Operations is looked after by the Chief of Operations or the Operations Manager. The department is filled with mostly enlisted crewmen and non-commission officer – they are, truly, the backbone of any service. The duties of the Operations Manager or Officer is to monitor and coordinate various shipboard activities. The Ops officer is responsible for prioritizing and scheduling necessities like resource and power allocation. Ops must make sure each department has the power and resources required to complete mission goals.

Other responsibilities of the Ops officer include supplying away team members with mission objective information and equipment such as tricorders, EV suits, PADD's, etc; maintenance and monitoring of communications systems; notification of Engineering to prepare for power allocation for uses such as remote transporter operations, deflector and sensor usage. These are the usual duties of the Operations officer as performed at the Bridge station. Another function of the department is the formation of Damage Control Teams. In conjunction with some Engineering crews, members of Operations serve to oversee and attend to any forms of damages received in emergency situations.

There are other areas and duties requiring the attention of the Operations department. These functions are performed by those others who do not monitor the Operations console located on the bridge. These other areas are Computers, Holodecks, Cargo Bays, Communications, Sensors, General Maintenance / Crew Support, and Shuttlebays.

The Operations Manager has the primary responsibility of ensuring that ship functions, such as the use of the lateral sensor array, do not interfere with one and another. S/he must prioritize resource allocations, so that the most critical activities can have every chance of success. If so required, s/he can curtail shipboard functions if s/he thinks they will interfere with the ship's current mission or routine operations. The Operations Manager is a Department head, and a member of the Senior Staff.

The Chief Operations Officer cannot man the bridge at all times. Extra personnel are needed to relive and maintain ship operations. The Operations Officers are thus assistants to the Chief, fulfilling his/her duties when required, and assuming the Operations consoles if required at any time. The Assistant Chief Operations Officer is the second-in-command of the Operations Department, and can assume the role of Chief Operations Officer on a temporary or permanent basis if so needed.

The Flight Deck Operations Officer oversees the operations that are undertaken in the shuttlebays and maintenance bay that is part of the ship or facility. All request for launch and landing clearance must pass to the Flight Deck Operations Officer, who in turn must pass on requests to the Operations Officer manning the bridge.

The Chief Operations Officer cannot man the bridge at all times. Extra personnel are needed to relive and maintain ship operations. The Operations Officers are thus assistants to the Chief, fulfilling his/her duties when required, and assuming the Operations consoles if required at any time. Operations Officers reports to the Chief Operations Officer.

The Captain's Yeoman is for Petty Officers who wish to continue as administrators. It is technically a non-Mate position. Use of this position is completely at the discretion of the Commanding Officer. File work, and sensitive message transport are but two examples of the Yeoman's possible duties. The Yeoman assists the CO in day-to-day duties that the CO would otherwise not have the time to do.

A Yeoman is responsible for all the paperwork for a department. Each Department Head has a Yeoman assigned to them.

Each vessel and base has one Warrant Officer (or Chief Warrant Officer) who holds the position of Boatswain. The Boatswain (pronounced and also written "Bosun" or "Bos'n") trains and supervises personnel (including both the ship's company or base personnel as well as passengers or vessels) in general ship and base operations, repairs, and protocols; maintains duty assignments for all Operations personnel; sets the agenda for instruction in general ship and base operations; supervises auxiliary and utility service personnel and daily ship or base maintenance; coordinates all personnel cross-trained in damage control operations and supervises damage control and emergency operations; may assume any Bridge or Operations role as required; and is qualified to temporarily act at Operations if so ordered. The Boatswain reports to the Chief Operations Officer. The Boatswain maintains the ship's log, the ship's clock, and watch and duty assignments for all Bridge personnel; may assume any Bridge (i.e. CONN) or Operations role (i.e. transporter) as required; and is qualified to temporarily act as Commanding or Executive Officer if so ordered.

The Boatswain, like many other positions, needs help at times. The Boatswain's Mate is an NCO that assists the Boatswain and helps out in the Operations Department wherever needed.

Replicator usage can allow the fabrication of nearly any critical mission part, but large-scale replication is not considered energy-efficient except in emergency situations. However, in such situations, power usage is strictly limited, so it is unwise to depend upon the availability of replicated spare parts. Thus a ship/facility must maintain a significant stock of spare parts in inventory at all times. The Quartermaster is the person responsible for the requesting part from Starfleet and maintaining the stock and inventory of all spare parts. All request for supplies are passed to the Quartermaster, who check and send the final request to the XO for final approval. A good Materials Officer is never caught short on supplies. Quartermasters ensure that all officers and crew perform their duties consistent with Starfleet directives. The Quartermaster reports to the Operations Manager.

Departmental descriptions accredited to John Cline of Obsidian Fleet by way of the USS Miranda website with permission from Pat Weber. Operations Department description courtesy this link. Logo designer unknown (need e-mail address or URL if anyone can provide it - mail me at webmaster AT ussgalaxy DOT net if you have either, thanks).