Recently, Graham Henstock has joined the Technical Direction Company (TDC) in Sydney, Australia in the capacity of training consultant. He previously held a decade-long role as the leader of the esteemed Technical Theatre and Stage Management course at Australia’s National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA).
Now, collaborating closely with Drew Ferors, TDC’s Head of Technical Services and Training, Henstock primary responsibility involves the development, evaluation, and bolstering of TDC’s internal training initiatives.
It's worth noting that TDC has a rich tradition of investing in tailored training programs for its personnel. Given the intricacies of the company’s operations and its involvement across various local industries including live events, film, television, concerts, theatre, and virtual production, the significance of a well-trained and informed workforce cannot be overstated. LIVE Design hears more about training from Graham Henstock:
Can you share your experience in designing and implementing training programs specifically for rising events, technical, creative, or arts professionals in Australia?
GH: I have been privileged with a diverse and fulfilling career across both live production and education. Whilst many of the roles I have held provided opportunities for me to develop and deliver formal and in-formal training programs, the most relevant experience was my time working for Australia’s National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA).
NIDA is Australia’s preeminent theatre school. It is regularly ranked as one of the top 10 acting schools in the world. NIDA also runs highly successful courses across many of the disciplines involved in theatre, film, and event creation and production. From 2013 through 2023, I led NIDA’s 3-year Technical Theatre and Stage Management course, an exciting practice-focused training ground for emerging technical and creative practitioners.
As part of that role, I oversaw and was actively involved in the continual development, refinement, and delivery of an educational program that produced highly skilled, employable, and successful artists and technicians.
What inspires you?
GH: I am frequently amazed and inspired by the creativity, enthusiasm, and adaptability of collaborators, colleagues, and students. My personal passion for live production is largely derived from the incredible creations, challenges, and people we encounter in this industry.
On an educational front, I get inspired by the eagerness of students to engage with new experiences. The magical breakthrough moments, when a learner challenges themselves and realises their new knowledge and ability, make teaching incredibly rewarding.
I also find companies and employers who value education inspiring. In an industry that is often defined by short-term contracts and a transient workforce, it takes courage and foresight to actively invest in training employees. The technical and artistic complexity of live production is always evolving and that requires companies who understand the value in maintaining a highly knowledgeable and skilled industry. TDC’s commitment to investing in its workers and in the industry more generally was a major factor in my decision to join them as a training consultant.
How do you stay updated with the latest trends and developments to ensure your training programs remain relevant?
GH: The short answer is through curiosity and an open mind.
The longer answer is that you need to expose yourself to the greatest variety of work possible and be careful to not restrict yourself to a “there is only one right way” style of thinking.
Personally, whilst I read industry press and monitor a wide range of relevant online communities and forums, I find that the most value comes from actively seeing and talking about the work that is being created in the industry. I pay particular attention to the two extremes. At one end, I look for what the really big production companies are doing, as they often have the money and time to innovate, develop, and refine new technologies. At the other end, I am very curious to see how independent artists are experimenting with technology. It’s in the independent space that I regularly stumble across technology hackers who, often due to their lack of resources, find incredibly innovative ways to utilise and adapt existing tools.
Identifying the trends and innovations at both ends of the spectrum can allow you to get a good sense of where the broader industry may go next. That, in turn, provides insight into the specific skills and knowledge that will be required to navigate coming changes.
Can you provide an example of a successful training initiative, you have or are leading?
GH: Whilst there is a variety of initiatives I could mention, one of the most important was an increased focus on teaching “soft skills” at NIDA. In my opinion, many companies and institutions adopt an overly narrow view of the skills that their students and workers need to be taught. I’ve worked with many practitioners who are incredibly knowledgeable in their specific fields but whose success was impeded by a lack of effective interpersonal skills. I believe that the best practitioners marry their deep technical knowledge with excellent communication and leadership skills.
During my 10 years at NIDA, my team and I greatly expanded the training and contextualisation of communication, conflict-resolution, empathy, negotiation, and leadership techniques. The positive effect this training had was immediately evident. It both increased student employability and, more importantly, led to happier, healthier, and more productive working environments.
I am very pleased that TDC also sees the value in this type of training and am looking forward to developing similar initiatives with them.
How do you approach understanding the unique needs and challenges of individuals when developing training strategies?
GH: Whilst there are many academic theories and frameworks associated with “learning styles”, the critical point is that different people learn in different ways. Some people are visual learners, whereas others are auditory. Some people can immediately comprehend how to use a piece of equipment after reading an instruction manual, whereas others won’t be able to use the equipment until they are physically shown how and have “hands on” experience.
There is nothing inherently right or better about a particular learning style, so the best training programs provide opportunities for the full range. This means delivering training content through a concurrent mix of written material, videos, demonstrations, and practical exercises. From the outside, this can look a little like repetition, but is really about maximising the avenues for learning and the overall efficacy of the training.
In what ways do you incorporate practical, hands-on learning experiences into your training programs?
GH: Even though we are using an online learning management system at TDC, all our in-house training will incorporate practical exercises. This blended-learning approach allows students to initially engage with training materials at their own pace, but then consolidate their learning with hands-on practical experience and demonstrations.
Beyond that, we are in the fortunate position of having equipment and spaces that employees can use for testing and experimentation. That, combined with TDC’s ongoing commitment to training and a keenness for staff members to have opportunities to explore and play with equipment, provides plenty of openings for staff members to extend their skills and knowledge.
Can you share your approach to addressing challenges such as creative or technical blocks, or performance anxiety, that may rise during training?
GH: The first step is reassuring learners that they are not expected to be perfect. I encourage learning spaces where students know that, whilst they have a responsibility to engage with the training, there is an understanding that different students learn at different paces, in different ways, and may need to attempt tasks multiple times before feeling comfortable with them. In my experience, removing the pressure of perfection greatly helps to reduce anxiety and related challenges.
It is also important for learners to know that their value, both personally and professionally, isn’t solely tied to their aptitude for a particular training module. It is highly unlikely that someone will be naturally adept at everything. As such, struggling with a particular topic, task, or way of thinking doesn’t inherently reflect more broadly on the learner’s worth. Instead, it just means that their natural skills may lie elsewhere.
Can you discuss a time when you had to adapt your training methods to accommodate different learning styles?
GH: As already mentioned, I try to embed an accommodation of different learning styles into all the training materials I produce. That having been said, the biggest challenge I have experienced was trying to teach practical technical skills during the initial months of the COVID pandemic.
NIDA, like most of the world, heavily pivoted to online learning when responding to the safety lockdowns imposed by governments. That required a dramatic (and rapid) rethink of my teaching style and learning materials.
This experience really helped me to appreciate the potential and power of pre-visualisation tools. They more than proved their worth when we couldn’t physically access venues.
The most important lesson I took away from the experience, however, was the importance of listening, empathy, and honesty. It was crucial to let students tell me what they felt they needed and then responded with absolute honesty about could and couldn’t be delivered. Necessity drove a lot of adaptation and innovation.
The process made me a much better educator. It forced me to distill topics down to their core elements, made my teaching clearer and more specific, and helped me identify which tasks absolutely needed to be practical and those that could be emulated in other ways.
Can you share your thoughts on how the techniques and strategies used in the Australian technical services training industry could offer lessons or insights for professionals worldwide?
GH: I think that the most important insight is about the overall value of education and training.
Ongoing investment in employee training is an investment in our industry. It demonstrates the value we place in employees, engenders loyalty, strengthens our companies, and raises the overall standard of workers in our industry. A more knowledgeable and skilled industry benefits us all, so I encourage all companies to think longer term when evaluating the value that training programs can offer.