UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF PUBLIC DIPLOMACY PROFESSIONALS

Public Diplomacy professionals need different skills than traditional diplomats. Because the scope of a Public diplomacy professional’s mandate is to reach a much broader and more diverse segment of society, he or she needs to:

• follow local public opinion closely from many different sources, including the media, and through contacts with a wide variety of people, not just official contacts;
• have excellent communication skills, to act as embassy spokesman, conduct interviews with the local media, and give public presentations, which the traditional diplomat rarely does;
• be proficient in the local language, in order to communicate, one-on-one or in groups, with audiences who have limited or no English;

A good Public Diplomacy professional combines skills in persuasion, empathy, logistics, setting priorities, and tracking details among other competencies. To do this work, the Public Diplomacy professional needs to study and absorb the political and cultural climate of the host country, to craft messages and offer insights about the country which can be coherently read in the local context. It demands not just pronouncing policy positions, but actively listening to others in an ongoing dialogue which enriches both parties through what is a cross-cultural conversation.

Advocacy Role

The Public Diplomacy practice encompasses both the advocacy of policies and the explanation of a country’s society and culture in the widest sense, and its greatest effect is over the long term. As Advocates, Public Diplomacy professionals forcefully present a country’s  policy positions to varied audiences, via personal contact, crafted programmes, and all relevant media, underpinning those presentations with thorough knowledge and keen awareness of the local milieu.

Public Diplomacy professionals interact with the host country publics including its media, academic institutions, non-profits, businesses, among others. These audiences include journalists, educators, professionals, businessmen, environmental  advocates, appointed and elected public officials etc.

Programmer’s Role

As Programmers, Public Diplomacy professionals facilitate the meeting and dialogue between a country’s nationals and  foreigners by organizing a whole range of activities: lectures, seminars, exchange programmes, institutional visits, entertainment, press events, website content, etc.—which allow these encounters to take place.

In short, the Public Diplomacy professional should possess facets of the cogent diplomat, the adept manager, the dogged intelligence officer, the fluent linguist, the amiable polymath, the convincing public speaker, and the gifted event planner.