So how are you training your Tech Team?
I was blessed last year with Andi Waldrop. She’s come on board and taken over the administration of the Tech Team @ Chorus Church. She’s been doing a great job and really lightened my load. The other day we were discussing how to best train our volunteers.
Here are some of the ideas we came up with…
“On the job training”
Our most common method is to schedule an extra person for each area and do some “on the job training”. This has been fairly successful, however I’ve noticed that once people get a basic knowledge of their area, they no longer see a need to be there when there are two of them. It’s very difficult to do any advanced training.
“Professional Help”
I’ve been playing with the idea of hiring a professional to come in and do some training. The only issue I’m having is that we don’t own our own facility. That poses a few issues. We setup every week so we’re crunched for time (we pay by the hour). So we’re thinking of doing the training during Spring Break when we don’t have to tear down (the school lets us leave it up when the kids aren’t there).
“Online Training”
I’m constantly looking for good articles on sound and lighting. When I find one I usually send them to the tech team. This helps a little, but there’s nothing like playing with the gear to get a real feel for it.
So I’m curious…
What does your tech team look like?
How do you go about training them?
ericbeeman.com 
I built a website – http://www.howaudio.com
We pretty much do what you do even though we are in our own building. The one thing we have found to work well for most new members of our tech crew is when we are having a special event or a special emphasis Sunday, we allow the newby to take “ownership” of a small part of the program. Maybe for one particular band set or a scene in a drama, they are the primary on the soundboard or light board. This way they get familiar with the”intensity” of the moment without being overwhelmed with a whole service or program.
Plus as a side benefit we get to evaluate how they think on their feet and it becomes a teaching tool for the next rehearsal time. We have even gone as far as setting up a video camera focused on the soundboard to allow us to go back and study and fine tune their timing and technique.
I like your website by the way.
Awwww…. You made me blush. Thanks for your kind words. I’m happy to know that I have lightened your load a bit. I appreciate your leadership and all the help that you have provided for me, as well as the confidence you seem to have in my abilities. : )