Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Floor staff Training

This is topic Floor staff Training in forum Ground Level at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

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Posted by Andy Linde (Member # 5664) on 08-02-2010, 09:06 AM:

I've been appointed the staff trainer of a 9 screen independent cinema in New Zealand. Currently the theatre has no training programme or paperwork at all so it's my job to tailor a training programme to suit our theatres needs.

Does anyone out there have any existing training paperwork; whether its manuals, checklists, models, industry standards, or techniques that I could have a look over?

I'd dedicated to providing an excellent level of training to my staff and would appreciate any help you could offer, or any advice you could give.

Thanks all,
Andy.

Posted by Caleb Johnstone-Cowan (Member # 3710) on 08-04-2010, 09:30 PM:

I can give you some advice but not any paperwork, it's all company stuff. I trained a lot of people at my old work, which went pretty well, don't do it currently as we haven't really employed that many people this year. I think the weaker economy has made people less willing to look for new jobs or leave theirs in the hope they'll get a new one easily.

In my experience training is normally divided in to a long 'induction' where the majority of the paperwork and essential training e.g evacuation and food safety is done, then a couple more shorter sessions on other areas.

I find it's best to keep training in short bursts of amaximum three hours a time, in groups of maybe 3-6, then let the new staff members finish a 6-8 hour shift on that area to get used to what they just learned, with the help of a trusted staff member 'buddied up' to them. I consider box office the easiest area to learn so if you have one do that last. A poorly trained staff member on the concession stand is the one that will cause you the most grief so I would concentrate on that area when training, especially if you can/do sell tickets from the stand.

If you have the money I would get new staff to shadow a Projectionist for a shift so they can get an understanding of the technical side of things, it would make life easier when things go wrong and all I hear on the radio is 'screen is broken' or second hand info from a guest, gives neither myself or the Projectionist any indication of the severity of the fault.

Posted by Chad Souder (Member # 343) on 08-05-2010, 02:46 PM:

Unfortunately, here in the USA, most theatre chains' training focuses on health, safety and etiquette issues rather than how to actually do your job well. Also, any of us that are part of a larger chain, which is most of us, wouldn't be able to share such material.

My only suggestion would be to enter a theatre as a customer and absorb every aspect of operation. Then, ask yourself what you would have liked to see or how you would have liked to be interacted with throughout each of those points of contact. Base your manual off that, constantly reminding yourself what you would want as a customer, and you'll be well on your way.

Posted by Caleb Johnstone-Cowan (Member # 3710) on 08-05-2010, 11:05 PM:

I think getting the staff to do their jobs well is not just about training, which is rightly focused on the essentials. If you have a culture where people are encouraged to take responsibility for their area of the business regardless of what level they are at, and to look out for and consider their colleagues not just on their shift but those coming in later on in the day or tomorrow, you will get more out of them. I defer to the more experienced people on here when it comes to achieving that though.

Posted by Aaron Mehocic (Member # 15) on 08-06-2010, 03:01 PM:

Absolutely. Communication between the staff members is key when developing a staff and even more important among managers. I also believe in fostering an environment where the employee is expected to think for his or herself before resorting to calling for help. I personally have noticed a drop in problem solving skills since the rise of cell phones. Many kids who have been trained in the booth (or the floor, for that matter) want to suddenly make a call instead of figure out the problem and attempt to solve it. Fire anyone who cancels a show due to a breakdown then does nothing but take pictures of said breakdown with his cell phone!

Permit the employee to develop their own style within a set range created by you. For example, when training you will obviously show somebody how to do something based on steps 1, 2, 3 and 4. However, if the employee accomplishes the task correctly, but using steps 1, 3, 2, 4 then let him or her go. One of the worst trainers I ever worked with was adamant things had to be his way, every way, every time. That was too bad because he was actually a very nice guy when not showing somebody how to do something.

Lastly, know your trainee and talk to him or her. Find out what sports they like, if they are married or have kids, or what they might be studying in school. As a high ranking American politician once said, "Its a lot easier to catch flies with honey than it is bear dung". If the employee sees you dive in and do the job correctly, they will want to do it too. Never ask someone you are training to do something that you would never do. Show by example and lead by example. You do that and you will build one hell of a staff . . . guaranteed.

Good luck.

Posted by Manny Montes (Member # 5639) on 08-07-2010, 04:30 AM:

start with a good base, hiring is like cooking: If you start out with crappy ingredients no matter what you do, its still going to be a crappy meal

Posted by Jeff Logan (Member # 1163) on 09-01-2010, 01:17 PM:

Your best bet is to buy a copy of the NATO staff training DVD's. In them, you get the best ideas from all the big chains because they contributed their materials, tapes, books and ideas. About 10 years ago when they were made, several of the big chains needed to update their own training tapes but instead contributed their materials to the NATO effort. The NATO tapes really compile best industry practices and are still current. You can order them online at www.natoonline.org There is a discount for NATO members. They are done in a lighthearted style that will keep the attention of teen staffers. Each one is about 10 min. long. They cover all floor positions, safety, ratings enforcement, sexual harassment, and film projection.

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 09-01-2010, 06:44 PM:

Do they have a loan-out program on those videos for exhibitors that don't have hundreds of screens? Last time I checked, they were prohibitively expensive to buy. This is something that should really be on YouTube or somewhere like that.

Posted by Manny Montes (Member # 5639) on 09-02-2010, 01:32 AM:

Its only $175 for the whole set of DVDs and I think thats before the member discount (if you're a member). It really depends on how much you think your time is worth, you'd be putting in a lot of hours, when it comes down to it I think that its more worth me spending $175 one time then putting in tons of time into a program, plus this way I don't miss anything that could come back to bite me one day

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 09-02-2010, 04:39 PM:

That's way cheaper than it used to be...when these first came out they were something like $150 apiece for 8 or 9 VHS tapes.

Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 09-05-2010, 09:04 AM:

Some of these are on Youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/user/pccTraining

Though they probably won't be there for much longer once someone from NATO sees this.

Posted by John Wilson (Member # 269) on 09-05-2010, 06:46 PM:

So download them now. [Razz]