Greetings Elves!

I am pleased to report that last week saw a huge increase in the number of new elves and new reports tallied in North Pole Flight Command.

This is not entirely a surprise. The week of Thanksgiving usually sees a big increase in interest in tracking Santa for Santa. So many people out there, for whatever reason, decide the week of Thanksgiving that they want to become elves. We give them that chance.

The big questions to be answered are: What kind of elves will they be? Will their reports really help Santa? Can they get enough training behind them in time to really know how to file a quality report?

The answers to those questions only come in the weeks ahead. For now, here are the numbers:

North Pole Tracker Elves: 117,620
Freelance Tracker Elves: 13,639,943

Total Elves Tracking Santa for Santa = 13,757,563

As you can tell, the vast number of new elves are freelance elves. That has a huge bearing over the quality of reports we are seeing in Flight Command. I have met with each elf supervisor to discuss this issue. Most elf supervisors are thrilled to have so many new elves but most are also frustrated because the report data they are receiving is not good.

In fact, elf supervisors have decided to start “culling” elves while in season – meaning they will dismiss those elves who either submit sub-standard reports or no reports at all. They just don’t have time for people who want to be elves in name only. I’m sure they will address this individually in their reports this week.

Elf Moe also reports a number of issues monitoring the Elf Community on SantaTrackers.net. This is not surprising, just disappointing. Knowing and living by the Elf Code is new for many elves and we’re trying to give as many elves a chance as we can.

As far as reports go this week, it was very productive:

Reports from North Pole Tracker Elves: 106,251,961
Reports from Freelance Tracker Elves: 176,824,740

Total Reports from Tracker Elves Worldwide = 283,086,701

This new tally shows that we are 28% to goal, roughly, so far. This is an acceptable performance.

In Flight Command we are grappling with organizing all this information and making it useful for Santa. We are gratified to have new information about places we had nothing on before. It is exciting to see this. Santa has not yet seen some of this information but we have meetings set up with him soon to start presenting it to him.

Elves, keep up the good work. Please focus on your Elf Supervisor. They will tell you what is more important to work on this week.

Hola, amigos! As we head into the week of Thanksgiving, this is where we stand as a sector:

North Pole Tracker Elves: 2,496
Freelance Tracker Elves: 471,221
Total Tracker Elves: 473,717

And here is our report tally for the week:

North Pole Tracker Elf Reports: 8,237
Freelance Tracker Elf Reports: 1,460,785
Total Tracker Elf Reports: 1,469,022

Our goals: 
Total Tracker Elves: 3.8 million
Total Tracker Elf Reports: 17 million

As you can see, we have a long way to go. In fact, if I’m being honest, we are not off to a very strong start. But this isn’t unusual. We are usually a little behind everyone else at this point in the season. But we catch up fast! And that is exactly what we are going to do this year. Fortunately, as you can see, Santa has faith in us:

Feedback from Santa:
How I love coming to Sector 4. There are no more happier people in the world than the good people of Sector 4. I appreciate their Christmas spirit. I am concerned for many of them this year. It has been a difficult year in a lot of places. So this week I’d like you elves to take a good look around and file reports that Elf Tubby might ask for that address how things feel and look for Christmas in Sector 4. I know this will be hard in Greenland. However, there are few people there and it should be fairly easy for the few elves we have in Greenland. If need be, Greenland is close enough that we can dispatch some elves from the North Pole there to check things out. As far as delivery goes in Sector 4 I have a number of worries. Parking the sleigh is a bit of a challenge in some areas. I don’t do rooftops much in Sector 4. But yards are typically small and I don’t like parking the sleigh on the street. What you report about the ground and pictures of places you think I can land the sleigh are important to me. We could use a few more elves in Sector 4. Please talk to your friends. — Santa

Instructions for this week, please send in the following reports:

• Elf Status Report
• Local Christmas Report
• Weather Report
• Optional Photo Report for Recommended Sleigh Landing Locations

We have much to do, friends! Let’s get elf-busy!

A tracker elf conference is held every December. This has been the tradition of the past five years. Key elves from Flight Command and even Santa himself take the time to discuss tracking Santa for Santa and what is needed in that particular year.

The Elf Supervisors are thinking of doing the Tracker Elf Conference a little differently this year. They are asking, in advance of scheduling this event, for your questions, comments and needs BEFORE the Conference.

How and when the Tracker Elf Conference will be held is yet to be announced. But we can proceed in getting your input right away.

We are asking all elves to provide the following information so we can make the Tracker Elf Conference more useful for you. You can fill this form out as many times as you like so that all of your questions can be considered:

Your Elf Name *

Tell Us What Kind of Conference Format You Would Like *

• Written Questions and Answers
• A Live Chat in Elf Chat
• A series of articles from important Elves

Elf Supervisors are considering a new format for the Tracker Elf Conference this year. Your feedback on this question is very important

The Conference has been held on weekends in the past. What is your preferred day? *

• Saturday
• Sunday
• Some other day

Which weekend in December would work best for you? *

• December 5th and 6th
• December 12th and 13th
• December 19th and 20th

Which elves would be most important for you to hear from during the Tracker Elf Conference?

What is the most important question you want answered about tracking Santa for Santa?

If SANTA could answer one question for you what would it be?

What is the most important thing to you as a tracker elf?

Send it to North Pole Flight Command

I have reviewed the progress so far in each Sector. I have met with each Elf Supervisor. I am pleased to report that thanks to change initiated by Santa after last Christmas that we find ourselves way ahead of last year in terms of information we have and the preparations we are making for Santa’s flight around the world.

We are doing this with fewer elves but with greater reporting.

So far, freelance elves outnumber North Pole elves by a factor of 12 to 1. That is why we have seen such a rapid increase in reports in the past four weeks. Freelance elves, which are the only new elves we are allowing this year, have started joining us, as they do every year, in massive numbers in every sector.

Even though most of them are new and relying on Elf University for their training the quality of reports coming from freelancers is vastly improved over a year ago. We are seeing very good results in every sector so far. On the whole, freelance elves have sent in 84% more reports with an average quality score of 5 (on a scale of 10). The number of reports per elf so far received from the freelance ranks is about 3.1.

But the real progress is being shown among experienced North Pole elves. Those elves have sent in a whopping 231% more reports and their quality score is over 8 (on the same scale of 10). The average number of reports from our North Pole elves is 7.3.

I can tell you now, based on these early reports, it has to be a big goal after this Christmas to turn more freelance elves into North Pole elves.

Each Sector Elf Supervisor reports they are working with many candidates. None of them will make it before Christmas, but several have the opportunity to be invited into the Elf Community in the New Year if they keep up the work they are doing now.

Quality remains our watchword. If you put forth good information in your reports you WILL advance in your elf career. It’s as simple as that.

We are only in the tens of millions of reports Santa says that he wants. The target this year is 1 billion reports. We are just getting started.

But for where we are at right now, as we near the end of October, things are going very, very well.

What will November and early December look like for trackers?

Just follow the lead of your Elf Supervisor.

All of this is happening just as Santa said it would.

Thank you for your efforts.