I was a talk coordinator for a number of years. I was pretty organized. I used an Access database that allowed me to filter by just about any conceivable method. One of the best things was I could tell the last time a talk outline was given. I used the software to print out schedules for each of our speakers. I would email filtered lists with congos I exchanged speakers with. If I would have had more time, I could have used the same database to generate the information board copies of schedules (and for quick update drafts I did).... but I could never get the formatting the way I liked it so I typed the board copies in word.
The way I usually figured it...I only needed inbound speakers 35 weeks of the year. There were 3 weekends a year that were assembly weekends....and 2 weekends a year that were CO visits... leaving 47 weeks we needed talks. Then I used the first Sunday of the month to use local speakers and did not usually send out any...providing (allegedly) for more "First Sunday Field Service" support. 35 weeks was easier to schedule.
I tried to send even numbers for scheduling purposes. I hated when a small congo could only provide 2 speakers (of good quality) and they needed 6 or 8 speakers. When this was the case, I would tell them that we could provide qualified MS to them...often they were so desperate that they were happy to have anyone come the 60 or 90 miles to their little congo. For a brief while, the tables were turned and I was the coordinator for one of those small town congos.
If a brother gave a particularly bad talk, I would mark it my notes column.. I did follow the outline while listening to the talks...not to be overly critical, but because I have ADD and it helped me focus.....The so-called D and F speakers were counseled by myself, and/or the TMS overseer or the PO after the meeting. Often they did not stay for hospitality (aka lunch).
When it came time to exchange speakers with that congregation again, I never allowed blanket swaps... If a talk coordinator wanted to send me a particularly bad speaker again, I would ask what outlines that speaker had.... didn't matter if we needed those outlines or not, I told their coordinator we didn't need that outline at the time.
Sadly, we had one elderly brother in our congo who was a crap shoot when it came to talks...and it was not predictable months in advance what would happen. On good days he gave outstanding talks and had that deep voice of a DJ...and in fact he had been a radio DJ in his early days. His stories were funny and the congregations enjoyed his talks. On bad days, it was a horribly uncomfortable disaster. I remember one of the last times I sent him out, I warned the PO (talk coordinator) exactly what I just said. They let him come based on that disclaimer. He gave an outstanding talk. Unfortunately, the next two trips out (and meeting parts in our hall) were disasters. I quit scheduling him. He came to me after a few months wanting to know why he wasnt going out... I told him his outlines had not been requested...not the truth exactly....I just told folks he was unavailable. I finally had to meet with the rest of the body to take him off as TMS overseer and I had two of the older elders talk to him about public talks......it broke his heart....and ours... he loved the school and going out... but we could not continue to subject the congregation to his "old timers" moments...
As I was sitting here thinking about this, it reminded me of how tricky it was scheduling and not hurting people's feelings. I was never good at the politics of it all...
Snakes ()
