Moderation What do you expect from a moderator?

[Cedric]

Moderators are the backbone of any community. They keep things running smoothly, handle rule enforcement, keep the community spam-free and help set the overall tone of the place. Everyone could be a moderator. But what makes a good moderator? Expectations can vary depending on whether you're a regular member or the admin running the show.

So I'd like to hear what your ideal moderator looks like from a member's perspective and an admin's perspective.

 

[fdk]

From a member's perspective, the ideal Moderator imo is one who's "seen but not heard" frequently. By this, I mean that they don't take moderation actions publicly - that's one of my bug bears.

From an administrator's perspective, my ideal Moderator is someone I can rely on to look after the forum when I'm not around. They need to be reliable enough to be able to be reasonably active (even if not constantly posting), and need to be able to work off their own initiative in order to resolve any problems that do crop up.

Of course, I'd also expect my Moderators to be active in the community, but for me this is a secondary consideration behind their abilities as a Moderator to fairly judge situations, take appropriate and decisive action and not need hand-holding.

 

[Bawse]

I expect my moderators to keep an active presence, and have no history of shady business.

 

[ScrapBlox]

Someone who you can trust to watch over a community when you may not be readily available. Moderators should maintain some level of activity and engagement in a community. As well as the ability to answer some questions members may have.

 

[Ravenfreak]

Moderators should help admins by keeping the community running smoothly from a user's standpoint. If there's any trouble going on between members a moderator should take reasonable action to help resolve any problems. They should also contribute to the community by adding engaging conversations and interacting with other members. Also they should keep the community clean by moving threads when necessary or locking threads.