About the Episode
This podcast episode of “Corralling the Chaos” features a conversation with Stephen Jensen from SJP in Vegas, focusing on the importance of training, motivating, and investing in people in the event industry.
Meet Your Speakers
– Angela Alea: President & CRO of LASSO, Host of Corralling the Chaos
– Stephen Jensen: CEO – SJP
Overview
- Stephen Jensen’s background and career journey
- Importance of training and investing in people in the event industry
- Entry points and common stories in the industry
- Role of proactiveness, curiosity, and humility in the industry
Listen
Watch
Takeaways
Takeaway 1: The AV industry provides a versatile and satisfying career path for self-starters.
Stephen Jensen, a guest speaker on the podcast, shared his journey into the AV industry and encouraged others to consider it as a versatile and satisfying career path. According to Jensen, the initial entry into the industry often comes from informal channels such as helping out a friend or relative in an event.
“I was always the kid that could install your home stereo, could fix the thing and right all the different AV. I was just always a knack,” Jensen admitted. He highlighted the importance of being proactive and seeking out opportunities to expand one’s skills. He suggested volunteering at a church or theater as a way to gain more hands-on experience.
Jensen also emphasized the importance of being reliable and punctual in the industry. “You have to be reliable in this industry. You’ve got to be punctual, which is not on time. It’s early because you got to be ready to work by shift time, not parking at shift time, not walking around looking for the room,” he added.
Takeaway 2: Training and mentorship are vital to developing skills in the AV industry.
The episode emphasizes the importance of training and mentorship in the AV industry. Stephen Jensen stressed that being proactive, curious, and willing to learn from others are key qualities for those seeking to improve their skills and knowledge in the industry.
“It takes a degree of proactiveness. Right. Like, you are your own brand as an individual, even though you’re coming in representing other companies,” he said. “If you are genuinely curious, you’re going to find someone. They’ll take you.”
Jensen also shared how his company nurtures a culture of continuous learning and knowledge sharing. “We create a culture where we pass notes. Just as importantly, to know what not to do than to know what to do. We’ve made a community where we pass these notes, where we say what worked, what didn’t,” he explained.
Takeaway 3: The AV industry offers the opportunity to create meaningful, tangible experiences.
The episode underscored the unique appeal of the AV industry in providing the opportunity to create meaningful, tangible experiences. According to Jensen, the sense of accomplishment from setting up an event and seeing the final output is one of the most satisfying aspects of the job.
“That’s what’s so satisfying about it, right, with live events is that you get to physically feel accomplished in a short amount of time. You get to see, like, a city come up in, like, two days, you know, or this grand production,” he said.
Despite the challenges and hard work involved, Jensen emphasized the joy and satisfaction derived from seeing the tangible results of one’s efforts. He said, “You walk in, it’s a blank slate. And then, you know, by the time it’s done being set up, it looks completely different, and it’s a tangible piece of satisfaction to see what you didn’t build.”
Insights surfaced
– The event industry needs to invest more in training and motivating people.
– Proactiveness, curiosity, and humility are key qualities for success in the industry.
– The industry has a shortage of teachers and mentors, and more companies need to step up to fill this gap.
– Volunteering at churches, theaters, and school districts can provide valuable experience for those new to the industry.
– The industry has a technical skill gap, particularly in operating breakout rooms.
– Stephen’s company, SJP in Vegas, was born out of a desire to create solutions and build a better team in the industry.
