LISTEN! I’ve noticed a huge problem in online church tech forums (I’m a member of quite a few); many tech folks don’t know how to help solve problems. Here’s the setup:
Questioner: “I have a problem with (insert problem here). I’ve tried (insert attempt here). Here’s a list of my gear. Any ideas?”
Answer: “You need to upgrade (insert piece of equipment here) or use a (piece of equipment here). That’s what we use at (insert church here) and it takes care of the problem.”
OR
Answer: “Why do you have that (insert piece of gear that has nothing to do with the question)?” At this point, other people chime in on that unrelated gear until someone eventually brings it back around to the original question.
I know everyone is well-intentioned but I wonder why we respond like the above. I worry it’s about a bigger issue in the tech world – not knowing how to properly LISTEN.
The church tech world isn’t the only one that does this. The Apple support community does this a LOT! This is one area that the Windows support community does things better. Someone has a problem and there are 10 accurate responses on how to correct the problem, laser-focused and not meandering all over the place. (Disclaimer: I use a Mac and support both Apple and Windows machines in my job).
Steps to Problem Solving
As a former IT Director of 20 years, I know how to problem solve. I used to drive it home to my team of 35 programmers and analysts. There are functional steps to solving a problem. This is the method we used – and I still use in the tech world today.
- Actively listen to the person describe the problem. Don’t interrupt and don’t make any presumptions based on personal preferences or biases.
- Repeat the problem back to the person.
- Analyze the options available to fix the problem. Replacing a part should be the last option. Fix what you’ve got. Chances are there’s a way to do it without spending $$$ for replacement hardware.
- If it’s a technical problem (and they aren’t techies), explain the reason for the problem and give a proposed solution in ENGLISH (or your preferred language), not TECHEZE! Explain it in ministry or business terms. It’s harder to do this but the person with the problem won’t feel that you’re talking down to them and makes them feel that you understand the problem from their perspective.
- If an upgrade or replacement must occur, let them know why. If it’s just because that’s the way you’re used to fixing something then that’s the wrong solution. If it’s because the upgrade will make life for the user better/faster/easier/cheaper then do so.
- Follow up to see if the solution did what you promised it would do.
Remember, there is always more than one correct solution to a problem. Most solutions do not involve throwing money at the problem.
Stop Talking Tech!
In most churches that call me in, the number one problem mentioned by pastors is, “Tech talks in their own language and they don’t understand what we need. They don’t seem to listen to us and they sound like they know more than we do. They always want a new, expensive piece of equipment but they can’t tell us what that piece of equipment will solve or enhance our worship experience. All I wanted was a fix for this and instead they came up with a complicated plan.”
Don’t be that guy! By listening, interpreting and translating you will gain the ministry leaders trust and that gets to be invaluable!
Garrett says
December 1, 2014 at 7:32 amI work in IT. I have found that all these steps are 100% correct. If you are able to translate tech into English that goes a long way. Most people have a hard time trying to figure out what you’re trying to say (that is why they called you in the first place). I have found that it works better if you try to relate a lot of things to things they can understand. For instance the fact that hard drives are mechanical and they are going to fail much like an alternator in a car (chances are they have replaced one at some point in time).
The other things is when I am researching a problem on a forum, I find that most people have no real clue on what the problem is and they are just guessing. The first couple of replies to the post are off in left field. You really have to look for buzz words in the forum for the specific issue you have.
Christian Alvero says
November 30, 2014 at 9:22 amGreat insight.
Bob Brock says
November 10, 2014 at 4:14 pmWell said, Brian! I’ve also had the reverse problem – a music minister that wanted to expand the media presentation beyond the logical and practical. I had to explain to him that it just wasn’t good stewardship to spend that kind of money for that expansion. I’ve always explained to my pastors that I’m not a cheap date, but I always try to be a good steward of God’s money. He saw the light and backed off. Speaking a language they understand, and patiently explaining things goes a long way to good relationships.
Tony says
November 8, 2014 at 3:15 am“All I wanted was a fix for this and instead they came up with a complicated plan.” Sometimes the pastor* @/or staff* ARE the villain$ (Cheap!) The tech guys ID’d the issue when it was in its infancy. Now it’s a “goliath” and they* want the tech(s) to fix it w/a “wAve of their magic wand.” Or refuse us the freedom (time) to troubleshoot.
Chris Huff says
November 8, 2014 at 11:00 amTony, that does happen and it’s a shame that it does.
Brian Gowing says
November 8, 2014 at 11:11 amTony, yes it does happen that way sometimes. There’s not much you can do about it other than grin and bear it. Like it or not, “they” are the boss and we’re supposed to figure out how to make it work. But is it possible that the solution may not have been presented properly, aka in pastor-speak (which we all know isn’t like any other language on earth!) LOL. Is the solution shown that if this isn’t taken care of now, within x number of months this will occur. Is is presented not in our language but in theirs. Pastors don’t know or don’t care what widget we need. They only care about if it’s going to impact what they do and how it will impact them.
Yet in spite of all good intentions sometimes you end up in the situation you’ve mentioned. Yes it sucks. Big time, especially when you know that the fix at its infancy would have removed the problem and not had to be in panic mode. All I can suggest is to fix it and then when the fire dies down, sit down with whoever wasn’t listening and calmly explain why this shouldn’t have happened. If you don’t have a solid trust relationship with the powers-that-be it won’t be easy. But if you do this enough times and they understand you’re looking out for the betterment of the service experience, and more importantly, their backs, hopefully this can be more of an anomaly than a typical occurence.
Mike Hanson says
November 6, 2014 at 11:16 pmThank you Brian! I couldn’t agree more. I’ve been working in IT technical support for 25 years, and one of the first things I teach new techies is to drop the lingo and find ways to explain technical issues to the people they support in plain everyday language. If the person you’re talking to looks like they’re not following you, it’s because they aren’t. And if they don’t understand, they won’t remember anything you say.
And above all, stop talking and LISTEN. Only suggest solutions when you fully understand the problem. As my grandmother used to say, God gave us 2 ears and only 1 mouth.