Negotiation Interview with Kristen Hill

        This week for my negotiation interview, I decided to interview one of the project managers at Technomedia Solutions, Kristen Hill. Kristen has been one of the leading project managers for the last eight years. She is known for her assertiveness, and being one who is always on top of things. Her main job with the company is to make deals with our leading clients, including Hard Rock Cafes and Casinos. The deals that Kristen creates with these companies are multi-million dollar business deals, which is why I felt that she would be appropriate for this interview. 

When negotiating with business deals, do you look for mutual benefits with the other companies? If so, explain. 

Kristen: I do. I feel that mutual benefits are a way that allows both companies to grow in the industry. By allowing both companies to benefit from the business deals, you are actually creating a bond that will guarantee you business in the future. Technomedia is a strong growing company that has been known for doing multiple business deals with multiple worldwide companies. We are strong because of our repetitive contracts with Abercrombie and Fitch, Hollister Co, Hard Rock, and many more. These companies tend to continue with our services not only because of our level of service that we provide, but also because of the benefits they also receive by negotiating with us. When creating new business deals with old cliental, I aim to keep it that way.

What are your personal techniques when dealing with negotiations that get heated too quickly? What do you do to separate the people from the problem?

Kristen: When creating business deals that are worth millions and millions of dollars, it can sometimes become heated quickly. Obviously, there are going to be things that both companies both agree and disagree upon. The main thing to remember when negotiating is that it is always okay to take a break. Sometimes I find that giving people the chance to calm down and relax allows them to be able to negotiate more realistically and calmly. For me personally, separating the people from the problem has always been a huge factor. We always have to remember that just because someone feels differently then we do, doesn't mean they are necessarily incorrect. For example, if we wanted to charge one hundred dollars for a certain service, and they only wanted to pay us seventy five, it would just be a matter of discussing why we both felt the way we did then coming to some sort of agreement. With negotiating people should always remember to pick their battles wisely. 

Do you often use objective criteria when negotiating? Why or why not?

Kristen: Absolutely. I feel that anyone who wants to be taken seriously when conducting any sort of negotiation should be fully prepared and have objective criteria ready for use. From experience, objective criteria is often a huge role in the outcome of a negotiation. People in today's society build their beliefs on facts. If you can prove that "9/10 people enjoy this product over this one", most people would take your word for it. My best advice to those who wish to enter the world of negotiating would be to always be one step ahead and always know more then what you think you should, you never know when it'll be handy.

Front of House Magazine

     As a Show Production and Engineering student at Full Sail University, I was always taught in a "hands on" approach. Most of my teachers always focused on how me and the rest of the students would learn better by "doing it ourselves" by participating in live labs. Although I personally enjoyed this new focused way of learning, I also sometimes missed focusing on the "old fashioned" way of learning by reading books. When I reached month eight in my Full Sail career as a Show Production student, I had an instructor recommend the magazine called Front of House for me to read. For this blog post, I decided to take a long look at their website (http://www.fohonline.com/ ) and do a review of how I felt about it compared to it's magazine.
      My first initial reaction to Front of House's website was that it seemed extremely cluttered. I was almost too overwhelmed to know where to begin. The first link I decided to click on is the one that says "current issue". Although I already saw this issue in person, I wanted to see how the magazine displays the issue for online viewers. As I waited for the website to load for almost five minutes with no change, I finally noticed that the issue actually loads underneath the main website. This to me was almost an inconvenience. However, the issue itself was very insightful and detailed orientated. It was organized and very easy to read.
  Some parts of the website that I personally really enjoyed include the "New Gear" part, and the "Jobs" section. The "New Gear" section of the website lists all new gear in the production industry. It gives reviews and detailed descriptions of each item. This to me as a Sound Engineer is extremely insightful and useful. It educates me and keeps me up to date on all new gear that is being used in the industry today. The part of the website that is titled "Jobs" opens up a new tab in one's internet browser. As a student who is still searching for more work, I found this part of the website to be extremely useful and helpful. It gives people in my field the chance to see any open positions available.
     Overall, I found the website to be extremely useful and insightful. For those who do not want to commit to having a subscription to the actual magazine, it allows you to get all the same information as those who receive it in their mail boxes. To me, Front of House Magazine is one of the best in the show production industry. I highly recommend it to all of those who want an insightful look at the live event industry.

A Dying Breed

      Before I began my journey to becoming an audio engineer, I was always a huge music fan. Throughout my entire life I was always in different bands and surrounded by people who enjoyed the art of music as much as I did. At an early age, I came to realize that the main problem as a young aspiring musician is simply having the right equipment in order for your music have your music to be recorded. As a musician myself, I know how great of a feeling it is to be able to hear your own music recorded and shareable to people who want to listen. This is, in fact, what actually drove me to utilizing my passions and attend Full Sail to become an audio engineer. 
     As I was searching through the internet reading blogs that are relevant to my career as an audio engineer, I found a blog that brought about a high amount of interest to me. This blog is titled the Stero Bus. (http://thestereobus.com/) The Stero Bus is a blog that focuses on music production, pro audio, and engineering tips and secrets. As I browsed through this blog, I wanted to find something different. On almost every audio production blog, you can find tips and secrets of the industry. Although they are always a joy to read, sometimes I want to read about different aspects of my profession besides the tips and professional words of advice. The article that I decided to read in the end focuses on "the Lost Art of Audio Engineering".
      With the expansion of technology, some industry professionals have concern about the future of music recording. In this blog post written by Dan Connor, he explains how so many people in today's society use the "Do It Yourself" routine when it comes to recording music. This method of recording isn't as hard as it may first seem. In reality, all one needs is a computer and the right programming. As an audio engineer myself, I feel that this expansion of the music industry is honesty going to cause the downfall of music production as we know it.
    Because of reasons similar to the one talked about in this article, I chose to major in Show Production and Engineering. In that degree program, I was able to learn the art of recording while also learning the technical skills of live production which provide endless job opportunities for me in the future. All in all, I hope that the music industry as a whole continues to expand. Those who truly enjoy music will always contribute to its cause and the influence it has on people everywhere.