A Q&A With Assistant Director Of Production, Jon-Paul Royer
Jon-Paul Royer started his career in event planning 25 years ago as an AV tech with audio engineer experience. Now, as assistant director of production at Stagedge, he describes his role as “filling the gap between technology and the client’s needs.” During our Q&A, Jon-Paul raved about the Stagedge team and described the unique path that a career in event planning can take you down.
Q: How Did You Get Your Start In The Industry?
JPR: Originally, I was involved with music – and I still am a lifelong musician. About 25 years ago, a friend of mine who worked here recommended that I look at a career in A/V. At the time, I didn’t really know what that meant, but I took their advice and started out as an audio engineer. I ran the sound for events for a while and eventually transitioned into project management.
Q: What's The Best Thing About Your Job?
JPR: Hands down, the people. I’ve been with Stagedge for 25 years now, and the team hasn’t changed all that much. It really means something about a company when a lot of people stick around for a long time. They genuinely like who they’re spending their days with, and they like the work. And that’s how I feel – I get to work with the smartest, most down-to-earth, and dedicated people out there. In event planning, you might have an official title, but everyone does everything at a certain point. It’s an all-hands-on-deck effort, and with the team here, we always have each other's backs. It makes every day a pleasure.
I get to work with the smartest, most down-to-earth, and dedicated people out there. It’s an all-hands-on-deck effort, and with the team here, we always have each other's backs. It makes every day a pleasure.
Q: What Makes You Feel Fullfilled At Work?
JPR: I love the challenge of creating the exact experience our clients hoped for. And that’s basically the job – we listen to our clients explain what they need their event to look like and feel like, and then we put together the best team and the best technology to make it happen. After months of planning and managing all the different pieces that make up an event, it feels really good to watch it unfold smoothly. A job well-done is very fulfilling.
Q: Do You Have Any Advice For Someone Trying To Break Into The Industry?
JPR: Event planning is definitely an industry where each person has to do their time and prove their value. You start at the bottom and then rise. I love this quality because it allows beginners to try out a lot of different aspects of the job, and then choose which one is best for them. For example, I get a kick out of it when someone with zero camera experience learns everything on the job and eventually becomes a cameraperson. It’s like what happened to me – I was a musician, and now I’m assistant production director. It seems like a leap, but it came to me quite naturally. I just didn’t know it before I tried it. There’re so many avenues in this industry, whether it be audio, video streaming, running events, graphic design, web development or client relations. There are so many paths to try.
A lot goes into planning a successful event, but at the core, the production team’s job is to
understand the client’s expectation and vision and execute it at the highest level.
Q: How Would You Describe Your Team's Overall Function?
JPR: A lot goes into planning a successful event, but at the core, the production team's job is to understand the client's expectation and vision and execute it at the highest level. It’s a different job every single time because each client has a different creative vision for their event. So, we ask the client a lot of questions to uncover their unique vision, and then get to work executing it down to every detail. One of the things that typically wins the client’s trust right away is when we ask them to consider details they never would have considered on their own. It shows them that we know what we’re doing, and that they’re in expert hands.
Q: What Sets STAGEDGE Apart In The Industry?
JPR: We’ve always been a step ahead when it comes to the technological aspect. For example, post-Covid, hybrid events became highly sought after. For a lot of companies, that meant struggling with a learning curve. But we’ve been running hybrid events for a long time, so we were prepared to meet the increased demand. Plus, we have all the staffing in-house, which means the integration of many moving pieces is seamless. Nothing gets lost in translation. We can go out on the road to capture live events and stream it through our studio. We can do the web design for the event’s home page. We can do it all.
Come Work With Industry Leaders at Stagedge!
Looking for a place to combine your creativity and ability to organize, problem-solve, and collaborate with the best colleagues in the events industry? Check out the careers page at Stagedge and take your creative career to the next level