I second Chief Hedgehog's post. From my perspective, as team captain of 4607, I definitely realize the positive correlation between organization and success as an FRC team. Even in the two year period that CIS has been a team, we have already reformulated our organizational structure multiple times. Like Chief stated, start with making a "hit list" for your team that includes everything that needs to be accomplished in the preseason, build season and competition season. From there, it will be more apparent on how to divide your team into subgroups efficiently. Currently, we have the following main "squadrons" for the build season that each then include additional subdivisions: build, electrical, programming, marketing, PR, finance and strategy.
Our team is organized in the fashion that members can chose their level of team involvement time wise. We have found this to be successful in the sense that it allows for a variety of students to join our team, including athletes and those involved in our school's theatre program. For each squadron, we have a student lead. For these leads, we often base decisions on three factors: dedication, reliability and experience. This being said, our student leads tend to be seniors that have had at least one year of experience in the squadron of which they are in charge. This leader then works with classmates and underclassmen so that we maintain a continuity of knowledge over the years. As a leader, expectations are that the individual supervises all operations carried out by the squadron and makes sure everyone stays on task and that goals are achieved according to the team's timeline.
Another important leadership quality needed of student leads is to make sure team unity is present. The mission of FIRST is indeed to invoke a love of science and technology in young adults, but the often overlooked effect of FIRST is that of creating a second family for students. In my two years on CIS 4607, I have had the pleasure of meeting some of my best friends through the team. I hope everyone can have the same experience I have had in that sense. With a quality contingent of squad leaders, this should be no issue
