scheduling work

[Ron Torrella]

We have several individuals who handle scheduling.  At the School of Music
(SOM), there's an events office where the students and faculty go to
arrange for recital times. The events office records everything on paper
and electronically.  At the end of each month, a schedule for the next
month is sent out to everyone in sight including the piano shop (twice --
we each get a copy, but I take mine home to my "office" there for quick
reference).  Additionally, that schedule is posted on the U of I gopher
but it's not updated so it tends not to be a very reliable source.  This
will change when all of the SOM buildings are on the UIUCNet (our own
little network).  Drops/Adds/Date-and/or-Time Changes are sent to the
persons responsible for updating bulletin boards outside recital halls as
well as the piano shop.  There are a few others who get these updates.
Unfortunately, these little slips of papers clog up a bulletin board in
our shop (esp. around high recital season!) something fierce.  We're
trying to get the events office to advise of schedule changes via email...

Which brings me to the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts (KCPA).
For the last year-and-a-half, we've been handling *all* scheduling with
KCPA by email.  Exceptions are dire emergencies when the answering
machine turns into Iago (remember the parrot on Aladdin?!), squacking out
the really important stuff.  To keep the confusion to a minimum, all
requests are sent to me and I dole out the assignments.  When I'm our of
town, either I have my laptop with me so I can still access email to
continue the management from wherever I happen to be or I just tell the
KCPA events folks to send requests to the other technician until I
return.  Eliminating all of the excess paper has proven to be the answer
-- *especially* when the fur's flying on all four stages at KCPA!  It's
also a convenient way to keep track of how many requests are coming in
from various venues.  I save every request in a file that I download once
a month or so on my big machine at home.   There, I can sort things out at
my leisure.  I'm hoping to figure out how to use databases this spring so
I can come up with some convincing figures -- convincing the
administration that two ain't cuttin' it.

One of the side benefits of keeping records on disk is that, when
problems arise -- like the sudden discovery that some major performance
*does* need a piano but you didn't remember getting a tuning request --
you have a quick reference. (Oh, I suppose there's the slightest chance
that a message could be deleted but with all of the copies that go
around -- three, not counting me -- *somebody's* bound to have a copy.

So there you have it.  Mind you, there's still a lot of room for
improvement.  For example, those little competitions (you know, Little
Old Lady Scholarships) pop up like weeds around here.  When those times
are reserved, the person making the reservation doesn't always mention
the need for a piano....and I've gotten slathered with apologies from the
department chairman for that quite a few times!

Ron Torrella               "Ideal conversation must be an exchange of thought,
School of Music           and not, as many of those who worry most about their
University of Illinois    shortcomings believe, an eloquent exhibition of wit
                    or oratory." -- Emily Post, Etiquette