06-14-2024, 03:33 AM
== Angriest Unicorn ==
Tyra could almost see the wheels turning in Calleja's head as the taller woman tried to parse out exactly what the redhead was angling at with her question. In fact, she nearly saw the lightbulb flicker on when Calleja seemed to consider whether it was a trick question or not. And yet, while Calleja recognized it was a loaded question and was wise enough to realize Tyra wasn't asking the question in small talk, it became clear that Calleja hadn't really understood the intent behind the question. Or maybe, it was something a little more complicated than that…
“I also don’t think you have an objection to young officers in senior places. Look at Mayfair, Miller and Grant. You can still mould younger officers, steer them to do things the right way. I do think you’ve been burned by idealists before though. And to an extent we’re all idealists. We’re not out here for the money or the power. We’re doin’ it ‘cause we believe in the cause. Even those of us that might look bitter and cynical wanna make a difference, leave the place a little better than how we found it. But it’s temperin’ those ideals with a heavy dose of pragmatism and common fuckin’ sense. Those are lessons you have to learn the hard way.”
Tyra had to nod along with Calleja's rather accurate depiction of both Tyra's evaluation of the current situation and her willingness to take chances on younger officers. In fact, Tyra had likely made it a staple of her command to recruit and mold younger officers; it was one of the few ways Tyra felt she could actually make a difference in the Fleet in its current state. However, she was starting to suspect that it wasn't really that simple; while she had success stories, she also wondered if she hadn't unintentionally forced officers into positions they hadn't actually wanted with Miller being the most recent possible example.
“But yeah. I think you do have someone who could fit the bill. They are a work in progress. They have rough edges still that need to be worked on. But they could also be the one to give you some long-term stability at COS. The potential’s there, they want to learn and they want to stick around. If their name comes up in recommendations, make sure those doin’ the recommendin’ have been psych assessed recently. But there are definitely worse options out there, glowin’ recommendation that that is right there.”
Tyra tilted her head slightly, blue eyes carefully assessing Calleja as she delivered this last cryptic and more than slightly vague piece of answer. There were two options: Calleja wanted to be the candidate but had chickened out on actually selling herself for the spot or Calleja felt obligated to show interest in the spot because well, the captain was asking.
The redhead hummed slightly before taking a sip of her coffee, the last sip of her coffee. It was perfectly timed with the waiter arriving with a refill, which she smiled gratefully for.
"You're right. I should try to steal Ramius from the Crusader. It's not fair that Aitrus gets to reap the rewards of me beating common sense into that boy and all the gray hairs he gave me," she joked, though she supposed Calleja likely didn't know who Ramius was unless his legendary blunders still lived on in the department lore.
Truth be told, she had seriously considered Nathan for the spot; he'd grown into a capable and experienced officer with some experience as Chief under his belt. And realistically, she was confident that if she had asked, he would have come but she couldn't do it good faith. There was a very real possibility that she would not remain in the command chair of Artemis beyond this debacle and there was no way she was going to take him from the stability of Aitrus' command to what might be a roller coaster of change for Artemis.
In fact, that was her argument against bringing most external candidates in for the spot. Oh, there were some promising candidates out there that had been recommended by close associates of hers but they were all officers that would need to be mentored, which was something that was unlikely to occur if she and/or Damian ended up getting moved or worse.
"In all seriousness, though, you're correct. I have done my research since I learned of Miller's decision but I've come across a rather odd dilemma. Well, maybe not a dilemma but an issue that, maybe, has been an issue in the past with my hiring practices that I just hadn't recognized until recently."
The redhead paused, her blue eyes moving to consider her coffee for a moment. Now that it was refilled and hot, the surface once again looked like a swirling galaxy. It was captivating and probably was a great metaphor for her current emotional state.
"Don't take this next part as ego or pride but I'm at a point in my career where I get what I want. If I want an officer for a position, there's a very good chance that I'll be able to get them, regardless of the odds against, but I'm starting to see that it might be a double edged sword in some cases. That some officers might say yes to promotions when offered even if it's not what they want; whether that's because they think I know what's best for them or because they feel some sense of obligation. Like Miller… she was a good Chief but was it ever what she wanted or did she feel like she had to take it because I asked?"
She let that hang for a moment, taking a sip of the coffee and hissing slightly when it was just a little too hot.
"I want to make sure that my next Chief wants the spot, not because they feel it's the obligatory next step or because they feel like it's what I expect of them. Not everyone needs to be a department head and not everyone should be a department head. Some of the best security officers I know will never promote because they don't want the admin work and I respect that. However, that makes this challenging because I really can't afford to play musical chairs at Chief every couple missions because the position ends up not being a good fit."
Not to mention I might not be here to select the next Chief and I damn well need to leave this crew on solid footing.
She shrugged a little before smiling self-deprecatingly. "So any suggestions for not accidentally bullying someone into the Chief position?"
== Tag ==
Tyra could almost see the wheels turning in Calleja's head as the taller woman tried to parse out exactly what the redhead was angling at with her question. In fact, she nearly saw the lightbulb flicker on when Calleja seemed to consider whether it was a trick question or not. And yet, while Calleja recognized it was a loaded question and was wise enough to realize Tyra wasn't asking the question in small talk, it became clear that Calleja hadn't really understood the intent behind the question. Or maybe, it was something a little more complicated than that…
“I also don’t think you have an objection to young officers in senior places. Look at Mayfair, Miller and Grant. You can still mould younger officers, steer them to do things the right way. I do think you’ve been burned by idealists before though. And to an extent we’re all idealists. We’re not out here for the money or the power. We’re doin’ it ‘cause we believe in the cause. Even those of us that might look bitter and cynical wanna make a difference, leave the place a little better than how we found it. But it’s temperin’ those ideals with a heavy dose of pragmatism and common fuckin’ sense. Those are lessons you have to learn the hard way.”
Tyra had to nod along with Calleja's rather accurate depiction of both Tyra's evaluation of the current situation and her willingness to take chances on younger officers. In fact, Tyra had likely made it a staple of her command to recruit and mold younger officers; it was one of the few ways Tyra felt she could actually make a difference in the Fleet in its current state. However, she was starting to suspect that it wasn't really that simple; while she had success stories, she also wondered if she hadn't unintentionally forced officers into positions they hadn't actually wanted with Miller being the most recent possible example.
“But yeah. I think you do have someone who could fit the bill. They are a work in progress. They have rough edges still that need to be worked on. But they could also be the one to give you some long-term stability at COS. The potential’s there, they want to learn and they want to stick around. If their name comes up in recommendations, make sure those doin’ the recommendin’ have been psych assessed recently. But there are definitely worse options out there, glowin’ recommendation that that is right there.”
Tyra tilted her head slightly, blue eyes carefully assessing Calleja as she delivered this last cryptic and more than slightly vague piece of answer. There were two options: Calleja wanted to be the candidate but had chickened out on actually selling herself for the spot or Calleja felt obligated to show interest in the spot because well, the captain was asking.
The redhead hummed slightly before taking a sip of her coffee, the last sip of her coffee. It was perfectly timed with the waiter arriving with a refill, which she smiled gratefully for.
"You're right. I should try to steal Ramius from the Crusader. It's not fair that Aitrus gets to reap the rewards of me beating common sense into that boy and all the gray hairs he gave me," she joked, though she supposed Calleja likely didn't know who Ramius was unless his legendary blunders still lived on in the department lore.
Truth be told, she had seriously considered Nathan for the spot; he'd grown into a capable and experienced officer with some experience as Chief under his belt. And realistically, she was confident that if she had asked, he would have come but she couldn't do it good faith. There was a very real possibility that she would not remain in the command chair of Artemis beyond this debacle and there was no way she was going to take him from the stability of Aitrus' command to what might be a roller coaster of change for Artemis.
In fact, that was her argument against bringing most external candidates in for the spot. Oh, there were some promising candidates out there that had been recommended by close associates of hers but they were all officers that would need to be mentored, which was something that was unlikely to occur if she and/or Damian ended up getting moved or worse.
"In all seriousness, though, you're correct. I have done my research since I learned of Miller's decision but I've come across a rather odd dilemma. Well, maybe not a dilemma but an issue that, maybe, has been an issue in the past with my hiring practices that I just hadn't recognized until recently."
The redhead paused, her blue eyes moving to consider her coffee for a moment. Now that it was refilled and hot, the surface once again looked like a swirling galaxy. It was captivating and probably was a great metaphor for her current emotional state.
"Don't take this next part as ego or pride but I'm at a point in my career where I get what I want. If I want an officer for a position, there's a very good chance that I'll be able to get them, regardless of the odds against, but I'm starting to see that it might be a double edged sword in some cases. That some officers might say yes to promotions when offered even if it's not what they want; whether that's because they think I know what's best for them or because they feel some sense of obligation. Like Miller… she was a good Chief but was it ever what she wanted or did she feel like she had to take it because I asked?"
She let that hang for a moment, taking a sip of the coffee and hissing slightly when it was just a little too hot.
"I want to make sure that my next Chief wants the spot, not because they feel it's the obligatory next step or because they feel like it's what I expect of them. Not everyone needs to be a department head and not everyone should be a department head. Some of the best security officers I know will never promote because they don't want the admin work and I respect that. However, that makes this challenging because I really can't afford to play musical chairs at Chief every couple missions because the position ends up not being a good fit."
Not to mention I might not be here to select the next Chief and I damn well need to leave this crew on solid footing.
She shrugged a little before smiling self-deprecatingly. "So any suggestions for not accidentally bullying someone into the Chief position?"
== Tag ==