AV Team Credibility Issue

[Esoteric]

Maybe it is my professional background, but I believe there is no hope for the C team. Luckily one of the churches I work with is blessed with over abundance of volunteers. So those people who just can't get it right, but show up on time, etc we find a place for as gofers or runners or something. For example we have a kid that just didn't get it on cameras, so now he is the guy that goes around and taps mics for line check.

The key is to find them a place somewhere.

As far as getting in place on time and having your equipment ready to go there is NO excuse for that. We demand excellence from our team and they seem to respond. If you accept anything else they will always go to the lower level.

Mike

[Brent Bauman]

I do remember working as a camera operator on a sporting event once... may have been a football game... in the middle of it... during a lull in the action the director asked one of the (professional) camera operators... "Hey Jeff... do you drive trucks for a living?"

I guess the point is... not everyone is going to be a top performer... even in the pro's.

My struggle has always been to try to find a way to encourage growth... and at the same time finding alternative positions for the 'C' team guys. Preferably in a spot where they can do the least harm. Sometimes that has taken the form of training them for other production jobs... sometimes it's encouraging them to join a ministry that needs their particular skills (truck driving ministry??)

[frank]

Originally Posted by on the down-low

...one guy consistently sits in my production room and talks with me up until 10 minutes 'til service which is when I require everyone to be on headset. I request that my crew arrives 30-45 minutes before service so they can adjust their tripod to the settings they're most comfortable with and just get prepared in general.

He needs to be booted (nicely) out of the office 30-45 before the start of service to go do the job he's volunteered to do, and to be treated as everyone else is treated. If he grumbles, tell him to arrive earlier if he wants to chat (and if you can accommodate him).

Maybe have a "school for video newbies" and ask him to attend, saying to him that repetitively making the same errors tells you that the basics aren't part of his video-thinking and need to be if he's to continue.

Originally Posted by on the down-low

...The rest, though, seem well intentioned but just don't get it. I'm not sure how to get through to them.

Whether paid staff or volunteers, I think that's something we all struggle with when we (desparately?) need them to do the ministry we believe is our goal. If it's an issue of getting enough volunteers is part of the struggle, maybe the ministry is just extended a bit past the church's abilities to support it, and it could be time to pull back a bit. That's what we do at times; there's an ebb and flow of AV "stuff" we can do in any one particular weekend.

Keep the faith and be prayerful!

[Josh Scott]

Originally Posted by on the down-low

Sorry for the long post. I just wonder... are these people hopeless? Even if you forget the "A team" who picked up on everything in a flash, there's still the "B team" that while not being naturals, have worked hard and are learning and improving. Is there hope for the "c team?"

Sometimes it helps to have someone else tell them to. they may need to be shown a different way to do things. Both your problems of not being smooth and not leading someone my just be the way you do things doesn't work for them. I don't know your set up but I know for our guys I had a guy from town the owns a production house come in and work with our team, he showed two different ways to positions themselves to be smooth. Some do it one way other the other. Check the tripod settings and see if they would work for you maybe they don't remember how the tripod works and they are afraid to ask.

Just my .02 cents but look in to having someone come and lead a trainning session for you whole team a refresher course. Tape a couple of Sundays and show them what is wrong with different shots. Everyone learns differently just being told something doesn't always help them. Don't give up and be praying for your team. I think both your examples are good for you team. The one that hangs out with you until time to get on comm is probably good for the social aspect of your team which is important in making sure your team doesn't feel like button pushers. The person you have the doesn't seem interested my just be a humble person and doesn't want to look like he is full of himself. It takes time to learn how to follow a person. You almost have to learn how to predict the movements people are going to make. I am sure if you think back when you started you had the same problems. You also probably got a little more camera time to improve. To be on once every two or three weeks isn't that much. (assuming that is your set up.)

[RonK]

Wow, so many great posts and great advice...
One thing that keeps newbies on track in the professional realm is the fear of unemployment (read - fear is a great motivator). A young technician setting out on a career path tends to be more focused, and those that aren't don't last long. While this concept is harder to enforce in the volunteer world, perhaps recruiting and training "backup" technicians would instill the sense in the crew that anyone is replaceable.

One college professor taught us the following method for crew motivation (his example was a union Broadway crew but the same can apply to volunteers): Go to Technician A and say something like "Hey, you're doing a great job...but, just between you and me I'm a little concerned with Technician B..do you think you could work with him, maybe share some of your skills? But please don't say I asked you, I don't want to embarrass him" Then go to Technician B and repeat the same thing regarding Technician A. May seem a little underhanded, but it works like a charm. Workers respond better to their peers than to management. I've used this technique with professional and volunteer crews...sometimes I've even witnessed them staying late after work, rehearsing their cues without being asked.

As for cue sheets, whether you have a large enough staff to have a stage manager calling them, or if each operator reads his or her own, they can not be too remedial. Especially for newer technicians, every single move or action should be cued. I.e. instead of the cue sheet simply reading:
Preservice music
Solo
Welcome


It might read:
-Preservice:
-Mute Solo Mic
-Mute Pastors wireless
-Start preservice CD
-Top of service
-fade CD out
-stop CD
-Mute CD channel
-Unmute Solo mic
etc...in other words every little detail

Even in Broadway or theater shows that have rep'd more than 100 performances of the same show, a stage manager calls every single cue every performance.

Sorry for the long post....

[WillowStang]

Have you considered having someone "call" the cues? Maybe yourself? It may seem initially that you're micromanaging everything, but actually, it's really effective and a professional way to do things. I know from experience calling cues, that some audio guys don't need prompting for every cue (not during a song, but each transition- worship to speaking, speaking to video, etc.), but some most definitely do! I'm not sure how your AV booth is set up, but our Tech director (service director, cue caller, whatever you want to call them) sits next to the audio person, and then talks to everyone else on clearcom. Each cue that comes up, the TD gives at least a standby cue, and then a "GO" cue. Again, it may seem like overkill, but it all but eliminates problems with people spacing out and missing something like described above. Sure Mistakes are going to happen, but there are definitely ways to avoid them, and each time a mistake happens, the TD should sit down with the 'offender' show them grace, and figure out a way to not let it happen again- like, "could I give you a cue to help make that happen?" or "can I lend some additional training before you serve next time?"

[WillowStang]

Originally Posted by Gary-Y

I find that practice and rehearsal (not the same thing) goes a long way in making things run smoothly. If it is important, it's worth practicing (auditioning the dvd etc. before rehearsal) and rehearsing (actually going thru the motions/ service before the actual service.) Basically we get out what we put in.... ...and leave some breathing time for prayer before the service to get the entire team on the same page with the same heart.

Well Said Gary!

[Esoteric]

Our production manager functions as a stage manager and calls all the cues in our main service. Not quite to the level of "mute ministers mic", etc.

Mike

[Stacey]

I've been the full-time the media ministry director at my church for just one year now. I concur with everyone above. John Maxwell, the guru of church leadership, states in
one of his books, "Everything begins and ends with leadership. So, ultimately when the audio/video are great, we get praised as a team. But when there is a problem, "I" get the blame. Note I say...I. I have team members who have stepped it up and cut down on their mistakes! But the human factor always comes into play. I would consider using some type of service check list/assessment to use to have a tangible record of what we do well and not so well. It wouldn't hurt. Would anyone be willing to share who should be included? I would then customized/tailor is for our service needs.

You can send to: Thanks to all for your help. God's continued blessings and success to your Media service for the Kingdom! :

[buggyboy]

This thread has been a fascinating read.

I hesitate to offer advice to anyone, but I had a thought.

Regarding the new sound supervisor whose job came with "seasoned" volunteer that don't want to improve... why not take a week and gut the system? If you can in any way afford to tear the whole thing down (for any decent reason...decorating, a few pieces of new gear, etc) and have all the volunteers help with the reassembly, they should take a great deal of ownership in the "new" system that "they built themselves".

Go to great lengths to find and fix any problems (even if they don't exist... e.g. your techs make feedback, create a "problem" with feedback in the "new" system and have the techs on hand when troubleshooting.) this gives a great opportunity to teach them the basics about feedback (or any other problem).

Explain that since the system has been altered, everybody has to be one their toes for awhile...then use that period to ingrain better habits.

Good luck to everyone acing volunteer issues.

[tedanderson]

I would think that normal maintenance and housekeeping would be reason enough for dismantling the system.

Being that we are regularly making last minute changes and we are always doing temporary hookups, every few months we have to pull the entire system out so that we can dust, vacuum, and get rid of any unneeded or tangled cables.

But as a supplemental training method, sometimes I will "create a problem" where I will disconnect a single cable or turn a knob that completely incapacitates the system to challenge the trainees to diagnose the issue.