Revision history for PCTScheduling
Additions:
Keeping an organized, comprehensive, and flexible schedule for PCT administration is an absolute necessity in major election years. Scheduling should be informed by Elections Monitoring research on when the Secretary of States plans to release the official candidate list. Next, Scheduling needs to take into consideration how long it will take Profiles to complete contact information research. Finally, scheduling needs to consider the resources available for PCT administration (how many hands you will have for the initial email and subsequent contacts). There are a few keys tools PCT admin should use to stay organized and out in front of PCT administration deadlines:
The Candidate Communications timeline plans out the order, method (post, email, phone), recipients (Presidential, Congressional, State Level), and Sender (signature) of each candidate communication. This should be approved, along with the communication drafts themselves, but the National Director & President before moving forward with PCT scheduling.
**Elections Department Master Calendar**
[[https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-oRoSNeTQgduPzdat8a83IT7wOmiCMkMr8eY-ramqss/edit The Elections Department Master Calendar]] is the most important document for PCT planning. If done correctly, it should incorporate Elections Monitoring info (expected date of candidate list release for each state), Profiles info (progress on contact info research), and all candidate communication dates. This document should be created long before candidate lists start coming out, and updated continuously as new information becomes available. States should be grouped by the expected date of candidate list release, and also factor in election date. PCT Administration periods need to be between 4-6 weeks, and there should be 1.5 - 2 between the PCT Due Date and election. With that in mind, states will need to be shuffled around into groups that make the most sense. Additionally, Email Dates, Due Dates, and everything in between, will likely undergo small changes throughout the process.
The dates on the PCT Master Calendar should be added to the PCT - Administration Google Calendar, and the calendar needs to be updated when things change
The NPAT groups sheet should be created at the time of the Master Calendar, and it should mirror any changes made to the calendar. When a group is locked in (meaning there is a high degree of confidence that nothing will change), the Group's information should be added into its own excel sheet and imported into Mantis (example: http://mantis.votesmart.org/view.php?id=8983). The excel sheet should contain the columns; Group, State, Office, Electionstage, PCT Mail date, PCT due date, PCT release date. As soon as an NPAT group is imported into the database by IT, running a mail merge on those candidates is made possible. Including the dates with each NPAT Group ensures that candidates are given the correct NPAT status during testing, and once the deadline is reached. More details on updating these status' is found on the page [[http://wiki.votesmart.org/PCTProcessing PCT Processing and Results]].
The Candidate Communications timeline plans out the order, method (post, email, phone), recipients (Presidential, Congressional, State Level), and Sender (signature) of each candidate communication. This should be approved, along with the communication drafts themselves, but the National Director & President before moving forward with PCT scheduling.
**Elections Department Master Calendar**
[[https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-oRoSNeTQgduPzdat8a83IT7wOmiCMkMr8eY-ramqss/edit The Elections Department Master Calendar]] is the most important document for PCT planning. If done correctly, it should incorporate Elections Monitoring info (expected date of candidate list release for each state), Profiles info (progress on contact info research), and all candidate communication dates. This document should be created long before candidate lists start coming out, and updated continuously as new information becomes available. States should be grouped by the expected date of candidate list release, and also factor in election date. PCT Administration periods need to be between 4-6 weeks, and there should be 1.5 - 2 between the PCT Due Date and election. With that in mind, states will need to be shuffled around into groups that make the most sense. Additionally, Email Dates, Due Dates, and everything in between, will likely undergo small changes throughout the process.
The dates on the PCT Master Calendar should be added to the PCT - Administration Google Calendar, and the calendar needs to be updated when things change
The NPAT groups sheet should be created at the time of the Master Calendar, and it should mirror any changes made to the calendar. When a group is locked in (meaning there is a high degree of confidence that nothing will change), the Group's information should be added into its own excel sheet and imported into Mantis (example: http://mantis.votesmart.org/view.php?id=8983). The excel sheet should contain the columns; Group, State, Office, Electionstage, PCT Mail date, PCT due date, PCT release date. As soon as an NPAT group is imported into the database by IT, running a mail merge on those candidates is made possible. Including the dates with each NPAT Group ensures that candidates are given the correct NPAT status during testing, and once the deadline is reached. More details on updating these status' is found on the page [[http://wiki.votesmart.org/PCTProcessing PCT Processing and Results]].
Deletions:
The Candidate Communications timeline plans out the order, method (post, email, phone), recipients (Presidential, Congressional, State Level), and Sender (signature) of each candidate communication. This should be approved, along with the communication drafts themselves, but the National Director & President before moving forward with PCT scheduling.
An important thing to note when scheduling candidate communications for an NPAT Group: bulk mail communications (200+ pieces) is sent using non-profit bulk mailing stamps and are processed through USPS - this mailing window is estimated a 1-10 working days for mailing. For NPAT Groups under 200 pieces, these can be sent using first-class mail stamps, and can greatly speed up delivery time (1-3 working days). The sizing of mailings can help to determine mailing times, and thus impact PCT communications scheduling.
**PCT Master Cal**
The PCT Master Cal is the most important document for PCT planning. If done correctly, it should incorporate Elections Monitoring info (expected date of candidate list release for each state), Profiles info (progress on contact info research), and all candidate communication dates. This document should be created long before candidate lists start coming out, and updated continuously as new information becomes available. States should be grouped by the expected date of candidate list release, and also factor in election date. PCT Administration periods need to be between 4-6 weeks, and there should be 1.5 - 2 between the PCT Due Date and election. With that in mind, states will need to be shuffled around into groups that make the most sense. Additionally, Mail Dates, Due Dates, and everything in between, will likely undergo small changes throughout the process.
The dates on the PCT Master Cal should be added to the PCT - Administration Google Calendar, and the calendar needs to be updated when things change.
The NPAT groups sheet should be created at the time of the PCT Master Cal, and it should mirror any changes made to the PCT Master Cal. When a group is locked in (meaning there is a high degree of confidence that nothing will change), the Group's information should be added into its own excel sheet and imported into Mantis (example: http://mantis.votesmart.org/view.php?id=8983). The excel sheet should contain the columns; Group, State, Office, Electionstage, PCT Mail date, PCT due date, PCT release date. As soon as an NPAT group is imported into the database by IT, running a mail merge on those candidates is made possible. Including the dates with each NPAT Group ensures that candidates are given the correct NPAT status during testing, and once the deadline is reached. More details on updating these status' is found on the page [[PCTProcessing PCT Processing and Results]]
{{files}}
Revision [54728]
Edited on 2019-05-02 12:42:37 by JamesW [Including Bulk vs. First-Class Mailing Options]Additions:
An important thing to note when scheduling candidate communications for an NPAT Group: bulk mail communications (200+ pieces) is sent using non-profit bulk mailing stamps and are processed through USPS - this mailing window is estimated a 1-10 working days for mailing. For NPAT Groups under 200 pieces, these can be sent using first-class mail stamps, and can greatly speed up delivery time (1-3 working days). The sizing of mailings can help to determine mailing times, and thus impact PCT communications scheduling.
Revision [54713]
Edited on 2019-04-25 12:16:29 by JamesW [Including Bulk vs. First-Class Mailing Options]Additions:
The NPAT groups sheet should be created at the time of the PCT Master Cal, and it should mirror any changes made to the PCT Master Cal. When a group is locked in (meaning there is a high degree of confidence that nothing will change), the Group's information should be added into its own excel sheet and imported into Mantis (example: http://mantis.votesmart.org/view.php?id=8983). The excel sheet should contain the columns; Group, State, Office, Electionstage, PCT Mail date, PCT due date, PCT release date. As soon as an NPAT group is imported into the database by IT, running a mail merge on those candidates is made possible. Including the dates with each NPAT Group ensures that candidates are given the correct NPAT status during testing, and once the deadline is reached. More details on updating these status' is found on the page [[PCTProcessing PCT Processing and Results]]
Deletions:
Revision [54175]
Edited on 2018-11-29 17:59:08 by Peter [Including Bulk vs. First-Class Mailing Options]Additions:
Keeping an organized, comprehensive, and flexible schedule for PCT administration is an absolute necessity in major election years. Scheduling should be informed by Elections Monitoring research on when Secretary of States plan to release official candidate list. Next, Scheduling needs to take into consideration how long it will take Profiles to complete contact information research. Finally, scheduling needs to consider the resources available for PCT administration (how many hands you will have for the initial mailing and subsequent contacts). There are a few keys tools PCT admin should use to stay organized and out in front of PCT administration deadlines:
Deletions:
Revision [54174]
Edited on 2018-11-29 17:57:58 by Peter [Including Bulk vs. First-Class Mailing Options]Additions:
The NPAT groups sheet should be created at the time of the PCT Master Cal, and it should mirror any changes made to the PCT Master Cal. When a group is locked in (meaning there is a high degree of confidence that nothing will change), the Group's information should be added into its own excel sheet and imported into Mantis (example: http://mantis.votesmart.org/view.php?id=8983). As soon as an NPAT group is imported into the database by IT, running a mail merge on those candidates is made possible.
Deletions:
Revision [54173]
Edited on 2018-11-29 17:57:16 by Peter [Including Bulk vs. First-Class Mailing Options]Additions:
The NPAT groups sheet should be created at the time of the PCT Master Cal, and it should mirror any changes made to the PCT Master Cal. When a group is locked in (meaning there is a high degree of confidence that nothing will change), the Group's information should be added into its own excel sheet and imported into Mantis (example: http://mantis.votesmart.org/view.php?id=9045). As soon as an NPAT group is imported into the database by IT, running a mail merge on those candidates is made possible.
Deletions:
Revision [54172]
Edited on 2018-11-29 17:56:23 by Peter [Including Bulk vs. First-Class Mailing Options]Additions:
The Candidate Communications timeline plans out the order, method (post, email, phone), recipients (Presidential, Congressional, State Level), and Sender (signature) of each candidate communication. This should be approved, along with the communication drafts themselves, but the National Director & President before moving forward with PCT scheduling.
The PCT Master Cal is the most important document for PCT planning. If done correctly, it should incorporate Elections Monitoring info (expected date of candidate list release for each state), Profiles info (progress on contact info research), and all candidate communication dates. This document should be created long before candidate lists start coming out, and updated continuously as new information becomes available. States should be grouped by the expected date of candidate list release, and also factor in election date. PCT Administration periods need to be between 4-6 weeks, and there should be 1.5 - 2 between the PCT Due Date and election. With that in mind, states will need to be shuffled around into groups that make the most sense. Additionally, Mail Dates, Due Dates, and everything in between, will likely undergo small changes throughout the process.
The dates on the PCT Master Cal should be added to the PCT - Administration Google Calendar, and the calendar needs to be updated when things change.
The NPAT groups sheet should be created at the time of the PCT Master Cal, and it should mirror any changes made to the PCT Master Cal. When a group is locked in (meaning there is a high degree of confidence that nothing will change), the Group's information should be added into its own excel sheet and imported into Mantis (example: http://mantis.votesmart.org/view.php?id=9045)
The PCT Master Cal is the most important document for PCT planning. If done correctly, it should incorporate Elections Monitoring info (expected date of candidate list release for each state), Profiles info (progress on contact info research), and all candidate communication dates. This document should be created long before candidate lists start coming out, and updated continuously as new information becomes available. States should be grouped by the expected date of candidate list release, and also factor in election date. PCT Administration periods need to be between 4-6 weeks, and there should be 1.5 - 2 between the PCT Due Date and election. With that in mind, states will need to be shuffled around into groups that make the most sense. Additionally, Mail Dates, Due Dates, and everything in between, will likely undergo small changes throughout the process.
The dates on the PCT Master Cal should be added to the PCT - Administration Google Calendar, and the calendar needs to be updated when things change.
The NPAT groups sheet should be created at the time of the PCT Master Cal, and it should mirror any changes made to the PCT Master Cal. When a group is locked in (meaning there is a high degree of confidence that nothing will change), the Group's information should be added into its own excel sheet and imported into Mantis (example: http://mantis.votesmart.org/view.php?id=9045)
Deletions:
Revision [54171]
Edited on 2018-11-29 15:59:57 by Peter [Including Bulk vs. First-Class Mailing Options]Additions:
**Candidate Communications Timeline**
**NPAT Groups**
**PCT Master Cal**
{{files}}
**NPAT Groups**
**PCT Master Cal**
{{files}}
