Managing the Shortage of Specialist Skilled Music Festival Professionals.

The availability of skilled and experienced professionals in the music festival sector is becoming problematic for organisers, with many seasoned staff moving on to alternative careers during the pandemic. Emerging technology and increased regulatory compliance is also causing a skills gap in workforces so what can organisers do to manage this situation.

Working in the music festival sector has always been considered one of the most rewarding careers but it does come with the downside of long unsocial hours, low pay and high levels of stress. The industry is experiencing a relatively high churn rate combined with a shrinking pool of veteran experienced professionals making it challenging for organisers to fill key positions. This scenario requires an adjustment in how organising entities manage, train and treat their staff along with greater collaboration within the industry. How can organisers manage any staff shortages whilst future proofing key positions within their organisation.

Experienced Staff Shortages.
Whilst there are some great educational institutions producing numerous highly qualified individuals trained in all aspects of event management, they unfortunately lack the real-world experience required to make music festivals come to life. Organisers often do not have the resources to train new graduates and usually have more immediate requirements to fill senior roles where experience is essential. It is not unusual for experienced professionals to opt for a less stressful and better paid alternative career after working in the festival business for about 10 years for example. This is exasperating the current situation as organising entities continue to have trouble in finding the right individuals for key positions.

Emerging Skills Gaps.
The music festival sector is constantly changing as new technology emerges to make events more automated and efficient. In addition, increased regulatory compliance demands are putting pressure on organisers too. Finding staff to fill positions with knowledge of emerging tech or an understanding of compliance requirements is becoming challenging for organisers. Newley formed positions with responsibility for sustainability, safety and crowd control, automated logistics and tech solutions like RFID implementation, cybersecurity, ticketing and festival apps is making recruitment difficult. These emerging roles require individuals with experience and technical skills which are currently scarce.

Resource Management.
In light of these staff shortages some festival organisers are working together forming alliances to share resources. It can be difficult for organising entities to justify funding a full-time role like Head of Sustainability, for example, and it may be more logical for them to work with several organising entities over a year. Contracts and arrangements may be complex but if these can be ironed out there is no reason why an experienced professional with the right skills can't work across 3 or 4 festivals over the year. This gives the individual guaranteed employment whilst providing the necessary resources to multiple organising entities. These collaboration ‘alliance’ models may become increasingly popular in the future where in-demand skills are shared.

Retention Through Training and Wellness.
Although many festival organisers focus on their immediate requirements it will be worthwhile to take a more strategic view of the skills gaps the have by considering implementing training and wellness programmes. Once missing skills have been identified organisers can partner with training providers to upskill existing staff with high intensity micro training. Providers can deliver certified training and credentials for a variety of specialist skills including:

• Crowd management using predictive analytics and flow software.
• Sustainability and circular economy logistics.
• Stage tech using robotics and automation.
• Digital legislation compliance.  

Preventing experienced staff churn will always be more cost effective than recruitment of new staff. An investment in a wellness programme for festival staff can help retain key staff and can vary from simple actions to more comprehensive programmes. The provision of quality food and accommodation during live event dates mean the organisers care about staff member’s welfare. Providing clearly defined career paths with training programmes and increased responsibility help to boost a feeling of worth and value in the organisation. Valued experienced staff should always be given the appropriate levels of time off for recovery periods post event and any bonus payments should be paid in a timely manner to demonstrate the organiser’s commitment to staff.    

For festival organisers planning their next event using a software management platform like Festival Pro gives them all the functionality they need manage every aspect of their event logistics. The guys who are responsible for this software have been in the front line of event management for many years and the features are built from that experience and are performance artists themselves. The Festival Pro platform is easy to use and has comprehensive features with specific modules for managing artists, contractors, venues/stages, vendors, volunteers, sponsors, guestlists, ticketing, site planning, cashless payments and contactless ordering.

Image by Mikhail Nilov via Pexels

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