The Istead Way- 10 Golden Rules of an Istead Technician
We have this thing. It’s the thing that keeps our clients returning year on year. It’s the thing that helps our events run smooth technically.
That thing is The Istead Way. It’s the way we conduct ourselves throughout everything we do. From the way we behave, to the way we think.
Here are our 10 golden rules that our AV technicians do on every event as part of The Istead Way.
1. Make Things Simple
When speaking to presenters at an event, there is no point in us overcomplicating the technical information we give them. We’ve heard lots of freelancers blather technical jargon at presenters which can only be confusing to them and ultimately adds to their already nerve-racking day. Our technicians like to put presenters at ease by only giving them the information they need to hear. The Istead way is as simple as talk into the microphone and we’ll do the rest.
2. Change the Batteries
We always make sure that our radio microphones have brand new batteries in them before the start of any event. The cost of our sound failing is more expensive to us than cost of replacing batteries. For the sake of the price and changing old batteries for new ones, getting the sound right is priceless.
3. Be Alert
Even with an agenda in front of us, the unplanned can happen and as an AV crew we have to be responsive to this. Operating Q&A sessions is where this really comes into play. They can often be quite difficult, with lots of microphones in use around the conference room at one time. But it’s our responsibility to be alert and mindful of who might speak next, which leads us on to our next rule.
4. Fade the Faders
We work in a conference environment yet we’ve seen many sound technicians live in a rock and roll/theatre mind-set. Rather than using the faders, they will turn the sound on and off which can cause a number of issues when there is more than one microphone in use. It’s crucial in our world to be ready for the unexpected. Because of this, we always have our faders on halfway and adjust them where necessary.
5. Stay Calm
Events are very stressful places but when everyone around you is feeling the strain, it’s pointless us getting stressed as well. It might feel quite hectic behind the scenes for us but we’ll never show it. Events are very much like live TV, whatever is going to happen will happen whether we worry or not. We have to be ready to control whatever situation arises.
6. Be Proactive
Event managers may have experienced AV crews that will sit at the back of a conference room after their set up, waiting for the event to commence with the event schedule in front of them. We always make a point of going to see the event manager in search of missing presenters and presentations. Presuming a presenter has no slides because they have not come to see us before they appear on stage, could be detrimental to the event. By actively seeking problems before they happen helps us to ensure the event will run as smoothly as possible.
7. Leave the Room in the State at Which It Was Found
You’d be surprised with the amount of times we’ve arrived at a venue to set up and had to clear rubbish from the conference room before we can start working. An AV crew should make sure the room is clean and tidy before they leave, it’s not up to the venue’s staff to do this. After a de-rig, our technicians will clear all of our rubbish and throw it away as well as picking up the little bits of tape off the floor we use for positioning our equipment.
8. Have a Backup
When we run slides from our main show laptop, we will always have a backup laptop next to it that has a complete copy of the presenter’s PowerPoint slides. We follow the slides as they are happening on the main machine and if a problem arises, it’s easy for us to switch to the backup laptop seamlessly to solve the problem without the audience even knowing.
9. Gaffa the Plug in
This may sound silly but we have had people ask us if they can charge their phones in the plug sockets we have our equipment connected to. If someone was to pull out one of our plugs or accidentally kick one out, our world would suddenly become very dark and silent. Taping in all plugs prevents the likelihood of this happening.
10. Preparation is Key
Before any event, our technicians will plan the lighting rigs and speaker placement in advance before the actual set up of the event. This helps to safeguard the smoothness of the set-up and stops any time being wasted.
These 10 golden rules have become second nature to our technicians. We like to work a certain way and by following these good habits, permits us to deliver event success time and time again.
