FRONT OF HOUSE
THE HARDEST PART OF THE JOB | Kent Morris
Reporting to a senior , executive or worship pastor is the norm for most church tech directors . From volunteer to part-time and on through full-time staff , TD ’ s typically answer to a pastor of some stripe for their workload , assignments and performance . While understandable , this scenario results in segmented attention based on what the pastor views as vital .
A TD reporting to the senior pastor will often be pushed toward conferences , detailed sermon notes and an overall focus on the “ big picture ” while a TD under the executive pastor is given budget as the overriding concern and one answering to the worship pastor generally has the music department as the bulk of attention . Each route has differences , but they all encompass the goals of the person in charge , for better or for worse , and reflect the pastor ’ s perspective . Staff must accept this reality and understand it is inherent in the hierarchy .
However , a church tech must still meet the needs of a diverse range of ministries , from children to youth to adults plus music and preaching . As such , time management becomes critical to success in even small congregations as each segment vies for attention even as the “ boss ” pushes the tech in a particular direction . What ’ s a tech to do , then ? The best way forward is to allocate a given time per week for each ministry and stick to the schedule to the extent possible , despite demands to the contrary .
In most churches the role of tech director is illdefined and misunderstood . Some staff see it as an IT help desk , others as a glorified “ sound guy ” position while all believe their tech needs supersede those of everyone else . In the end , it is impossible to fulfill all the requests , meaning some form of culling must take place . One place to start is with the total hours worked in a given week . While there will be exceptions for conferences and special events , the TD should work similar hours as other ministry positions . Naturally , tech is a FILO ( First In , Last Out ) endeavor , but setting the workable hours into a spreadsheet and laid down as part of the job description allows leadership to see and understand what it takes to perform the role of TD .
A typical result of this exercise is the tech will fill the payable hours by Thursday of each week and work overtime for no pay unless backed by leadership to decline further hours . Techs usually start as young , unmarried zealots for whom 70 hours a week is attainable , but not sustainable as life moves forward and marriage ,
110 September 2023 Subscribe for Free ...