We’ve had several requests for a clearer explanation of the qualities we value when selecting our CORE staff and some insight into the process itself. We’ve drawn up a summary of the process and the categories we evaluate when making CORE selections.

As a reminder, additional questions can always be sent to judge@cfbevents.com

—

CORE selections in general are an extremely complex process. They involve multiple staff members (for leadership, this means everyone acting as a Show or Sides Stage Manager in upcoming quarters) reviewing applications and collaborating on selections.

For Leadership CORE specifically, there are many factors that are considered. They include, but are not limited to:

• specific needs of each event in terms of quantity & roles
  
• skills & experience of applicants
  
• geographic range (we make some attempts to get out of region judge to GPs so that geographical differences in
• practice can be shared)
  
• familiarity (we try to find opportunities for judges who we are less familiar with)
  
• how decisions that we make might be perceived by members of the community or the community at large
  
• declared preferences by the applicants.
  

You’ll notice that Leadership CORE doesn’t look the same every wave. The way the above factors apply, constantly change, so every wave looks different. Below (in no specific order), are the qualities we look for at the individual level:

• Leadership – Individuals who can manage a team and communicate effectively. Leads that can communicate with their peers and the people they’re supervising respectfully. They have a strong sense of when to direct and when to coach. They use feedback (both positive and negative) as a tool to help inspire, they show gratitude, and teach best practices on an event floor. This includes knowing how to utilize team members and how to work together with the team they’re leading.
  
  
• Soft Skills – Individuals who have strong people skills. Good leads interact with colleagues, managers, and participants in ways that put others at ease, instills confidence in their knowledge and abilities, and fosters a culture of friendliness, collegiality, and professionalism. They are effective at diffusing tense situations and handling people who are distressed or upset.
  
  
• Performance under Pressure – Often the moments when it is most important to have leads are when things are very busy or are going wrong. In those moments, we look to our leads to work with stage management and Head Judges on solutions, keeping players and team members calm, and accomplishing tasks efficiently.
  
  
• Trust/Respect – Individuals who have the respect of peers and can reliably be placed in positions of responsibility. Judges working with these leads have confidence that they can go to them for almost anything. Managers also feel that these individuals can be given responsibilities that require significant amounts of trust.
  
  
• Technical Skills – Individuals who are capable of handling backups (Grand Prix event), investigations (ODEs/LCTs/Scheduled Sides), and complex rulings. There is a great deal of responsibility placed on leads to correctly handle situations, or, potentially, to correct mishandled situations.
  
  
• Decisiveness – Individuals who are able to make a decision (particularly at busy shows) in a timely (and typically correct) manner. They also know the difference between self- empowerment (which we encourage) and when to escalate situations to a Head Judge or event manager.
  
  
• Process Knowledge – Individuals who know how to do the work of leading at an event. These individuals understand how to use the tools and manage the workflow of various teams at an event. They prepare prior to an event (which may include prepping teammates) in order to ensure they have necessary documentation, an understanding of the tasks for their team, and a plan for implementing those tasks.
  
  
• Culture – Individuals who are enthusiastic, hungry, and positive members of the event team. True leads recognize the value in maintaining the constructive element of critical feedback and can help preserve the morale of their team, keeping negativity and drama at bay. We encourage and foster a culture of constructive feedback - whether positive or critical - and require our leads to do the same.