Samantha (“Sam”) Washington is a graduate of East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania, at the calm, eastern edge of the Pocono Mountains. After the usual struggle to pick a major for her degree, she chose digital media technology, which proved to be a fortunate decision.

She soon worked as a freelancer for, among other clients, Oxygen Media at NBC Universal, learning the ropes about marketing and video production for network television. “Like many other people in video production, I was doing a lot of random freelance jobs,” she said, “which created a very ‘interesting’ background, and a lot of different skills.”

In 2019, Sam responded to a LinkedIn ad for a freelance gig as a virtual producer for Leading Edge. The discussion did not result in an immediate offer at the time, but in March of 2020, everything changed. Sam quickly became an integral part of the company’s rapidly growing production team, as pandemic-stricken companies “discovered” their need for virtual events.

Jumping Into the Fire—With Friends

Leaving the perennial frying pan of solo freelance work, Sam soon found herself engulfed in the high-pressure world of livestreamed virtual events. One thing she noticed was the wide variety of people on Leading Edge production teams. “Not everybody comes from a video production background,” she said. “One of the producers I work with a lot comes from the hospitality industry. Others worked in sales. My favorite hire story is a producer who used to be an Uber driver.”

That diversity of skills and backgrounds has a common thread, according to Samantha. “We’re all focused on customer service. We all have to stay calm when clients are stressing out. They know we’ll be there for them, and, at the same time, we have to make the magic happen—all from behind the curtain.”

The larger and more complex the event, the more Sam and her colleagues rely on each other. This is despite the fact that, except for extremely large, on-site events, Leading Edge producers all work from their home offices, with teams of between six and twelve people from all parts of the country. “For many events, our ‘studio control room’ is Slack,” she joked. “We have each other’s backs. Every producer is constantly monitoring different parts of an event, messaging each other if we see a problem or need some help.”  

Leading Edge producers also create special breakout sessions, dubbed “virtual green rooms,” where they can prepare speakers and panelists, debug audio or video issues, or hold impromptu scrums to deal with bigger issues.

Overcoming Obstacles

Leading Edge production teams have to overcome many of the issues common to virtual events everywhere. “It’s hard to read the nonverbals online,” she admitted, “so we use a radio-style communication system called Unity as a backchannel. When someone on the team picks up on something going on in the meeting, or if there’s something wrong with a slide or a video, they can reach someone immediately. It gets insane, but it’s also kind of fun.”

The teams have improved their game since the onset of the pandemic. “At the start of Covid, we experienced a lot of technical issues—overloaded servers, Zoom going down—but that doesn’t happen as often now,” she said. “Most days, it’s a lot smoother, but there are times, especially with people who are new to Zoom or Teams, where things get ‘interesting.’ You always have to remember what it was like at the start of Covid, explaining all this to people who were worried about a lot of other things.”  

During our interview, Samantha’s boss, Gary Deamer, also chimed in on how she’s been able to keep clients calm during those panic-worthy moments. “Don’t underestimate the calmness of her voice,” he said. “Clients request Sam a lot because of her ability to have a ‘regular conversation’ when things get rough. That’s a difficult thing to find in a producer.”

A blend of empathy and technical know-how seems to be the best possible approach. “When someone is struggling, you really zero in on them and let them know they are the priority,” Sam said. “If a presenter is having trouble with their camera, I take then to a private breakout room to solve the problem—and also reassure them they’re going to be fine.” She also helps them with some of Zoom’s lesser known features, like turning off self view. “I tell them, ‘If you’re in a live meeting, you don’t look at yourself in a mirror—right?’ When they turn off self view, they are less self-conscious, more relaxed, and can focus on the others in the room.”

Samantha is also intrigued about ways that virtual meetings are changing us as human beings. “We’re programmed to look for the worst in things, but I think there are some real positives,” she said. “I grew up on the internet, making friends in chat rooms at age twelve. There are problems, of course, but as I help produce meetings for clients around the world, I see more people connect. They’re seeing and hearing each other, and sharing ideas, in real time. On a macro scale, that has to be a good thing.”

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