Level 2: Setup Lead

As the Setup Lead, the whole room is yours from the moment the car arrives to the moment it’s loaded again. You know every area, not just the one you were given, and you decide the order things happen in so the crew isn’t waiting on each other.

You also manage the helpers. There are a lot to do and it’s not feasible to do it all alone. You should be comfortable handing out tasks and checking that the room is actually ready. You are also responsible for getting the team to remember to pack down properly.

Trusted with

Technical

Telling every cable we own apart, and finding the right one first time
Knowing what’s in Hope Terminal and every bag, and noticing when something isn’t there
Setting up every area yourself, not just your usual one
Sequencing the setup so the crew isn’t blocked or standing around
Handing out areas to the crew and knowing who has what
Checking the whole room works, not just that everything is plugged in
Getting projection up well enough for the visual team to take over
Setting up the instruments the musicians expect to find waiting for them
Setting up the IEM packs, charged and working, for whoever is using them
Adapting the layout when the room is set up differently
Running the pack down and confirming the equipment is complete before the car goes
Keeping on top of consumables: batteries, spare cables, tape

Communication

Running your own conversations with worship, visual and audio about what they need
Telling the crew clearly who is doing what
Chasing what you need from the front rather than waiting to be told
Saying no to a last-minute request that isn’t safe or possible, and offering what is
Telling the lead when something keeps going wrong or keeps going missing
Being the calm voice for a newer volunteer beside you

Recovery

Diagnosing the common faults: no power, no sound from one side, a dead cable
Working out whether it’s the cable, the socket or the unit itself before swapping things at random
Having a workable plan B when an item has failed
Staying calm when the room isn’t ready and the team is arriving
Knowing what can be dropped so the service still happens

Heart

Leaving the equipment better than you found it
Owning your mistakes openly
Setting the tone for the Setup Crew watching you
Making sure the crew who helped you get thanked

Modules

M2.1 Owning the room

Running a full setup on your own: what order to do things in, what can happen in parallel, and how long each part actually takes. Ends with you setting up a Sunday with nobody prompting you.

M2.2 Running the crew

Handing areas out rather than doing everything yourself: matching the area to the person, saying it clearly, and checking without hovering.

M2.3 Cables, cables, cables

Telling every cable we own apart and knowing what each one is for: XLR, power, jack. Reading the labels, knowing which end goes where, and being the person who can find the right cable in the bag without trying three.

Everything else in the room is only as good as the cable feeding it, and a cable is what will fail on you. So this comes first.

M2.4 Knowing the inventory

What we own, where it lives, and how many of each thing there should be. So a missing cable is something you notice on Saturday, not on Sunday morning.

M2.5 Diagnosing and fixing

Working out what’s actually wrong instead of swapping parts at random. Signal path thinking: is it the unit itself, the cable, the socket or the mixer? Nine times out of ten it’s the cable.

M2.6 Projection

Getting the picture up: the projector, where it sits, the cable run to it, and the clicker. The visual team runs what’s on screen. You make sure they arrive to a working picture.

M2.7 Instruments

What each musician needs waiting for them: guitar, keyboard and cajon. Stands, cables, power, batteries, and where each one lives in the bags.

M2.8 IEM

Setting up in-ear monitors for whoever is using them: the transmitter, the packs, batteries, and getting each musician the mix they asked for. Audio owns what’s in the mix. You own the equipment working and the packs being charged.

M2.9 Working with the other teams

Serving audio, visual and the musicians rather than handing them a room and walking away. Agreeing what they need, telling them what’s changed, and sorting problems out together.

M2.10 Adapting the setup

When the room is laid out differently, when we’re in another venue, or when a piece of equipment isn’t available. Making a working plan on the day instead of forcing the usual one.

M2.11 Owning the pack down

Running the end of the day: keeping the crew there until it’s done, checking every bag and case, and confirming the count before the car leaves.

M2.12 Caring for the equipment between Sundays

Batteries charged, damaged cables taken out of circulation rather than put back, and what needs reporting to the lead.