Basics

Kumoricon staff are volunteers who commit their time and effort for such intangible benefits as the joy of the experience, camaraderie with fellow dedicated anime fans, and professional development.

Joining staff means you're pledging a commitment to the organization that lasts through the next annual convention. Every staff member holds one or more specific positions with a title.

When you join staff, you become a part of the Kumoricon family. Staff take on responsibility and ownership for a little (or big) piece of the convention, and are expected to be available to fill any need if an emergency or shortage occurs.

Kumoricon staff are voting members of Altonimbus Entertainment, the organization that produces Kumoricon. As part of the voice of staff in shaping the organization, staff members cast a vote in annual elections for the next year's President and directors.

Application

You become staff once you are approved for, and officially register for, a specific position. Approval is at the discretion of the position's director. Registration requires submitting a completed staff form, signing these policies, and ratification by the Secretary.

Once you join staff under one position, you can change to a different position, or add an additional position, provided you have the permission and approval of each supervising director.

Each staff position lasts through the end of that year's convention. Staff wishing to renew must re-apply each year.

Joining staff covers your entry to the convention by granting you automatic convention membership. If you previously registered as an attendee, then changing to staff is an upgrade, and you are eligible for a refund.

Requirements

Staff must be at least age 18 at the time of appointment, or at least 16 with a parent permission form. (Exceptions may be granted in certain circumstances.)

A staff position may involve both a pre-convention and at-convention component. Staff are responsible for meeting the time and work requirements for their positions.

Staff must remain in communication with their supervisor for each of their positions.

Staff who hold more than one position are responsible for working with each of their supervisors to make sure that they are able to meet the requirements of each position and resolve any time conflicts.

Restrictions

You may not claim to officially represent, or act on behalf of, Altonimbus Entertainment except as permitted by your official duties or with permission of your manager or director.

When you interact with attendees or with the public, your actions always reflect on the organization. Staff are responsible for ensuring that their behavior professionally represents the organization.

Staff members should never spend money on any item or service for Altonimbus Entertainment without prior written approval from their director. Reimbursement requires written approval and itemized receipts.

Confidentiality

In the course of your staff duties you will likely encounter internal information which should remain private. Different types of information have different levels of sensitivity. When in doubt, you are responsible for learning the appropriate level of sensitivity of the information you encounter or work with, speaking with your manager or director as needed, and maintaining privacy or confidentiality accordingly.

Certain pieces of information are always treated as very sensitive. You may only communicate such information to other staff on a strictly need-to-know basis and only under the direction of your manager or director. These include but are not limited to:

• Personally identifiable information about attendees, including but not limited to attendee or member databases, addresses, email addresses, phone numbers, or birthdates
• Disputes or incident reports involving staff or attendees
• Department or organization budgets
• Identities or details of guests of honor, industry guests, or partners which have not been publicly announced
• The existence or details of venue contracts which have not been publicly announced
• Any type of information planned for announcement at a later date or time

For information which is not as sensitive, you must be appropriately discreet, but you can sometimes share such information with other staff as is convenient, or in certain cases, with people outside of staff.

Privacy

Staff members may be listed publicly by name and position.

Staff member names, positions, email addresses, phone numbers, and cities are listed in a directory only accessible to current staff members. A staff member's photo is displayed to all staff up and down that individual's chain of command, and to all convention executives. A staff member may change a privacy setting to make their photo visible to the entire staff. Staff members who have positions reporting to them may also access the email addresses of previous staff to ensure registration invitation emails are sent to the correct address.

Resignation

A staff member may resign from one or more staff positions by delivering written notice to either the Secretary or to the director to which the staff member reports. Because it is possible for a staff member to hold more than one position, the resignation should specify the exact position(s) the member is resigning from. Resignation from all current staff positions will result in resignation as a member of Altonimbus Entertainment.

Removal

Unfortunately, it is occasionally necessary to remove a staff member from a position. The director to which a staff member reports for a specific position will make such a decision if it becomes necessary. The staff member may request an appeal from the director or the whole board regarding a removal. The director or the whole board will decide whether to hear an appeal on a case-by-case basis.

Also, occasionally, an individual will be barred from becoming staff either indefinitely or for a certain period of time. Such an individual may request an appeal to lift this status. The board will decide whether to hear such an appeal on a case-by-case basis. Appeals will usually not be heard in the 90 days leading up to the convention. In hearing an appeal, the board will decide whether the appeal will be heard by the whole board, or only by certain directors. The board, among other factors, may consider the amount of time that has passed since the individual's offenses in deciding either whether to hear an appeal or in considering a specific appeal. The board may contact the individual with questions prior to deciding whether to hear an appeal. If the board decides to lift the status barring an individual from becoming staff, understand that this does not mean the individual has now been granted a staff position; it only means that the individual may now apply for positions. It is possible that an individual will be unbarred from staff but will then not, in fact, be appointed to any staff positions.