Changes to Elf Groups

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Changes to Elf Groups have been happening since the first of the New Year.

It is likely you have seen some groups disappear while others have been consolidated or changed.

The decision to do this by Santa’s Council is based on the mandate given by Santa to focus the features of the elf community to be more mission centric.

Eliminated groups were those that lacked activity or support of their managers.

Modified groups are groups that were active but fell under various management entities or were designated as “private” or “hidden”. All groups, except for Santa’s Council, will be public going forward.

All groups now have centralized administrative control. Elf Max, under the direction of Santa’s Council, will administer the groups for uniformity and compliance.

Much discussion has been had over what constitutes “mission centric” topics of each group.

It was decided that elf discussion on things such as Christmas Baking is healthy for the community and should continue, even though not specifically relatable to Santa tracking.

Thus, if new groups are wanted for other Christmas topics – decorating, Christmas movies, Christmas music, etc – it will be possible to form them. Interested parties in forming new groups should contact Elf Max.

Going forward all groups will be monitored by Santa’s Council who will occasionally review group activity, relevancy and contribution to the Elf Community.

We expect the elf community to continue to grow. This change to elf groups is just one of many adjustments being made this year. Further detail of the formation, administration and future of Elf Groups will be included in a new feature called Elf University, to be released soon.

Feel free to add questions, comments or suggestions below.

Elf Chat Scheduled for Monday, February 21st

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A special event featuring Elf Roger Star has been scheduled in Elf Chat for next Monday, February 21st at 12pm EST. Elf Roger will discuss the calendar of events for Santa Trackers at SantaTrackers.net this year.

He will also answer questions posted by elves during the course of the chat event.

Elf Max is also scheduled to host North Pole Chat at SantaUpdate.com the same day, just a few hours later at 3pm EST. He will be discussing updates to SantaTrackers.net and take questions.

These chats are the first opportunities elves will have to directly address plans for the upcoming year.

Other elves that might be in attendance for these events include Elves Frank Myrrh, Crash Murphy and Elf Sandy Claus.

Elf Ernest might also be able to attend both chat events. Questions for these elves specifically would be welcomed.

Unfortunately, Santa will not be able to attend these chats. He has indicated that a chat scheduled with him will be coming soon.

First Senior Elf Named

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The first senior elf has accepted his position and joins the all-new Santa’s Council, which is in the formation process.

Our first senior elf is one you know well, Elf Max.

Elf Max is the most important elf on SantaTrackers.net. He works tirelessly 365 days of the year to make this site and community work. While we do not want to add to his workload there is no way we can proceed without his voice on Santa’s Council.

There are several “Santa’s Council” groups. We have one at SantaUpdate.com, at the North Pole, at North Pole Flight Command, etc. These are groups of senior elves that meet with Santa on occasion to discuss difficult issues and to resolve them. The elves included in these groups are approved personally by Santa and are highly trusted.

In forming a group of such elves here we will be including elves who serve in various important capacities first. You know these elves already. Elves Ernest, Frank Myrrh, Harold Star, Sandy Claus and Crash Murphy will, by the nature of their existing positions and how they work within the Santa Tracker community, will be part of this group.

I am in the process as well in interviewing several other elves to be part of this group. It may take me a few months to get through this process of interviewing, identifying and inviting new elves to join Santa’s Council.

Not only are we looking for the right mix for Santa’s Council we are looking for new Senior Elves to fill special assignments within the tracker community. It will take time to recruit such elves, train them and get them up to speed on their duties.

But adding Elf Max to this group is a logical first step and one we hope you approve of.

Expect more announcements of this type over the weeks and months ahead.

Understanding Our Mission

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Several weeks ago Elf Max made a short statement on the Elf Wall about new features, changes and revisions being made to SantaTrackers.net. He mentioned that efforts were being made improve the site experience to be more “mission centric”. One of our astute elves asked, “What does that mean?”

To be mission centric is to be more focused on our main purpose.

What is our “main purpose”? Or, better said, what is our mission?

After a lot of discussion, this sums it up: Our mission here at SantaTrackers.net is to help Santa get around the world each Christmas and to get him safely back to the North Pole.

You can read our full mission statement at this new page just added to the website.

When we say we want to make each feature, each page, each post, each little wall posting more mission centric it means we want it to contribute to the thing we’re trying to accomplish.

Last year we did it. All 200+ million of us.

It came after a very full year of preparation, of discussion, of recruiting, of training and of just being elves together. We got Santa around the world, delivered Christmas and got him safely back home again.

Can we do better?

Oh yes. Of course. We all can do better.

That is the aim of what you are seeing Elf Max and his team doing right now. There are a lot of changes to the website. Lots of tiny adjustments and many bold new ideas being put into place. Our goal – which is part of our mission – is to improve on the great work already done.

Understanding our mission is something we are asking all elves to work on.

We want everything you do here online on SantaTrackers.net to somehow help the mission. Think hard before you post. It’s not always easy to do what we are asking here.

Simple things, like answering a question for new elves, are pretty simple. Of course that helps the mission.

But what about other things we’re doing here. Do we really need to post things about our hobbies, our hometowns or stuff that doesn’t relate at all to our mission?

That’s what we’re talking about here.

Elf Max is showing you how it is done. Every part of this website is under review. He is trying to make it apply more to our true mission. He wants every feature, every post, every word serve the mission better than it has in the past.

So that’s why you’re seeing some changes.

There are many more of them coming. Between now and June 1st, we expect them all to be put in place. Elf Max and his team are working every day in ways you may not see yet to improve things.

You can do that too. For now, your help will be in answering questions that Max might post. Like always, your help is appreciated in recruiting and training new elves. In the months ahead, it might mean taking on new jobs to add to your elf resume.

There are lots of ways to help accomplish the mission.

For now, read the mission statement. Ask whatever questions you might have. Think about what else you can do to help accomplish the mission.

Thank you.

Tracker Elf Conference Agenda

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The Tracker Elf Conference is scheduled for this Saturday at 10am EST and it runs for two hours.

Santa to Address Tracker Elf Conference

During these two hours we will hear/see presentations from the following Santa tracking experts:

  1. Elf Frank Myrrh (North Pole Radio News anchor) – The Tracking Santa Show on Kringle Radio
  2. Elf Roger Star (International Director of Santa Trackers) – How You Help Santa on Christmas Eve
  3. Elf Buck Sanchez (Flight Director, North Pole Sleigh Port) – What Really Happens on Christmas Eve
  4. Elf Hugo Slavia (North Pole Post Master) – How Messages Flow at the North Pole on Christmas Eve
  5. Elf Max (Tracker Elf Trainer) – Timeline of Tracker Activity
  6. Santa (The Big Guy) – My Message to Tracker Elves

As you can see, there are a lot of presentations to make. There will be a brief period after each presentation for questions. It would be helpful, however, if you could submit any questions you have ahead of time so that maybe answers can be put into the presentations (this saves time for everyone). You can submit them below:

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Elf Questions and Answers – New Tracker Podcast

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Santa Trackers Podcast
Santa Tracker Podcast
Elf Questions and Answers - New Tracker Podcast
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Elf questions and answers are the topic of a new Santa Trackers Podcast just posted by Elf Frank Myrrh.

Elf Questions and Answers

There are many new tracker elves joining our ranks and they have questions. In this new episode we take a stab at answering a few of those questions.

This biggest question in this episode come from Elf Frankie in England: What do I do if I see Santa in my house?

Frank and Crash do not necessarily agree with how to best answer this question. Crash thinks Frankie should say something and Frank — well, Frank just can’t handle it.

This episode also features a special message from Elf Crusader about the care and feeding of Reindeer.

Frank and Crash also discuss how to help young, talent elves develop in their elf careers.

Santa Headlines Tracker Elf Conference

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Santa Claus will address the 2021 Tracker Elf Conference it was announced during the Elf Supervisor chat held yesterday.

Santa to Address Tracker Elf Conference

Santa wants to speak directly with those who will be tracking him in an official elf capacity. Attendance for this event is expected to be robust and there will likely be more questions for Santa than he will be able to handle. There may be a process set up so that Santa can answer the questions more efficiently.

The Tracker Elf Conference is an annual event to inform tracker elves of last minute instruction about Santa’s flight and the responsibilities of trackers. Other speakers have been selected for this event and the agenda for the conference will be released soon.

Let Us Post Your Photos For You

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We have received requests for an alternative way to post the Thanksgiving Day Elf Parade photos that elves around the world share. Some do NOT want to put them on the Elf Wall.

That’s okay – we appreciate you sharing them with us. Just use the form below or click on this link to upload them to us:

 

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Huge Gains in Elf Count Seen Daily

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Historic gains are being made daily as tracker elf sign-ups surge all over the world. The numbers for the last 30 days are in and Sector 4 – South America – showed the largest gains last month, much to the surprise of nearly everyone at North Pole Flight Command.

World wide, the total elf count jumped nearly 25% to 98 million, leaving just 102 million elves yet to recruit in the month ahead.

Sector 4 saw the largest increase at 50.9%. They now have more than 18.5 million elves total.

Sector 5 also had another large increase last month at 36.5%. They lead the world with 45.6 million elves. North America is expected to show the largest increase yet in the month ahead.

Sector 1 increased 2.1% to 9.1 million total elves. They need to really put in an effort this month. Their goal is better than 19 million, so a lot of work ahead for them.

Sector 2 in Asia and the Middle East improved 1.5%, the smallest increase on the month for any sector. They have 3.6 million elves and need a total of 11 million.

Sector 3 in Africa and Europe improved 3.6% to 19.5 million. They need 36 million elves by the time Santa launches.

Most analysts at the North Pole are pleased with this positive progress. Keep recruiting new elves. Every day that passes now sets a new record.

 

What to Know About Operation Airlift

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Operation Airlift is a detail of Santa’s flight that many in the outside world do not know about and that some new tracker elves do not understand. The purpose of this post is to bring you up to speed on it so that when it happens on Christmas Eve you know what is going on.

Operation Airlift is a support effort for Santa. Thousands of sleighs and thousands of reindeer are deployed before Santa even launches to help with various tasks that support Santa’s flight.

It is not difficult to see why such an operation is necessary. Santa delivers to billions of believers. Not all of their stuff is going to fit in his sack or on his sleigh. Santa needs help getting that stuff to where it goes.

That is where Operation Airlift comes into play.

Santa makes use of sleighs, snowmobiles, sleds powered by dogs, planes, trains, trucks, large ships, and other types of vehicles on Christmas Eve to move presents, supplies, elves and reindeer around to help as Santa delivers.

You will hear of Operation Airlift on the radio from North Pole Radio News. It is all part of the Santa effort.

While you as a tracker elf may not benefit from all this activity you WILL be working to support those sleighs too. After all, the same information you provide for Santa will be used to support Operation Airlift as well.

Let’s say, for example, that you send in a weather report from your area. That information is compiled with other weather reports to give the pilots of those sleighs used in Operation Airlift the information they need to fly safely in completing their mission.

And just what is their mission?

Their mission is to get the right stuff to Santa at the right time. If you live in England and support sleighs brings Santa stuff needed in Ethiopia, no one is going to have a Merry Christmas – either in England or Ethiopia.

Operation Airlift keeps things organized and flowing to Santa so that he gets things to the right people on time.

You will need to listen carefully to the news as you track Santa. You will not want to confuse the information about Operation Airlift with Santa’s actual flight. This is part of the reason why there is a countdown to Santa’s launch on every official North Pole website and why you are provided with a map of Santa’s position.

Any questions? Add to the comments below.

50 Days Until Launch

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There are now just 50 days until launch of Santa’s sleigh and you’re going to start seeing some different stuff.

Elf Supervisors, aside from maybe talking about the recruiting numbers, will be engaging in activities designed to help train and to prepare for Santa’s ride. Elf Pinky, for example, is holding a chat this weekend for Sector 5.

Likewise, I will be holding a chat the following day (Sunday) about Christmas Eve Reports.

There may be different things coming in each Sector. Definitely a time to be paying attention.

The fun is about to start.

North Pole Flight Command today has some new information about the test flights.

And SantaUpdate.com has news about Santa’s Workshop.

New Elf Chat About Christmas Eve Reports

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Christmas Eve Reports will be the topic of discussion during a newly scheduled Elf Chat for all trackers on November 7th at 8pm EST in Elf Chat at SantaTrackers.net.

Elf Max, a senior Tracker Elf Trainer — that’s me! — will host the chat.

I have gathered information from all the Elf Supervisors, who will be monitoring the chat event, that they want presented. We will discuss what the expected reports are, where to find them and how to fill them out and send them in.

If time allows, we might also talk about secondary reports that may or may not be requested by North Pole Flight Command on Christmas Eve.

The work of tracker elves is to give current information that might be useful to Santa as he makes his way around the world. It is believed that the reports coming from 200 million tracker elves worldwide can really help Santa speed things up but to do it in a way that is actually safer. Tracker elves are Santa’s eyes on the ground. He needs to hear current conditions where tracker elves live.

We would also note that this chat will be a great time to ask any tracker questions you might have. See you there!

Christmas Eve Reports