SOP enforcement
Is a captain supposed to strictly enforce SOP ?
Nothing used to annoy me more as an FO than strict domineering captains enforcing their own techniques (or their own interpretation of the SOPs) upon me, especially over small petty things perhaps open to interpretation and technique.
I always tried my best to follow SOP.
Now as Captain, I don't want to be such a captain myself however occasionally I get annoyed at some of the non-standard things the FO's do and I am wondering should I stand up and enforce SOP upon them ? I am not talking about serious breaches which have a serious impact on the safety and efficiency of the operation, but just little things which might be perhaps non-standard but I do find a little bit annoying. (eg. avoid heads down/checklists on the apron area, fly at flight plan cost index, headsets on during climb... etc.).
I probably come across as a hypocrite, but being a captain (with a lot of responsibility now) I try to run the show properly which is sometimes difficult if the other person does not do their job properly. I am well aware that if anything goes wrong, its always my fault.
I don't want to come across as a difficult and demanding captain however at the same time I would like the job done properly.