Tech Team Laziness?
I recently got a note from a Tech Director that went something like this:
Certain members of the church are concerned that Tech Team is not as involved in the service as the rest of the congregation. They are worried that the team doesn’t sing along with the songs, stand when everyone else does or take notes during the message. I think these are important but want to make sure that my team is focused on running sound and lights. What should I do?
While these are legitimate concerns, let me address something. The tech team can’t be as involved in the service as someone who simply sits in the service without responsibilities. They have a vital role to play and must be focused on what is happening next so the congregation can hear the music and message of the service. Even during the message they may need to advance sermon slides, run cameras, ect. In some ways they are giving up the privilege of sitting and enjoying the service so that the congregation can do so.
Here are four observations.
The tech team should try to participate in the service as long as it does not distract them from the task at hand. During the song service I try to sing a verse or two if I can, but break off early to re-focus on what’s next. Not everyone can do this. Some people need more focus than others to make sure everything is running properly. Also the job that you are doing may dictate the extent to which you can participate.
Concerning sitting down, this often depends on the height of your equipment. In many cases, you need to be seated to reach controls properly. It’s not disrespectful or lazy, it’s pragmatic. Control booths are often built for the seated user. I find that hunching over a mixer or lighting board for 20-30 minutes hurts my back. If the desktop is elevated then the team can stand up, but make sure they have tall, comfortable chairs to sit on for the rest of the service.
The tech team needs to be in service too. I’ve built a large enough tech team that the same people are not in the booth every week. We rotate the schedule. We have one experienced tech who is “Lead” for the week. They make sure sound check goes well and assist in training newer techs. We try to balance things out so everyone gets booth time and congregational time. This helps alleviate objections like “Tim is always in the sound booth.”
I have limited smart phone use in the tech area. While we are “disconnected” from the service in some ways, that doesn’t mean we can be playing with our devices. I’ve been places where techs missed cues because they were looking at their phone. I have supplied several printed Bibles to use instead of a Bible app. It’s just too easy to move from Bible app to messages to Facebook. If you need to communicate with the Tech Team, texting can be an excellent tool but use it wisely.