Management & Leadership Guide

Learn how to organize your team, develop leadership skills, and manage your FRC season effectively

Step 1

Team Structure & Organization

Creating Effective Team Structure

A well-organized team structure ensures clear roles, responsibilities, and efficient workflow. Every team member should understand their position and how they contribute to the team's success.

Core Leadership Positions

  • Team Captain(s): Overall team leadership, decision-making, competition strategy
  • Lead Mentor: Adult advisor, safety oversight, resource coordination
  • Business Captain: Fundraising, sponsor relations, budget management
  • Drive Coach: Competition strategy, driver training, match coordination
  • Drive Team: Drivers, operators, human player (selected through tryouts)

Department Leads

  • Mechanical Lead: CAD design oversight, build coordination, fabrication
  • Software Lead: Programming strategy, code reviews, robot testing
  • Electrical Lead: Wiring, electronics integration, troubleshooting
  • Marketing Lead: Social media, outreach, Impact Award documentation

Important:

Avoid concentrating too much power in one person. Distribute leadership responsibilities and create succession plans for graduating seniors.

Creating an Organizational Chart

Document your team structure with:

  • Visual organizational chart showing reporting relationships
  • Written role descriptions for each position
  • Contact information directory
  • Succession planning for key roles

Pro Tip:

Use tools like Google Drive, Notion, or Trello to maintain your team's organizational documents and make them accessible to all members.

Step 2

Leadership Development

Building Future Leaders

Successful FRC teams invest in developing leadership skills across all team members, not just those in formal leadership positions. This ensures sustainability and creates a culture of ownership.

Leadership Skills to Develop

  • Communication: Clear verbal and written expression, active listening
  • Problem-Solving: Critical thinking, creative solutions, analytical skills
  • Teamwork: Collaboration, conflict resolution, empathy
  • Time Management: Prioritization, deadlines, efficiency
  • Decision-Making: Data analysis, consensus building, accountability
  • Technical Teaching: Mentoring younger members, documentation

Leadership Training Activities

  • Rotate leadership roles during off-season projects
  • Assign mentorship pairs (veteran + rookie)
  • Hold team-building exercises and workshops
  • Encourage attendance at FRC leadership conferences
  • Create opportunities for public speaking (presentations, demos)
  • Practice gracious professionalism in all interactions

Watch Out:

Leadership isn't about being bossy—it's about serving your team, listening to others, and helping everyone succeed together.

Student Leadership vs. Mentor Guidance

FRC emphasizes student-led teams where mentors guide but don't take over:

  • Students make design decisions and lead projects
  • Mentors ask guiding questions instead of giving answers
  • Students present at competitions and to sponsors
  • Mentors ensure safety and provide industry expertise

Leadership Resources:

  • FIRST Leadership Library: firstinspires.org/resource-library
  • Team 1678 Leadership Curriculum (search online)
  • Dale Carnegie principles for effective leadership
Step 3

Communication Systems

Effective Communication is Key

Clear, consistent communication prevents misunderstandings, keeps everyone informed, and ensures your team operates smoothly both in and out of build season.

Communication Channels

  • Team Meetings: Weekly all-hands meetings for announcements and updates
  • Messaging Platform: Slack, Discord, or GroupMe for daily communication
  • Email: Official communications, parent updates, sponsor correspondence
  • Shared Calendar: Google Calendar for meetings, competitions, deadlines
  • Documentation: Google Drive or Notion for shared documents and knowledge

Setting Up Slack/Discord for Your Team

# Recommended Channels:
#general          - Team-wide announcements
#build-season     - Daily build updates
#mechanical       - Mechanical team discussions
#software         - Programming questions
#electrical       - Wiring and electronics
#business         - Fundraising and outreach
#social-media     - Content planning
#off-topic        - Fun and team bonding
#resources        - Links and documentation

Communication Best Practices

  • Set response time expectations (e.g., 24 hours for messages)
  • Use appropriate channels (don't post technical questions in #general)
  • Pin important messages and resources
  • Create a new member onboarding guide
  • Document decisions and share with the whole team
  • Maintain a FAQ document for common questions

Avoid:

Having important discussions in private DMs that should be shared with the team. Keep technical discussions in public channels so everyone can learn.

Parent Communication

  • Monthly email newsletters with team updates
  • Parent meetings before build season and competitions
  • Clear communication about expectations, costs, and schedules
  • Volunteer opportunities and sign-up sheets
  • Emergency contact information on file

Pro Tip:

Create communication templates for common scenarios (meeting agendas, sponsor thank-yous, parent updates) to save time and maintain consistency.

Step 4

Season Planning & Timeline

Plan Your Entire Year

FRC teams operate year-round. Creating a comprehensive timeline helps you balance build season intensity with off-season development, recruitment, and fundraising.

FRC Season Timeline

Pre-Season (September - December)

  • September: Team recruitment, kickoff prep, mentor training
  • October: Fundraising events, sponsor outreach, off-season projects
  • November: Veteran training for rookies, CAD practice, programming practice
  • December: Final fundraising push, last off-season projects, holiday break

Build Season (January - February)

  • Week 0 (Kickoff): Game reveal, strategy, initial design concepts
  • Weeks 1-2: Prototyping, design selection, CAD finalization
  • Weeks 3-4: Manufacturing, assembly, initial wiring/programming
  • Weeks 5-6: Robot integration, testing, driver practice, bag day prep

Important:

Build season is only 6 weeks! Time management is critical. Don't spend 4 weeks in CAD—prototype early and iterate quickly.

Competition Season (March - April)

  • Week before event: Travel logistics, pit setup, strategy prep
  • At competition: Matches, scouting, alliance selection, robot repairs
  • After each event: Post-mortem, improvements, next event prep
  • Championship qualification window

Post-Season (May - August)

  • May: Championship (if qualified), team banquet, awards
  • June: Off-season competitions, robot demos at community events
  • July: Leadership transition, summer projects, camp preparations
  • August: Summer camp instruction, mentor recruitment, facility prep

Creating Your Team Calendar

# Essential Calendar Items:
- Weekly meeting times (recurring)
- Build season schedule (daily meetings)
- Competition dates and locations
- Registration deadlines (team, event, awards)
- Fundraising events
- Outreach activities
- School breaks and conflicts
- Mentor availability

Pro Tip:

Share your calendar with parents early. Many families need to plan around competition travel months in advance.

Step 5

Meeting Management

Run Productive Meetings

Well-run meetings keep everyone informed, engaged, and productive. Poor meetings waste time and drain team morale.

Meeting Types

Weekly All-Hands Meeting (Off-Season)

  • Duration: 15-30 minutes
  • Purpose: Team-wide updates, announcements, planning
  • Format: Leadership presents, Q&A, then break into subteams

Daily Stand-Up (Build Season)

  • Duration: 10 minutes max
  • Purpose: Quick status updates, blocker identification
  • Format: Each subteam shares: "What we did, what we're doing, what we need"

Design Reviews

  • Duration: 30-60 minutes
  • Purpose: Review designs before manufacturing
  • Format: Designer presents, team provides feedback, consensus decision

Retrospectives

  • Duration: 45 minutes
  • Purpose: Reflect on what worked and what didn't
  • Format: What went well? What needs improvement? Action items?

Meeting Best Practices

  • Start and end on time (respect everyone's schedule)
  • Create an agenda in advance and share it
  • Assign a facilitator and note-taker
  • Stay on topic (park unrelated discussions for later)
  • Document decisions and action items
  • Assign owners and deadlines to action items
  • Send meeting notes to the whole team afterward

Avoid:

Meetings without clear purpose, running over time, or letting a few people dominate the conversation. Everyone's time is valuable.

Sample Meeting Agenda Template

Team Meeting Agenda - [Date]

1. Attendance & Check-in (2 min)
2. Announcements (5 min)
   - Upcoming events
   - Deadlines
   - Recognition/shout-outs
3. Department Updates (10 min)
   - Mechanical: [Lead presents]
   - Software: [Lead presents]
   - Electrical: [Lead presents]
   - Business: [Lead presents]
4. Discussion Items (10 min)
   - [Topic 1 with decision needed]
   - [Topic 2 with decision needed]
5. Action Items Review (3 min)
   - Who is doing what by when?
6. Next Steps & Closing (2 min)

Total Time: 30 minutes

Pro Tip:

Rotate meeting facilitators to develop leadership skills across the team. Even rookies can learn to run effective meetings with practice!

Step 6

Documentation & Knowledge Management

Preserve Institutional Knowledge

FRC teams face constant turnover as students graduate. Comprehensive documentation ensures new members can learn from past experiences and maintain continuity.

Essential Documentation

Technical Documentation

  • CAD Files: OnShape or SolidWorks, organized by season
  • Code Repository: GitHub with README and comments
  • Electrical Diagrams: Wiring layouts, CAN IDs, sensor mappings
  • Bill of Materials: Parts used, suppliers, costs
  • Build Documentation: Assembly instructions, lessons learned

Strategic Documentation

  • Scouting Data: Match data, team statistics, alliance selection strategy
  • Competition Reports: What worked, what broke, what to improve
  • Season Postmortem: Comprehensive review after season ends
  • Design Decisions: Why you made certain choices (for future reference)

Business Documentation

  • Budget & Expenses: All financial records
  • Sponsor Database: Contact info, contribution history, renewal dates
  • Grant Applications: Templates and successful examples
  • Impact Award Portfolio: Outreach activities, metrics, photos

Team Operations

  • Safety Manual: Lab rules, PPE requirements, emergency procedures
  • New Member Handbook: Onboarding guide for rookies
  • Contact Directory: Members, mentors, parents, sponsors
  • Meeting Notes: Decisions, action items, attendance

Documentation Tools & Platforms

  • Google Drive/Workspace: Documents, spreadsheets, shared folders
  • Notion: Knowledge base, wikis, project management
  • GitHub: Code, version control, technical documentation
  • Trello/Asana: Task tracking, project management
  • Google Photos/Flickr: Photo organization and sharing

Important:

Establish naming conventions and folder structures at the start of the season. Inconsistent organization makes documentation useless.

Knowledge Transfer Best Practices

  • Assign rookies to shadow veterans and document processes
  • Hold "teach-back" sessions where rookies explain concepts
  • Record video tutorials for complex procedures
  • Create checklists for repetitive tasks
  • Maintain a team wiki with FAQs and troubleshooting guides
  • Conduct exit interviews with graduating seniors
  • Archive each season's files in clearly labeled folders

Sample Folder Structure

Team 9236 FRC Drive
├── 2024 Season
│   ├── CAD Files
│   ├── Code
│   ├── Electrical
│   ├── Competition Reports
│   ├── Scouting Data
│   └── Photos
├── 2025 Season
│   └── [same structure]
├── Business
│   ├── Budget
│   ├── Sponsors
│   ├── Grants
│   └── Impact Award
├── Team Operations
│   ├── Meeting Notes
│   ├── Safety
│   ├── Onboarding
│   └── Contact Info
└── Archive
    └── [older seasons]

Pro Tip:

Designate a "documentation lead" or make documentation part of every project completion checklist. If it's not documented, it didn't happen!

Additional Resources

FIRST Official Website

Team management resources

Chief Delphi Forums

Team management discussions