Rating System for WP Volunteers
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The support that Automattic staff and volunteers offer is super helpful. And how the solution is delivered is just as important as what is being suggested.
I think to encourage WP volunteers to maintain the spirit of customer service that I’m sure Automattic upholds, there should be a badge/rating system that holds them publicly accountable for both their helpfulness and kindness.
I reviewed quite a few posts in the past and have seen stark differences in how they’re answered. Sometimes, there seems to be a disconnect between the diplomacy of Staff and some Volunteers. And it seems as if there are no repercussions. Perhaps because one is getting paid and it can affect their career while the other doesn’t?
I’m not sure what the incentive for embracing customer service is for each, but I think a system like this would be great in maintaining the WP brand.
Compassion trumps experience. Every time. Thankfully, Automattic has both. Let’s keep it alive!
Thanks to @auxclass and @timethief for inspiring this Idea!
The blog I need help with is: (visible only to logged in users)
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I think to encourage WP volunteers to maintain the spirit of customer service that I’m sure Automattic upholds, there should be a badge/rating system that holds them publicly accountable for both their helpfulness and kindness.
I disagree so strongly with this suggestion that I cannot politely articulate how I feel about badges and ratings of fellow blogger who are volunteering to help others.
Anyone who donates their free time to help others on these support forums deserves a thank you and nothing more than that.
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Evert member who chooses to answer questions here is publicly accountable in every forum thread because they are not deleted here and remain in Googles cache where they can be viewed by everyone with internet access.
IMO suggesting setting up system for of apple polisher rankings and badges to be given out to those who emulate Staff is an abhorrent and outrageous suggestion.
We have a code of conduct that applies to every member posting to the forums and that is all we need.
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P.S. I hope that you do understand that I do not feel flattered by your:<
@auxclass and @timethief for inspiring this Idea!
I feel quite the opposite.
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@bumblepuppies and @timethief, thank you! I appreciate the time you take to answer our questions in such an accurate and expeditious manner.
hm. maybe “badges” and “ratings” was a poor choice of words. perhaps I should’ve used the word feedback? and then WP can take the temperature of user experience in the forums and improve where necessary.
“rankings” wasn’t the intent here. sorry if I led you to believe that.
this definitely extends beyond one’s feelings on a simple rating system. it’s a life value. donating time isn’t an “automattic” entitlement to respect. that’s earned, just like the weeks it takes to gain blog traffic, no? (referencing your useful, in-depth response here)
it’s the difference between handing a sandwich to a someone in need of a meal and tossing that same delicious lunch their way. the end-game is the same—they eat. but the “aftertaste” is what truly matters. it’s what keeps them coming back. and, well, I suppose if the goal is to keep people away from the forums then..toss away? (not you, @timethief, but generally-speaking).
and I’m saddened that I’ve evoked such a negative reaction from this suggestion. not my intention at all. I just felt inspired by our constructive dialogue in the previous post where you were also helpful.
my apologies if I’ve offended you. you’re instrumental in keeping these forums going!
excited to see what others think as well!
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Your sandwich analogy is off. It’s the difference between tossing someone a sandwich and having no one available to give food. What’s important to the hungry person is the sandwich.
Also, I’m not a volunteer here. I answer the occasional question; WP has a few designated volunteers if I understand things correctly. If a volunteer is harming WP, the proper place to discuss that is behind the scenes.
In public, volunteers deserve nothing negative.
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interesting perspective on the sandwich analogy, for sure. and I resonate with your last statement. so, perhaps public accountability is a bit of a stretch? I suppose it originally made sense because forum responses are also public—hence the public feedback for public ‘customer service’.
I’m not too familiar with feedback/rating systems, but maybe there’s one that doesn’t promote negativity? I like your take on the idea. I hope this gains traction!
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What in god’s name would the volunteers stand to gain from this? It is founded on an erroneous principle, that we are a part of Automattic and should be held responsible in the same way as staff, and adhere to the same principles.
We are not. We should not. We do not.
Unless we wish to compete with one another, which we do not, there’s no reason for the volunteers (which includes you, now that you have volunteered something) to go along with this.
If you want to give me a job review, first you have to give me a job.
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If you look through the eight years that these forums have been around, you’ll see that volunteers come and volunteers go. That’s life. We’ve been fortunate that for about the last 5 years there’s been a fairly consistent core of WPcom community members who volunteer their time and expertise and can see trends and report them to Staff when needed. In the past, Staff even provided volunteers with a special forum to keep in touch more closely, but later shut it down after some pointed questions and feedback.
Different people have different delivery, that’s as true for volunteers as it is for community members seeking assistance. For those who are curious, there’s even a support document about volunteering in the community forums: http://en.support.wordpress.com/wordpress-com-volunteers/ As you can see, volunteers are held to the same code of conduct as all community members are and can be banned just like anyone else. That’s fairly publicly accountable.
If you want to give a rating to a volunteer, you can certainly do so by coming back to your thread and saying “thank you for your help” and marking it resolved or say “your answer was totally off”. If your feedback is the second one, a responsible volunteer will try to get you the assistance you need that will lead to “thank you for your help”. No further rating system is needed.
I see that I’m pretty much echoing tt’s reply above, so I’ll leave it at that.
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