Electronic Media 

Published: 08-22-94 





WARNING: YOUR  ENGINEER'S VALUE IS ON THE RISE        



Byline: By Joe Fedele 



 In recent years the broadcast industry has suffered from what I

call a ``suck in your gut'' phase.

 Corporate takeovers and the recession forced many stations to

reduce staff. New technical positions were nearly impossible to

find. Vacated spots were rarely filled.

 But the pendulum eventually swings the other way.

 It seems as though every other day I hear about a new cable

channel or network being launched.

 With this and new technologies such as high-definition TV

visible on the horizon, many stations are actually looking to

increase their pool of technicians. After all, somebody's got to

install and maintain all this new equipment.

 Now let's face some obvious facts. If you're looking to fill or

add a new tech-nical position you want a top-level person and

not some second-stringer, right?

 The cost to train an entry-level technician is very high.

Sending one person to a one-week seminar on tape machines, for

instance, could run upward of $4,000 or more when you add in the

cost of travel, hotels and meals. And that's just for one course

on one type of machine.

 Top-level, well-trained, maintenance technicians are slowly

becoming a rare commodity. And just try to find a good

transmitter or RF specialist.

 Make no mistake about it, good maintenance people are hard to

find. When you recruit staff it's always cheaper and easier to

find someone locally that knows your market. You also don't have

to pay any relocation costs.

 What this all adds up to is that you're probably going to end

up raiding the maintenance shop across the street from you.

 Conversely, you may very well lose your top engineers to your

competitor. And you will likely look down the road at the next

station. In electronics this is referred to as ``the flow of

holes.''

  I am always amazed to see how much time and money is spent

recruiting and keeping talent, directors and producers happy.

But the maintenance staff never gets a second look.

  My dentist once told me that if you ignore your teeth they

will eventually go away. The same holds true for your technical

staff.

 Don't forget that your maintenance staff is directly

responsible for keeping you on the air and looking good. All the

high-priced talent, special effects and stylishly orchestrated

programing isn't worth a dime if you're not on the air.

  In the past year or so I've seen the job market for engineers

slowly pick up. It's coming to the point where good maintenance

technicians are able to bargain for much higher pay and

compensation packages than they were able to in the past decade.

 With the country slowly pulling out of the recession, consumer

confidence is increasing. Consequently, more technicians are

willing to take a chance and change companies.

 My own experience in moving from New York to Miami eight months

ago is a testimonial to this.

 Now, when you consider the fact that I myself am an engineer,

this may all sound very self-serving. And perhaps there may be

some truth to that.

 But be forewarned, the wolves are circling your henhouse. Guard

your engineers well, you may not have them for long!