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SOURCING PLACEMENT
BACKGROUND
To fulfil the criteria of the Personal Employability Strategy module, an industrial placement must be undertaken, preferably within the discipline one intends to pursue after their graduation.
My aspiration within the Live Events Industry are initially to become a Front of House or Monitor Engineer/RF Technician, either working in Live Music, Corporate or Theatre.
To achieve this, I set out to find companies who specialised, or provided, Audio in these areas. As I own and drive a car, geographical limitations were not a huge concern for me, and as such I searched the internet for terms such as AV Supplier Scotland, Audio Engineers Scotland, Events Companies UK etc.
As I am already a practicing Freelance Audio Engineer, I also utilised my connections within the industry with Audio and AV companies, and compiled a list of suitable prospective employers, which can be seen below.
Utilising my previous relationships with these companies and individuals, I contacted a few of those listed above in regard to opportunities for work.
The companies that were contacted are as follows;
Steven Selby - secured Liz Hobbs Group work (as below). 16-21 September 2021
Simon Bain (SLS Scotland Ltd) - secured Race For Life (26 September 2021); Innis & Gunn AGM (7 October 2021); Great South Run (15-17 October 2021); COP26 (6-11 November 2021)
Kieran Fitzpatrick (KF Sound & Lighting) - secured Alhambra Theatre Pantomime (9-27 December 2021); Movies to Musicals (13-14 March 2022).
Interestingly, I found the best way in which to contact people was not via their email addresses, but rather to call them. If they did not pick the phone up, I would then text them politely asking them to call me back at a time that suited them. I suspect this only worked due to the fact that I have a good relationship with all those who were contacted.
If I was to contact a company or individual I had little to no previous experience with, I likely would have approached this with a phone call initially. If they missed it and didn't call back, I would leave it a week and try again, thereafter I would email them.
Other work has come from companies both on and off the list above, however I will not list them all here, partially due to confidentiality and partially due to the volume of work. Highlights of most of my work can be found on my Instagram and LinkedIn.
SECURING PLACEMENT
In order to secure this placement within Liz Hobbs Group (LHG) in September 2021, I phoned Freelance Audio Engineer Steven Selby, who is one of LHG's Heads of Audio, responsible for designing, flying and operating LHG's d&b J/V/Q/J-Sub systems at their gigs, as well as mixing FOH for any supports.
Steven had previously offered me this gig and as such I gladly accepted this, fulfilling the role of House Monitors/System/RF Technician for Liz Hobbs Group. Below is a screenshot of a message from Steven confirming my booking for the weekend.
Once I had been booked on to the job, I produced a Gantt chart to help me keep track of my progress. This can be seen below
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