In previous Q2&A posts we’ve went over our ranking structure and what it means in reality, as well as how to join the Captains Table and become part of Q2’s valued leadership team. But every now and then, we have someone who’s ambitions are a little higher and those Admirals bars seem very appealing to some.
In the Star Trek Universe what Starfleet is and how it operations tends to deviate from script to script. Sometimes its a strict military structure, sometimes it’s an idealistic job and sometimes it’s a peace keeping armada where you can become captain on a whim. It works in the greater context as a futurist navy where you earn your way to the top, or without the up and out rules of most navies, stay where you are and work on where you best fit. Q2 adopting that structure as a basis of membership back in the 70’s was straight forward. The more you contribute, the more you advance up the zipperole, lickity split with the top of the ‘career path’ being Admiralty and operations overall. In Q1 there’s a similar structure mixed with a voting system where administration is selected by the membership. For Q2, things are a touch different and lean more towards how Starfleet is portrayed on screen now by sheer accident.
The Admiralty Board is the ‘top of the ladder’ and sits right at the top of the chain of command. Which makes it all sound more serious than it is. With Q2 largely being a collection of groups of people across a vast distance, the board’s job is to keep things aligned and ticking whilst dealing with all the boring – and occasionally expensive!- stuff that keeps the larger organisation running. In terms of leadership, Captains on the ground have more fun with more regular and face to face interaction with mostly localised members that can often become life long friends. Fleet Operations is largely administrative, maintaining we hold up to all legal and regulatory requirements, a lot of paperwork and processing, day to day maintenance, problem solving, occasional mediation and generally far from fun. Theres no alignment to any group and a responsibility to support and attend to every group and matter through their leaders.
The board also inherit any financial responsibility – this site as an example – and in a money-free environment, often will cover costs or make arrangements for any outgoings that are needed where we can. The board also needs to have a balanced knowledge of how SFC works and why it’s been put together the way it has, as well as a relatively good understanding of the clubs history on top of procedural knowledge.
Board members aren’t voted in, but selected. At the top is the Director of Fleet Operations (DOPS) which is a role carefully passed on by the outgoing DOPS. An outgoing DOPS knows the role, and knows the people helping them organise things and uses the knowledge and trust to select a successor to take their place; either to enact massive change or keep a continuity. Or both! Once in place the new DOPS selects their administrative team just as any similar real world role would, again using the trust and knowledge of people as well as offering and accepting members who are willing and able to contribute to the larger scale operations of Q2 life. Some roles carry over, some don’t.
Numbers within the AMDB change over time. For some time now the magic number has been to have three people with varying responsibilities on the board – a nice and small number to make sure things pass efficiently and offset so that we can arrange things with two thirds with DOPS having final say if anything comes up for debate we can’t settle on.
Making up the board currently is Mark Mitchell standing in as DOPS. Mark was appointed by the outgoing DOPS per tradition and was selected to oversee Q2 following Scott Arlow’s long time in charge. Mark had previously worked in leadership with Q2 as a local captain as well as the originator of the Director of Administration role and has a wealth of experience on all levels.
James Tyler/Marczynka (its complicated!) was appointed in a previous administration as Director of Fleet Communications and held the position for several years before – somewhat accidentally – becoming de facto Director of Administration. Following in the footsteps of Tom Burns, who passed down both roles, James came on board with outside experience after being a (perhaps too) vocal member of the Sovereign.
Rounding up our current trio is Scott Arlow; Scott had been Director of Fleet Operations for eight years before passing the baton. Having been a CO of more than one unit across more than one region of the UK, Scott has been through the gauntlet of SFC membership and after overseeing a massive fleet divergence program felt confident enough to step away. Then we brought him back in by sheer accident to pull in his decades of club experience. Currently holding the honour role of Chief of Staff, Scott has the luxury of being an active participant in board matters but gets none of the paperwork!
Not every member will have regular contact with the board, which is to our detriment most of the time. As Admin processing everyone’s information early on, it’s usually Admin you’ll know more than most; especially with the site currently run by the same person. But behind the scenes Admin is only one part of the puzzle with Scott advising with experience and Mark using his balanced approach to making sure things run smoothly and don’t get out of control -particularly approving new units, change and policies to maintain Q2’s operation.
Collectively our job isn’t to be the Badmiral we see on TV or just point to fake pins on our collars that we bought on eBay. Our job is to serve the clubs in taking out the boring bits, the hard pars and offer our time and services to ensure every part runs smoothly together – and if it doesn’t, fix it. And with things changing all he time, our to do list never ends! But in essence, despite the ‘rank and title’ as it were, our job is for the club. Whether it be an Ensign or a Captain who needs us, we’re there. If you want to build your own new unit? We’ll take the walk to the chair with you. If you’re looking for help in media contacts? We’ll help. If you want to know why we don’t have Marines or Section 31 like some other clubs? Well, we’ll likely open a bottle of green stuff and tell you a tale of how someone ruined that for everyone.
The most important member of the club is, well, everyone. Our jobs aren’t to follow the military way and demand respect and salutes. Nor is it the Star Trek way where we’ll suddenly become evil. It’s to make sure each and every member gets out of Q2 what they need and want to get out of it and make sure that a new Cadet and a Captain are always on equal footing.
Being on the Board isn’t typically something we have open to apply for. But as the years move on we’re always looking towards the Next Generation to lead the next fifty years for Q2 and what it means for us all. While the board is by selection, we’re always on the look out for people who can take the first steps and show their potential to potentially lead Q2’s Admiralty and contribute to the operational level between all elements of Quadrant 2.
For those looking to make that leap, or interested in contributing more to the membership, our second wave of Fleet Support applications will be opening soon and we’re eager to see who will help shape the next era of Quadrant 2…
About the author
Comms/Comms Relay Revisions from Beta Quarter 2025 Onwards
Following our last released issue of Comms as a downloadable publication, we've been moving to an easier and more accessible format by using Q2's website for various articles and updates throughout the year which has included some carry over features from Comms itself. After some trial and error experimentation, our 2025 plan began with some tests through the first quarter and a new comms line up for the site ahead of any plans by our next Fleet Comms Officer. To mirror the old style, reduce workload and offer some variety to our regular posts, we've broken down the year of updates through our operating quarters and scheduled in a rotation of our regular features to keep the fleet updated, entertained with some positive Trek hijinks and more. The current quarter (Beta Quarter: April, May, June) is the first full use […]
[Q2&A] If I Could Get Serial For A Minute…
With a long history and many people coming to SFC over the decades, there can often be a lot of curiosity for members – both old and new – about various subjects. From questions about our base structure, how to get four pips, how Q2 and Q1 diverged many moons ago.... even questions on the curse of the Daring. Sometimes we have questions where the answers are as mundane as the question. One of the most common.... what is my serial number and why do I have it? Like any account number in the known universe – whether it's your broadband provider or local Blockbusters – your service ID is a unique membership number that helps us identify each member whether we're updating a record or assessing a Fleet Support application form. With our structure and organisational systems based on […]
[Retro Review] Latent Image; Voyager S5E11
Running through annual check-ups and playing around with a 24th century version of a digital camera, the Doctor spots some weird scars on Ensign Kim. Scars that could only have come from a surgical procedure he developed, but has no memory of ever performing. The surgery isn't the only gap in the Doctors memory. What else has he forgotten? And how...? No matter the show or the season, Star Trek loves diving into the lives of it's artificial characters. Data explored everything from his basic rights to the meaning of dreams as he developed to become more of a person. For the Doctor, things had always been a bit more complicated. He was a program developed for short term use. A piece of equipment built into sickbay that could be turned off and on at will. While Deep Space Nine's […]
A New Class: Academy Revisions For The Class of 2402
It's only April and the year has been one for us to take a step back and review our operations to do some much overdue maintenance on our overall performance and offerings. One of the major hurdles for the second quarter is one of the tougher parts of Q2: The Academy. Once upon a time the Academy was a core part of the experience in joining SFC. After singing up new members would pass through the Academy, completing a series of tests before becoming an ensign, joining their unit and becoming an active member of the club. Many people over the years enjoyed the more immersive and playful nature of being part of an organisation modelled after Starfleet. Some didn't. As years went by, the franchise itself evolved, opening it's door to new fans who'd want to reach out and […]
A Fistful of Vulcan Emotions
Being a key element in the Sstar Trek lore from the very beginning, Vulcan mythology can often seem distorted by simplicity. Seen as a stoney emotionless species, their society is built on logic and science in helping them understand and navigate through the complexities of the universe. Though when it comes to them being emotionless, nothing could be farther from the truth. Once a volatile and primitive species, the Vulcan culture came from the teaching of Surak who learned to repress his violent urges and find peace within logical thought. Surak's teachings would become the basis for Vulcan core values for centuries. When it came to the original series, Vulcans were introduced through Spock – a half Vulcan with a human mother who often wrestled with the cultural norm of repressing emotions alongside the human half's more emotional state. Over […]
[Retro Review] Year Of Hell: Voyager Season 4
Embracing all aspects of science fiction has been Star Trek's thing since it's inception and time travel was no exception. Ever since the first time travel adventure with Kirk's Enterprise ending up in the 1960's, we've seen the various crews out of time and desperately trying not to change their own history. In one adventure, history would constantly change around the USS Voyager. One of the most memorable and loved two parters, Year of Hell remains a symbol of how desperate the situation could have been for the Voyager crew. As Janeway negotiations with an alien species for free travel through their region, a small annoyance of a ship interrupts them. Then suddenly, the timeline changed. The aliens, the Zahl, were gone. Erased from history. And the unsophisticated Krenim ship that was no match for Voyager one second was now […]
Related
[Q2&A] If I Could Get Serial For A Minute…
With a long history and many people coming to SFC over the decades, there can often be a lot of curiosity for members – both old and new – about various subjects. From questions about our base structure, how to get four pips, how Q2 and Q1 diverged many moons ago.... even questions on the curse of the Daring. Sometimes we have questions where the answers are as mundane as the question. One of the most common.... what is my serial number and why do I have it? Like any account number in the known universe – whether it's your broadband provider or local Blockbusters – your service ID is a unique membership number that helps us identify each member whether we're updating a record or assessing a Fleet Support application form. With our structure and organisational systems based on […]
Sovereign, Churchill & The Regional Command Unit
Compared to when SFC began fifty years ago, a lot has changed. Even since Quadrant 2 made the decision to operate independently of our Q1 counterparts there have been a lot of social changes that we've always worked to adapt to and keep ahead of with new ideas and innovations. The biggest change from then and now is undoubtedly the growth of the internet as an accessible medium. Whether good or bad, the internet has brought people from all corners of the world together to share in their passions, ideas and complain about films. For Q2, it's become a vital part of the fabric of the club where you can log in to the membership portal, play co-0p games with our favourite starships, or look at pictures from Tesla's latest away mission on bluesky. But when it came to being […]
[Q2&A] Simplicity In Structure
As much as the rank and rewards system mirrors the fictionalised naval structure of Starfleet, so so does the Chain of Command. On screen each crew is led by it's Captain while back home they answer to Admirals sendin gout the assignments and supervising the exploration into the unknown. Our unknown is a little less space adventure, but the logic remains the same and has remained one of the most consistent elements of how Q2 operates to this day.
[Q2&A] The Academy
It's become a thing of legend that Star Trek fans are the type of fans who like to know the details. All the details. It's a stereotype that's been enhanced by our own fandom. We had the Nitpickers Guide series. We had Technical manuals. We had fans writing to production staff to ask how transporters worked. In turn we had the infamous 'Get A Life' sketch and tributes to the fandoms from news pieces of people doing jury duty in uniform to shows like Futurama introducing the Star Trek church (in a rather affectionate nod!).
[Q2&A] Joining The Captains Table
Since our humble beginnings fifty years ago, SFC hasn't been a singular thing. We're a collective. Groups of people with the same interests, connected by an ideal or a fandom that can bring people together locally or reach out further beyond. Each of those groups, or units in our fleet focused wording, are the core of the fleet and everything we're here for.
[Q2&A] Infinite Diversity. Infinite Combinations.
While the decades have seen us change a lot, there's one thing that's always been front and centre to Quadrant 2 and the 'Starfleet values' that we take a great deal of pride in. Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations.
