S5 Department - Public Relations Policy

This is the Document Release Information
Article Number:	7CAV-DR-040
Scope:	S5 Department - Public Relations Policy
Version:	Version 3.0
Effective Date:	09SEP23
Last Modified Date:	09SEP23
Approving Authority:	S5 1IC
Point of Contact:	S5 2IC

Procedures for contacting other groups

Out into the World

To begin the process of public relations with other clans, we firstly need to meet them. There are two ways the Cav makes contact with other groups. Firstly through actively seeking other clans that fit our play-style and secondly on our own forums where other clans might post seeking to start talks with our group. Either way, its important that you do get in touch with other groups. S5 PR is about being an active member of the Cavalry and not just responding to PMs.

Contacting Another Clan

Remember, any interaction with another group has to be within the Conduct of the 7th Cavalry. You are on show at all times when with other Clans and so are those with you during operations so make sure to prepare to enforce that when in operations with other groups.

Make sure you or another S5 Public Relations Officer is going to be around for at least the start of the operation. You are there to guide the Operation party and the separate group to the start of the operation. e.g. pull down Clan A's members down into the correct operation channel or move Cav members. They won't have TS permissions to begin with. Moderate the channels and keep things rolling on. The Operation party will take care of the mission start up and briefing.

Participating in Events made by Other Clans

When you are contacted or are contacting another clan about an event they are having. Contact your lead/senior to get an event posted on the external events calendar.

PR leads and seniors will contact 1IC or 2IC to post the events on the external calendar and provide the event posting for S5HQ approval.

Creating the Folder

When contact with another group is made we need to begin the folder creation process. This is a relatively simple step-by-step form that you fill out for each group you make contact with.

Clan Name:
Clan Site:
Clan Contact:
Clan Game(s):
Member count + active member count:
Discord/Teamspeak info:
S5 Notes:

Above is the foundation for the folders we create. Its a relatively simple form, but it gives us all we need to complete our jobs as most of our work is based around talking with other people and through PMs, not necessarily paperwork.

If we take a more in-depth look into the Folder we can see several fields that might not immediately jump out as being obvious. Firstly, by Clan Games we mean only the games that that particular clan and the 7th Cavalry have in common. It is of no use to us if we note down that the Clan we are in talks with also happens to play SpongeBob SquarePants the video game©®.

Next, we have the status. This is where we continually update the Clan and the Cav's actions together. It is usually obvious when contact with another clan has gone cold, but just to make it easy I have these guidelines.

In reality, update the status as you see fit. But try to stay close to the guidelines. S5 Notes means your notes. These are the notes of the individual creating the folder, such as:

• Clan contacted via their/our Discord (or Teamspeak if applicable)
  
• Clan came to us
• We went to them
• Seemed on good terms
• Acted outside of our code of conduct

Basically, you are creating a picture of your initial impression of the group for any future Public relations officer to look at and see how the Cav came into contact with the group. Keep it short, simple and to the point.

Meeting the Clan

Regardless of how you first came into contact with the group, you need to arrange an initial meeting to figure out when we could best run a game together, or whatever it is that you plan on doing. This first meeting is crucial to the future relations between the Cavalry and said group, so take notes and act the part.

You are asking for key things such as:

• Member count + active member count
• Game they wish to use (if needed)
• Server(s) to be used (covered later in 2.5)
• Mods and rules to be used (if needed)
• Our Missions? (if needed)
• Time, Day and Date

Again, these are just guidelines so feel free to add any other content you feel is vital for what you intend to run with the group, however try to keep it formal. The General staff does not want to see you asking the Facebook information of their members etc.

Updating the Folder

When updating the folder with any new information, simply reply to the topic of that folder with whatever content you are providing.

The only time you need to edit the original Folder post is if the Group has changed website, the contact has changed, or something along those lines.

Copy and paste the conversation within the ‘spoiler’ option within the folder with the title being the date of conversation and brief 2-3 word summary. If you have questions about this consult your senior or lead.

Organizing an Operation held by the 7th Cavalry

Now that we have a date, time and a place we can begin the phase of designing and organizing the event. Firstly speak with whoever normally creates operations for the particular game area. They will know the best way forward with creating the actual Operation for our server. For example, in BF4, the company staff of D/2-7 would be your best bet. But in ArmA3 it would be wise to go to the S3 2IC instead.

Introduce them to the group you have made contact with and let them find the information they need if it is not already in the S5 notes or a subsequent status update. Once they have got that down, let them create the operation. Do not start involving yourself in the operation making process. They will know how best to handle that. Simply check in every now and then to make sure things are on track for the date you have set up. Let them post the Operation post as normal and let our members sign up, just like any ordinary operation.

When organizing an event, S5 and S3 must work in conjunction to prepare, plan, and execute the mission. The following steps must be taken before organizing an event with another unit:

1. S3 has an operation they would like to run with another clan and will contact S5 PR Lead and AO PR Senior.
2. S5 PR Senior will assign a clerk to the task and give the clerk the OPORD link, graphics (if applicable), and S3-S5 coordination form.
3. S5 clerk then finds another community and organizes the event details using the S3-S5 colab form with that community. If there are time and date change requests contact the S3-S5 Liaison.
4. Ensure you add your conversations and completed S3-S5 Coordination form to the clan folder
5. Send S5/S3 liaison to the folder and notifying completion of form.
6. S5 will check 1 week and 48hours from operation start date with the other clan to ensure they are still attending
7. Any events with monetary or requiring significant resources from the battalion or regiment must gain approval from both Battalion and Regimental Staff.

Do not start involving yourself in the operation making process. S3 will know how best to handle that. Simply check in every now and then to make sure things are on track for the date you have set up.

NOTE: The operation will only be posted after approval of respective parties.

Preparing the Stage

Now it is time you send a PM to your:

• S5 Public Relations Lead
• S5 Public Relations Senior
• S3-S5 Liaison

You will provide the link to the clans folder and a link of the operation. Ensure the folder is complete and thorough before you send the PM.

Remember, any interaction with another group has to be within the Conduct of the 7th Cavalry. Attempt to be present or another S5 Public Relations Officer during the operation. You are there to guide the Operation party and the separate group to the start of the operation. e.g. pull down Clan A's members down into the correct operation channel (if applicable) or move Cav members.

'NOTE: They won't have TS/Discord permissions to begin with. The Operation party will take care of the mission start up and briefing.

Running the Mission

Here is where your job as an S5 Public relations officer is most critical. You need to be there at the start of the operation. If you can not attend the mission, ensure a member of S5 to be a clan rep. Feel free to reach out to the 1IC and 2IC if you can't get a hold of anyone else to step in. Try your best to follow up shortly after the operation is finished as well. Speak with the leader of the operation and the leader(s) of the attending clan(s), taking note of the good/bad points, make an update to the folder explaining how the operation went. Remember, keep it simple.

Strike System Prefixes

Summary: Forum Strike system for S5 HQ use.

S5 PR has a three strike system on other clans when they cancel at the last minute or have unfavorable actions happen on or off the field. This system will allow better tracking of the clans who are reliable about attending operations and those who are not. The strike system will work as follows: first strike is issued when a clan cancels 48 hours or less of a notice, second strike indicates that the clan consistently is unreliable/unfavorable, and third strike results in no more operations conducted with that clan. Also there is a tag to show that a clan is inactive so we don’t waste our time. S5 HQ are the only ones that have permissions to activate a strike and a strike report must be in the folder for tracking.

Operations vs Scrims

Operations against a foreign clan have to follow these guidelines:

• Folder must be created and updated
• Game leadership must be involved
• S3 Battlestaff must be informed/involved
• AAR and medalrecs must be written in time following the S3 guidelines

Scrims have to follow these guidelines:

• Folder must be created
• Game leadership must be involved
• Since these events are not official no medals can be awarded
• Any event starts as "PvP event against another clan/group", then it iturns into one of the types of missions mentioned above.
• "Operation against a foreign clan" = official operation
• "Scrims" = unofficial OP

FAQs

Does the clan I'm talking with get Discord or Teamspeak permissions on our server?
No. Any permanent server work will be done by S5 OIC and sent upwards for approval. If you feel the need to ask if the clan can get permissions, the clan hasn’t been working with the Cav long enough.

Should I put X in the status update?
Ask yourself this. “Would I need to know this to run the operation?” If the answer is no, then do not include it. At the end of the day our job is more to talk with other groups and not about writing tons of paperwork across the forum for us to pick up after you.

I'm unsure of what to do here with this group. Who do I talk to?
Talk with your S5 Public Relations seniors to see what they think. There is also your Public Relations Lead, try them.

The clan I'm working with doesn't seem cooperative / are ‘not playing nice’.
As an S5 Public Relations Officer you are expected to know what does and does not fit within the Cavalry's Conduct. If you feel at any time that the group you are working with is not right for the Cavalry simply let them know in a polite and controlled manner and let the Public Relations Lead know. He will close the folder for you.

Last Activity	Status	Action
ACTIVE | Carry on as normal