I recently worked for one of the most amazing audio manufacturers on earth. Fantastic people. Fantastic products. Just, well… fantastic. (I learned a lot… except how to use a thesaurus.)
Anyway, while working for this company, I discovered a weird client tick that seems to be endemic to our world when technology is involved. People will absolutely shell out huge amounts of money for the latest and best technology, while simultaneously beating up the humans they need to deploy it for every last nickel.
Not just for their day rate, but for all of the additional stuff that keeps them sane and focused on the job at hand too. Things like benefits, per diem, parking, computers… and possibly felt tapestries and Botswanan tiger paste… but the most disturbing ancillary cost that gets challenged is training.
Listen, I get it.
It’s 2017 and information is wildly available on the internet, and yes, people should avail themselves of all the data they can. But I’m here to tell you that nothing, nothing beats in-person education between a skilled trainer and a receptive audience.
I’m not saying that I’m the best educator (I am), but I’ve witnessed the death of audio black magic and ingrained causality live… in old guys (I’m an old guy), with just the judicious use of good information, solid interpersonal skills, and pertinent (and relatable) similes.
Most reputable manufacturers understand the need for training (many even mandate it), and with good reason. If their products are deployed incorrectly, it’s typically not the humans that get blamed, but the gear that is anointed “the result of yesterday’s lunch, deposited in porcelain.” So it’s in their best interest to provide the end users the most information possible.
Side note, just because: Manufacturers typically have a very well thought out, incrementally progressive framework for their seminars. One of the things that isn’t regimented, and that you can’t anticipate, are what I call the “upstream questions.”
For example, if I’m working for a loudspeaker manufacturer, most of the info I’m concentrating on relaying to you is from the electronic amplified control input through the final acoustic output.
What happens before that is, technically, another seminar in another room. But it’s not someone else’s dealio completely… and the good ones realize this.
As an educator, taking a bunny trail to confirm or deny a question that concerns a part of the system outside my purvey is not just being helpful, it’s a path to further optimize my product (and make me seem cooler than I think that you think that I am).
But back to why training is good, owners are evil, and sound people are right. (Don’t get cocky… those last two points wind up being reversed as many times as they are correct)
Spending a boatload of cash on production equipment and then practicing “baptism by fire” with your people is like buying a Formula One team and then getting your plumber to prep it… He’s an excellent plumber, and he’ll continue to be an excellent plumber right up to the moment he puts the car into a wall at 200 mph.
When you call technical support at Renault to discuss the failure of their product, (please, Please, PLEASE let me be on that call to France), they may have some pointed questions.
O.K., let’s recap:
Step 1: Buy super-pricy production gear.
Step 2: Pay for pre-trained, qualified talent to deploy and care for your shiny new toys. Pay for training for them even when they tell you they know everything.
Step 2.5: If you can’t pay for pre-trained, qualified talent, grow your own. Pay for training for them even when they tell you they know everything. Treat them so well, they don’t take your investment training elsewhere.
Step 3: Do such a great job that people say: “Man those people do a great job; I would love to work for them.”
Repeat.