The Question and Answer Board

[IH Admin [Shelly]]

Dave is right. There is no "policy" in place about adding Mods to boards. Each situation is different. This is my take on Mods.

The ideal mod is someone who is not controversial either positively or negatively about the Company. They are the ones that are comfortable with all opinions and don't incite numerous, daily posts about themselves as a User.

Yes, it could be argued that this is everyone else's problem if other Users can't control what they post. However, the reality is that a board working with the Mod instead of against them, has significantly lower problems.

I understand the system was not designed this way, but many, many Users feel that it's important to have a Mod that is in the "same boat" as they are i.e. have a great understanding of the company and empathy for their situation.

We have stepped up our efforts lately in getting the right Mod on the right boards. Sometimes we ask people if they are interested in Moderating boards. Sometimes we say it's not the right fit for various reasons.

Each Moderating team has different dynamics. If every Mod is a "bull" who struggles with negative opinions, then we may ask or add someone who is a "bear" to add some balance. If the Mod is a "bear" then we may ask or add a "bull" as an Assistant. If there's a new Mod or an inexperienced team, we may add a Neutral Mod.

The point of all this is that each Mod request is reviewed based on, for example, some of the following: the board, the Moderating team in place, the volume of the board, the person's experience as a Mod and the person's history on the site. A denied Mod request is not a negative statement about that person. It's simply a decision that we don't feel that, at this time, this would be a good fit.