosen only days before the event. Hardly enough time to figure out what needed to be done and set a plan in place...
Okay, so I did at that the previous two events, but that isn't for everybody. I was assigned to the vendor hall at the previous FanX and a few hours in was promoted to run the lines for autograph row. And the September 2014 event I was supposed to run the vendor hall again but ended up running merchandise redemption as well.
Most people however are not built to take on something last minute and instead need time to plan it out and think about how to accomplish what needs to be done. It's is no surprise to me that the manager who only had days to prepare, failed and ended up taking the fall for something that wasn't entirely his fault.
One of the things I do have to give the co-founder kudos for, was taking the blame for that and the firing of other managers in those situations.
A few of the things we had to fight the co-founder on:
- Feeding the volunteers
- Water bottles
- Various other perks, no one could figure out why he wanted a cheap flashlight key chain. instead of putting that money towards something people would use and appreciate, like metal water bottles instead of the cheap plastic ones we ended up with.
- Pins (He didn't seem to care about the clock ticking on this one.) Fortunately another staff member made sure to get them ordered so we would have them available at the event.
I'm not sure why the co-founder would claim to be something he is not but in one of the volunteer meetings I recall the him saying something about being deeply spiritual and dropping some Mormon lingo. I asked a staff member who better knew him if the co-founder was religious, the response I got was, "No, not at all."
One of the cool things we were able to enjoy at one of the management meetings was having Paul Draper come talk to us about management. It was a great opportunity that I am grateful for.
The other senior level managers, didn't know what to do and couldn't get direction from the co-founder, so I directed them to work on and write up the manual. They did an excellent job putting it together and it acted as a training reference since the training website never came to fruition.
At one of the meetings I had been given 50 Friday tickets to give away as I saw fit. I imagine this was do mostly to my request in my interview with the founder. That I wanted to give them to the Utah Youth Village However, since my contact there never returned any of my calls or texts, I carefully distributed them among the upper and lower level managers, focusing on those who were working hard and showing initiative.
When I say the co-founder is not very good with people, this is an example of what I mean. He sent out an email on Christmas Eve. Essentially putting everyone to work through Christmas Day.
Paraphrased:
Tony,
In the email he asked me to define my job description and responsibilities as I understood them, That he didn't think we were on the same page. That before we continued any further, we would each need to write up what it is that we each thought was our role at the upcoming event, and have it back to him asap, before we do anything else.
Merry Christmas!
Co-founder
Isn't that something you are supposed to do before you hire someone? You know, define what you want them to do or at least, what you want them to accomplish? This is poor management on his part. And then he concludes this correspondence with a "Merry Christmas!" I hadn't planned on letting him take away Christmas day from me but ended up having some time in the afternoon to write this response:
Hi (Co-founder),
I apologize for not putting this in the google docs but I still don't have editing permissions. I can view everything, I just can't edit or add to anything in the SLCC google docs. So here is the write up of my job position, as I understand it:
During the event the senior volunteer manager should keep track of the general well being of the volunteers, check that the department mangers have what they need to be successful, are keeping their volunteers fed, have plenty of water, warmth and are generally happy. To be an extra set of eyes and ears for the owners and managers and to address and resolve any concerns through the proper channels as they arise.
Leading up to the event the senior volunteer manager will work closely with (the Fear Factory Manager), staff and the other members of the management team. To help facilitate their needs through communication and delegation of concerns to the appropriate staff or managers.
Merry Christmas!
Tony Woodbury
Sr. Volunteer Manager
The hours leading up to the event were relentless with volunteer communication almost constant. The need for a good method of communication was paramount. So I had the co-founder set up a volunteer group and had him also set-up one for each of the other areas including one for the upper management and staff to collaborate. The reason he had to set them up was mutually understood. The previous volunteer director left on terrible terms, deleting everything in his wake. Which means that the group and names that had been in one group were all gone. We had to start from scratch. While I never would take that drastic a step I understood it to be a very important one that SLCC staff be directly in charge of those facebook groups. I did have to fight with him to set up many of the groups as well, causing those groups to have to create their own, which the co-founder later rebuked them for. Ironically, of all of the facebook groups that I set up I have since been kicked out of almost every one.
A strategy they have since used to block my view of anything that is currently going on is to have one of the current Sr. level managers unfriend and block me, She became the primary account to communicate to all of the volunteers in the one group I am still a part of. So I won't see anything that is posted. I don't know why they took this step. Except that the previous volunteer director left on bad terms so perhaps, since I wasn't "invited back", they expected me to retaliate in a similar way. The irony to me is that I recruited and helped place many of the managers in the short time allotted. Even Senior managers. Some I had to really, REALLY fight for to get their positions, and all are now treating me as though communication with me is taboo. Even one of the managers who lives in my neighborhood, counts me as a friend, we even attend the same chapel. Yet for some reason, because I wasn't invited back, I am ostracized.
One of the extra perks my roommate and I provided for the volunteers, out of our own pockets, was some beanies that we had made with the FanX logo embroidered onto it. These were to be given to volunteers that had gone above and beyond, as a way for us to show our appreciation. As I had done at each of the other events I was involved with. This seemed to be the extra incentive that really got volunteers going. I made sure that each staff member and every manager got one, then the roommate and I made sure that each of them knew to be our eyes and ears to make sure that any volunteers who went above and beyond received one. We were eventually reimbursed for this perk which was greatly appreciated. Why beanies? I'm bald and rely on them heavily during cold weather. They are kinda my thing. I'm actually wearing one now.
One of the things I really liked from the previous volunteer management team was the raffle that took place following the event. So I set out to make this happen. I announced that there would be a post event raffle in the Staff and Managers FB group I made sure the co-founder was okay with this, then organized, announced and set up a method to make it happen. The Media One team donated several of the tablets used during the convention to raffle off. Several other items were collected by the Managers from the Vendor hall. I asked them to set up a formal method of asking for these donations in their introductory sch-peel they give to each vendor when offering their assistance. The co-founder was able to get one of the main artists to donate many of his extra prints. I had also been working to to get the founders to donate much of the extra stuff that was just being stored in the SLCC warehouse. Shirts, pins, metal water bottles/mugs and lots AND LOTS of other stuff.
One other perk I pushed very hard for was to get the founders to also agree that every manager, both upper and lower to have all access to enter and eat in the green room with the celebrities. I was very excited for this perk as it had made a big difference to me at the previous event.
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| The view from the green room facing South. |
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| The view from the green room facing West. |
The day before the event was a blur. Helping to get things set up and organized. Seeing how the main office got set up, how all of the back stage things ran. The organization, or lack thereof functioned. Helping whenever and where ever possible. The vendor hall, signage, coat check, merchandise redemption, volunteer check in, both volunteer and attendee bag stuffing, curtains, tables, and furniture etc. There really is a lot that goes into setting it all up. The one that is in charge of that is a staff member that really, for the most part, goes under appreciated. She does most everything by way of organizing for everyone. I made an extra point to give her recognition and thanks whenever possible.
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| Two of the most awesome, humble and hard working managers! |
The co-founder was gracious enough to give me ten red carpet event tickets and ten tickets to the paid Dr.Who panel to give away to the volunteers. I involved all managers via text to carefully place all of those tickets. I took some time to find out, of the stellar volunteers recommended, which were Dr. Who fans. and was able to place those tickets with volunteers who would really, really appreciate them. Including two senior level managers whose kids were very big Dr. Who fans.
Here area few of my experiences during the con:
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| I received this pin for a kind gesture I did for a gentleman. |
That next day, I made time to take that shadow box over to the Staff member in charge of celebrity row and explained to her the situation, asking if it would be possible to have Carrie Fisher sign it for him. That way when he arrived to pick it up, it would already be signed at no charge to him. The staff member immediately took me over to Carrie Fishers table and began explaining the situation to her handler but was quickly interrupted when the handler recognized the shadow box I was carrying. She was excited to see the shadow box as she was one of the people that had to turn the guest away because she didn't feel that holding something of that value under the table was a safe place for it to be. She already knew the full story, so, without the Staff member explaining any further, she carefully took the shadow box from me and put it on the table in front of Ms. Fisher and then relayed the story to her. Ms. Fisher wept while she carefully signed the shadow box as well as an autographed photo. It was immediately handed back to me and I carefully carried it back to the office for safe keeping.
Later that day The guest found me and I escorted him to the office where it was held. I called the co-founder on my way there to see if he was near the office, so that he could present the fully signed shadow box to the guest. I explained the situation to his assistant and since they were near the office they obliged. I carefully pulled out the shadow box from where I had it hidden while explaining the story to the co-founder. He took it and quickly walked it out to the guest, who as gracious and kind as can be, thanked him for it. The co-founder quickly walked back into the office and gruffly responded to me as though I had put him out over the matter. Maybe he was in a hurry, I don't know. I went back out to the guest who, with tears in his eyes thanked me for not only holding it for him but for getting it signed as well. He was very kind and thoughtful we then shook hands and parted ways.
I had decided to take some time and watch my first panel ever. My daughter really likes Studio C. So I sat in with my wife and daughter to watch until about ten minutes in, there was an emergency call on the radio. There was some kind of emergency in the zombie laser tag area. So I had to hop up and run out of that panel. We had an emergency channel set up, however when I switched over and announced the emergency, there was no response. So I ran to the room where the emergency personnel are (the other side of the salt palace) and told them in person, I then escorted them up to the laser tag area where they attended to the medical emergency.
I have been able to enjoy and help out with the back to the future folks whenever they have needed it the past few conventions. This time was no exception. They were scheduled to have a large line for the photo op with Christopher Lloyd. After talking with them before the event they specifically asked if I would help them with the line. Which I was happy to oblige. BTTF is my favorite movie of all time, I'm a huge fan. This was scheduled two different days. I requested help with this from the vendor hall crew. One of the vendor hall managers and I managed that line as it was combined VIP and regular attendees. We had to go through and pull the VIP pass holders out of line to let them go first.
At the end of the line that day I sneaked in and got my very first photo op. After that I helped escort Mr Lloyd out of the booth and to his cart where the escort team would take over. However, waiting for him near the cart was my SLCC roommate with a severally disabled boy and his mother. My roommate asked Mr. Lloyd if he wouldn't mind spending a minute with that terminally ill disabled boy. Which he was more than happy to do. He talked with the boy and his Mom after which, he took a picture with them. Everyone in the area was emotional at that point, I don't think there was a dry eye within twenty feet of us. He said his pleasantries as the mother and my roommate thanked him, he loaded into his cart and as the cart drove away, I mouthed a "thank you" to him which he mouthed back a "You're welcome" with a smile and gracious bow. What a great guy, he was very down to earth and humble.
Later that day The guest found me and I escorted him to the office where it was held. I called the co-founder on my way there to see if he was near the office, so that he could present the fully signed shadow box to the guest. I explained the situation to his assistant and since they were near the office they obliged. I carefully pulled out the shadow box from where I had it hidden while explaining the story to the co-founder. He took it and quickly walked it out to the guest, who as gracious and kind as can be, thanked him for it. The co-founder quickly walked back into the office and gruffly responded to me as though I had put him out over the matter. Maybe he was in a hurry, I don't know. I went back out to the guest who, with tears in his eyes thanked me for not only holding it for him but for getting it signed as well. He was very kind and thoughtful we then shook hands and parted ways.
I had decided to take some time and watch my first panel ever. My daughter really likes Studio C. So I sat in with my wife and daughter to watch until about ten minutes in, there was an emergency call on the radio. There was some kind of emergency in the zombie laser tag area. So I had to hop up and run out of that panel. We had an emergency channel set up, however when I switched over and announced the emergency, there was no response. So I ran to the room where the emergency personnel are (the other side of the salt palace) and told them in person, I then escorted them up to the laser tag area where they attended to the medical emergency.
I have been able to enjoy and help out with the back to the future folks whenever they have needed it the past few conventions. This time was no exception. They were scheduled to have a large line for the photo op with Christopher Lloyd. After talking with them before the event they specifically asked if I would help them with the line. Which I was happy to oblige. BTTF is my favorite movie of all time, I'm a huge fan. This was scheduled two different days. I requested help with this from the vendor hall crew. One of the vendor hall managers and I managed that line as it was combined VIP and regular attendees. We had to go through and pull the VIP pass holders out of line to let them go first.
At the end of the line that day I sneaked in and got my very first photo op. After that I helped escort Mr Lloyd out of the booth and to his cart where the escort team would take over. However, waiting for him near the cart was my SLCC roommate with a severally disabled boy and his mother. My roommate asked Mr. Lloyd if he wouldn't mind spending a minute with that terminally ill disabled boy. Which he was more than happy to do. He talked with the boy and his Mom after which, he took a picture with them. Everyone in the area was emotional at that point, I don't think there was a dry eye within twenty feet of us. He said his pleasantries as the mother and my roommate thanked him, he loaded into his cart and as the cart drove away, I mouthed a "thank you" to him which he mouthed back a "You're welcome" with a smile and gracious bow. What a great guy, he was very down to earth and humble.
The next day I was able to get the photo from the photo op with Mr. Lloyd and have a staff member escort me to him to have it autographed. I am not usually star struck but in this case I guess I turned bright red as I was able to chat with him for a minute while he signed it. The staff member made a comment afterwards that she had never seem me blush, I smiled and thanked her very much for all that she had done. To this date, my first and only photo op and autograph. What a humble guy, I really admire him.
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| My camera sucks |
Red Carpet event and how I achieved one of my goals, that is, understanding the co-founders personality type:
I had been having open communication with the manager in charge of this event and had even been helping her set up for the event. For example, doing things like recruiting several volunteers to help transport the couches from all over the salt palace. She was going to make sure that I got VIP tickets for my wife and I to this event. I didn't see this as a big deal as I was a VIP as well at the previous event and this time around I was an actual staff member, not just an area manager. So it was quite a surprise to me that when I showed up to the event I was only allowed general admission. Not only that, none of the area managers I entered the party with and even Media One VP's were given VIP access. I was sure this was an oversight and assured all of the managers I was entering the event with, that I would sort it out. So I called and texted the gal in charge of the event. Only to find out that the co-founder had limited my access. Not only that, he let me know at this time just whom he had really wanted as the senior volunteer manager because she was in the VIP area with him. I was in contact with her and many other staff members, trying to sort it out, and get the area managers and Media One team the VIP access I felt they had earned. It was through all of this communication that the co-founder made clear to me that he didn't want me involved. This was his way of communicating this to me. That his first choice was the current Senior volunteer manager. The co-founder sent his wonderful assistant down to talk to me. She is a really great person and I respect her not only for her great personality and wonderful composition, but that she has mastered dealing with the co-founder. She knows how he works and he listens to her. And through all this, I learned that with his personality type, only certain people are allowed in. You have to fit a certain criteria to be "in" as well. This is how I achieved my third goal. To learn and understand the co-founders personality type.
I left that night enraged. That he would treat all of the managers, even the ones he plagiarized the entire concept of SLCC from and not allow them VIP access. This was the last straw, I was going to tell him exactly how I felt. I knew that this would be my last convention if I were going to stand up to him. But of all the people he was using and abusing, I had the least to lose. I waited until the following morning to try and cool down, to get some perspective and ask my roommate his advise. To make sure I wasn't off base in my assessment. He was there the night before and witnessed the entire thing. He confirmed to me in few words that I was correct in my assessment.
So I bit the bullet and sent him this email:
Co-founder,
I am still fuming that you allowed us only general admission last night. I could seriously care less to go to the party itself and only showed up because I am staff and felt obligated. After all the hard work I have put in, not only for the entire event over the last few months but yesterday, I personally put a lot of time and effort into moving every couch we have, to the red carpet event and wasn't even allowed to sit on one. Your're complete lack of communication on all fronts building up to the event and all the success we have had at the event so far despite that. It not only feels like a slap in the face but like you completely took a dump on us. The only thing keeping me here for the last day is the volunteers and my integrity because I committed to completing the show. I am passionate about the volunteers. There are many of them who are seriously going through some very difficult things and may be considering the worst. This may be the only thing giving them hope. Because this is a culture of acceptance.
I believe you've lost touch with what makes this such an amazing con. It's the local culture, volunteers and attendees. And they are all ONE. You need to come down from your pedestal and spend direct time with them. I challenge you to join us in the trenches today, for at least an hour doing line control.
Best,
Tony
I fought tooth and nail with the co-founder to set up what I knew would work, based on what I had seen from my experience. He finally admitted at the final meeting of the senior management team after the event was finished, that he didn't know how to run a volunteer organization, that he had ordered a couple of books on it from amazon. He didn't say he read them, only that he had ordered them. He still has a lot to learn. I hope he learns to take queues from my replacements, They should do well, so long as they fight for the volunteers as their advocates. I should mention that the structure is now just six volunteer managers. Interestingly enough, all of whom are female.
Saturday night raffle:
The Vendor hall Managers had collected far more than I had anticipated. And the best part was, it was all really good stuff! The volunteers were in for a big treat! Despite my terrible experience with the co-founder the night before and his lying about it that day. I was determined to follow through and make this as positive an experience as possible for the volunteers. There were enough things that everyone in attendance got at least three items. Some ended up with far more. Everyone received at least one T-shirt. I really wanted one of the cool metal water bottles for myself, as the one that I received at the previous event had worn out. But I figured since I was staff and was being paid, that none of this stuff was for me. My goal was to make sure that all of the volunteers felt appreciated. I feel that this was pulled off in a grande way. My favorite part of the raffle was going up and down the aisle giving really cool things to the volunteer crowd.
In preparation for the post event volunteer party, I had the vendor hall managers put out formal requests to the vendors. Asking them if they would like to donate any items to the volunteer raffle. I had also asked the Founder and co-founder for items in the SLCC warehouse that we could give away as well. We ended up collecting more than we could give away in one night! I was pretty stoked about that. I was so excited to make the volunteers happy and to feel appreciated for all of their hard work and dedication. So after the raffle, something needed to be done with all of the extra items that didn't get raffled off. One of the vendor hall managers stepped up and decided to store the items and to try and contact the winners of many of the items that weren't present to collect them. He held on to and stored them for over a month before the co-founder requested that the items be brought back to SLCC HQ. Which I obliged to do. I collected the items from this managers home, drove them over the 40 miles to HQ and hauled them all into the building. The co-founder at one point started riffling through things looking for something, then outright accused me of stealing things from the materials that I had asked the managers to collect, for the volunteers. At that point I felt obligated to track the items down, as I would never steal anything, especially from the volunteers I collected these items for. These rewards were specifically for the volunteers and I intended to use them as such. I called the manager who last had the items in question, once he was able to get back to me, he explained that the items were brought back to HQ, only days after the event. I talked to staff members who confirmed this and the items were found in the warehouse. During all this, the co-founders' sweet, amazing and humble assistant took him aside and explained to him what was obviously oblivious to him. That he had accused me of stealing and that he should apologize. After which he came out to where I was working, apologized for accusing me of stealing those items, and then in the same breath, accused me of stealing them again. Even after the items had been located he didn't apologize. He has this attitude that he is never wrong, he is kind of a jerk and gets away with this behavior by surrounding himself with people that "fear" his wrath. No one seems to ever stand up to him. Which is why I think I wasn't invited back, that, and the fact that I am not female. All of the Sr. volunteer managers are female.
After the raffle late Saturday night. there were several volunteers who stayed to help box up the remaining things that weren't given away. I wish I could remember who had stayed to help but I was too exhausted to take note. I am still very grateful to the few Volunteers and Managers who stayed to help me finish cleaning and packing up that room. After we were finished, I went in to collect my things from the office when I noticed that The last staff member working that night was still hard at work packing things up to get moved out of the Salt Palace. Her move-in/move-out team had dwindled to just a few exhausted helpers. She broke down to tears because all of the staff that had pledged their support to her were long gone. That is when I dug deep and found the energy to stay even longer into the night and help her until she was able to go as well. There were 5-6 of us that stayed and packed the remaining boxes and other items into the moving van.
I was again falsely accused on another day. The day of the volunteer after party. I was to transport all of the items from the raffle that had not been given away and a few other pre designated items and bring it all to the party using the key I had been given. I called the co-founder before I left HQ to tell him which items I had gathered and loaded, to ask if he wanted me to include anything else. He insisted I stay there that he would swing by and we could go over things together. When he arrived, I was sitting in the massage chair as I had just done a lot of heavy lifting. The first thing he did was look around and go over and lock the Founders office door, then look at me accusingly. Not only had I been 100% honest with him about any and everything I had ever done. I never, not once, used my key without staff knowing I was going to be there, and what for.
After that had passed, I asked if their were anything else we might be able to give away in the raffle that day. He was gracious enough to include some more T-shirts and posters which he helped me load. He is a confusing person to try and understand. He can go from being a real jerk, to a really nice person in nothing flat and then back again.
At the final follow up meeting for the upper level managers, gratitude was expressed by the co-founder, who finally admitted that he had no idea how to run a volunteer organization. That he had bought some books from amazon on it. He announced to us that we were also each going to be given one of the left over celebrity autographs. I was not initially going to accept the autograph until the co-founder finally announced that he was going to pay all of the upper level managers. It was really only enough to cover our own costs but the way I look at it. It was more total, between all of us, than I had initially negotiated for myself. So I count that as a win. As I was ready to pay them all, if the co-founder did not. After Everyone had been paid, I felt I could accept the autograph, as it then didn't represent some sort of compensation. Being a huge Star trek fan, I chose a Leonard Nemoy autograph. None of the other upper level managers but myself and my hotel roommate had negotiated pay. I had been fighting all along, that at least all upper level managers be paid. The roommate and I had made it a point to make sure that at least the upper level managers each had their rooms paid for by SLCC. It was a fight and it came down to us simply telling them, that he and I would pay for the rooms ourselves but we just asked to get them at cost. SLCC did finally end up paying for the upper level managers rooms. I asked if the convention had been a financial success, the answer I received by the co-founder, was that yes, it had been. I was concerned about this for two reasons. One, I want SLCC to be able to continue to support the community and two, part of my pay was dependent upon whether or not the convention came out in the black or in the red. However, at a later date, the co-founder lied and told me that the convention had not been a financial success. That way he could avoid paying me the extra bonus he had promised. There are a thousand ways to run books to make it look all red or all black. I'm sure he just told me what he wanted to have to pay me less.
At one point after I was no longer involved. The co-founder tried to make all of the banked 'any day' tickets, 'Thursday only' tickets. This was a reward that the volunteers had earned and were able to 'bank' them and apply them to the next event. This is an example of one of the many things I would have made sure to intervene and keep from happening. Hopefully the new Volunteer managers will be able to keep things like this from happening in the future.
My conclusion. To all of my fellow SLCC volunteer friends. Things I wish I had known before I started volunteering at SLCC.
1) They are a 'for profit' organization.
2) The co founder can be an eccentric jerk.
Having said that, this was one of the funnest hobbies I have ever had. It was very time consuming and emotionally taxing, not only on myself but my family as well.
Conclusion with my three Goals in mind:
- I feel that I was a very good advocate for the volunteers. I feel they were treated better than they had at any previous Salt Lake Comic Con event.
- I was able to view, experience, help and tinker with the inner workings of Salt Lake Comic Con.
- I indeed learned much more about the marketing managers personality type. I learned that to change their view on something is impossible unless you have made your way into their inner circle or you get someone from their inner circle to explain it to them.
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| I got a really good laugh from this as it was a solution for a kiddie coral for the lost and found booth for lost kids. (Note the completely open curtains in back) |
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| This guy was awesome! He stayed completely in character and their was no breaking him. |
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