Ousting a GM - Tips

[RememberRobitaille]

Not sure if there's a better place to post this question...

I have a GM in my keeper league (still in its infant season) who doesn't submit line-ups regularly and has been very bad at responding to trade offers. He's not involved in rules discussions, nor is he active on the FA/waiver wire.

My first mistake is that I have no rules in place for level of league activity. My second mistake is that I have no rules/precedent for asking a GM to step down.

Any tips from commishes who have been put in this unfortunate position before?

[mounD]

My advice would be to hold a vote among the active members of the league. If you don't have a rulebook to be the source of legitimacy for the removal, just get everyone to vote on the measure. If the voices of the league are united, you'll be able to remove the GM without having to worry about people questioning the legitimacy of the move.

Cheers.

[gainerama]

Communication is the key to everything. You can't oust him till end of the season anyway. The only thing you can do is talk to him about the issues and that there are certain minimum standards that need to be met to keep the league integrity intact. See if he's willing to step up to meet these guidelines for whatever remains of your season. If he can't provide the minimum commitment to the league, then let him know that you will need to replace him with a more active manager to keep the rest of the league going. Nothing more you can really do without talking to him about it first to find out what the problem is.

[Bass56]

Communication is the key to everything. You can't oust him till end of the season anyway. The only thing you can do is talk to him about the issues and that there are certain minimum standards that need to be met to keep the league integrity intact. See if he's willing to step up to meet these guidelines for whatever remains of your season. If he can't provide the minimum commitment to the league, then let him know that you will need to replace him with a more active manager to keep the rest of the league going. Nothing more you can really do without talking to him about it first to find out what the problem is.

Yup, I agree here!

Sometimes, managers are not too familiar with the amount of commitment a league may need, especially new ones. As the commish, I would try to see what is keeping him/her from being more active and to see if there is still an interest to take part in the league's activities. If so, then set out certain guidelines for that manager to follow and try to help him/her out if they have any questions along the season's course. Sometimes, though, it's just a bad fit. Nonetheless, you won't know until you speak with this manager about what their true intentions are.

Best of luck.

[ericdaoust]

This is simpler than you think. Whoever is the commissioner has the authority to just part ways with the guy. Not every rule is going to be written on paper and signed off by everyone. Sometimes you have to use judgment and do what is best for the league.

[woodrow]

I agree with ericdaoust. If you've given the GM notification that he needs to participate more and if he doesn't answer or continues to not do anything, than as Commish, you need to go ahead and replace him as soon as possible.

[2014olympicgold]

Our league commish just set a rule midseason on if you are inactive for a week, without setting lines or without leaving a message (“I’m away on vacation, I’ve set my future lines”) he gives you a warning, and then kicks you out. After one person was kicked out, people actually set their lines. We put this rule to a vote before it was instated. Here is the exact wording on what our commish said:


“If someone is inactive for more than 1 week they will receive a warning. They are given 48 hrs to respond. If they do not respond they will be replaced. If they respond and they go inactive for more than a week a second time they will be replaced. (Exceptions will be taken for extreme circumstances.) Managers that know they will not be available for more than a week should post a message to the board stating this and when they will return. Teams are expected to play to win each match up regardless of their standing.”

[brakli]

I actually have this same problem in my yearly league with two GM's. I've sent them messages on several occasions to inquire about their lack of activity. One has responded that he'll be more active, but hasn't acted on that promise. The other simply hasn't responded. It's a money league and everyone has paid, but I've discussed these two with the remaining GM's and the consensus is to not invite them back next year.

I only like to make moves like this once I've communicated with everyone and expressed my concerns. The worst thing you can do is simply boot a person and then explain to the rest of the league afterward. Gainerama is right - as long as you communicate with everyone I don't think anyone will have an issue removing an inactive GM.

[Mr. Guru]

“If someone is inactive for more than 1 week they will receive a warning. They are given 48 hrs to respond. If they do not respond they will be replaced. If they respond and they go inactive for more than a week a second time they will be replaced. (Exceptions will be taken for extreme circumstances.) Managers that know they will not be available for more than a week should post a message to the board stating this and when they will return. Teams are expected to play to win each match up regardless of their standing.”

Thats ridiculous. I've been the commish of a full keeper league for 6 years now. Granted we are all good friends. However, giving someone 9 days to respond to something is crazy. We have to remember this is just fantasy hockey. There are circumstances that would be ridiculous for me to post "I'll be gone for a week" message. Extreme circumstances but circumstances nonetheless.

Every situation is different. Talk to the GM.

[RememberRobitaille]

Thats ridiculous. I've been the commish of a full keeper league for 6 years now. Granted we are all good friends. However, giving someone 9 days to respond to something is crazy. We have to remember this is just fantasy hockey. There are circumstances that would be ridiculous for me to post "I'll be gone for a week" message. Extreme circumstances but circumstances nonetheless.

Every situation is different. Talk to the GM.

Yeah, I actually had the same thought that 2014olympicgold suggested: devising a new rule to hold everyone accountable. My problem is that some of the guys in the league are good friends, and if they started slacking a bit, I would probably be apt to give them more lee-way than the guys I don't know as well. The rule wouldn't be applied consistently to all, so I don't think I can introduce it.

I think my best course of action is a combination of both communication and using my own judgement for each situation. Communication: make the expectations clear in the league rules, but don't impose a hard line if those expectations aren't met. Judgement: if I'm not happy with the efforts from the offending GM, I can make my own decision to remove them without being bound to a pre-determined rule.

As much as this is "just fantasy hockey", it's a hobby that I'm pretty passionate about. The same is true of some of my GMs. I think I'm doing them (and myself) a dis-service if I don't hold everyone to at least a minimal level of participation to keep the integrity of the league intact.

Thanks for the feedback, everyone. It has helped a lot.

[2014olympicgold]

Thats ridiculous. I've been the commish of a full keeper league for 6 years now. Granted we are all good friends. However, giving someone 9 days to respond to something is crazy. We have to remember this is just fantasy hockey. There are circumstances that would be ridiculous for me to post "I'll be gone for a week" message. Extreme circumstances but circumstances nonetheless.

Every situation is different. Talk to the GM.

We were having issues with GMs just forgetting to set lines, so when I played one, I’d win 11-0 and score massive points. Granted everyone who was actually playing had the same thing. We were just not happy with people saying they’d play then not. So our commish put it to a vote and that was our community decision. We all have the commish’s cell number and email, so we can contact him if we are unable to set the lines for a valid reason. But if you know you won’t be active in the next 9 days, just set your lines for the next week. If you can’t find the time, why are you in a league? Ours is for money btw, changes the intensity level

[Jussin88]

Yeah it's frustrating with a GM in the league that hardly ever checks it. There is like 2 in mine that it's not even worth messaging for a trade because you may be waiting a month or two before you get a response which isn't always guarenteed

[pmkidd]

We have teams that don't set lineups for weeks. Leave hurt players as starters. Spent very little on free agents. While average spend about $44 on free agents and IR moves. Then make really bad trades when about to make playoffs for first time in 5 years. Every commish asks him if he wants to be in league. Always says yes. Then does nothing whole year. Another GM never responds to trade offers. Even when deadline day. What a pain. What should commish do with them? He has other guys who wants in league.