As I have discussed in prior posts, Moderation Services almost always extend beyond content removal and enforcing a Usage Policy.

Including, but not limited to:

  • Proactive scanning
  • Managing member accounts
  • Responding to Violation reports
  • Facilitation and Interaction
  • Customer Support
  • Reporting Escalations
  • Report Generation

I would like to touch upon the next-to-last bullet point with this post (Reporting Escalations).

There are situations where a Moderator and/or client needs to get others involved – in some cases Law Enforcement. Threats of any kind (to one-self or to others) should not be tolerated or taken lightly. Reports of abuse of any nature should be handled appropriately.

Appropriate courses of action need to be outlined so that everyone can be prepared and streamline the process. While this is definitely a “worst-case scenario” thought, escalation paths need to be defined.
In most cases, we assist in the escalation process with our clients, assisting them in defining what needs to be escalated, when, to whom, and what the client should do once they receive a report from us.
In other cases, our clients already have escalation paths in place, so we don’t “re-invent the wheel”, we duplicate what is already in place.

Have you ever been involved in a situation and were unsure how to handle it within your community? If you had prepared, would the situation have been resolved in a timely fashion?

Mike

Note: Cross-posted at mzinga.com