Military Review English Edition March-April 2015 | Page 37

SPECIAL ASSISTANT

(Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Daniel P. Lapierre, U.S. Africa Command)

Foreign liaison officers from Combined Joint Task Force–Horn of Africa listen to a command brief presented by Col. Thomas Galvin, director of the Commander's Action Group for U.S. Africa Command, at a conference for foreign liaison officers 27 January 2009 at the Africa
Command headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany.

For example, in-progress reviews clarify tasks so the
action officer can efficiently address a requirement
and assume it is completed when passed up the chain.
As a speechwriter, however, there were several occasions where the first time my commander was able
to review a speech or presentation was in the car on
the way to the event, and sometimes that meant my
having to make edits and reprint the document minutes before delivery. At one event in a foreign country,
I was editing slides during dinner for a post-dinner
presentation. Why? The boss had just been informed
about something that altered part of his core message.
The presentation had to change. While this was an
extreme case, it was common practice to incorporate
news items or the most recent remarks by the secretary of defense, chairman, or Army chief of staff at
the last minute. The lesson learned is to be ready by
thinking through such contingencies in advance and
MILITARY REVIEW  March-April 2015

to always be on the lookout for new, relevant information that adds value to the communication.
Exercise care in injecting yourself into the product. One fellow SA wanted to insert Latin phrases to
make our commander sound more erudite. He was
routinely disappointed when the products returned
from the boss with those words obliterated by red
pen. Empathy in speechwriting means both appreciating the needs and communication styles of the leader
and holding back one’s own preferences.
The key measure of success is the comfort level
that the speaker projects, not just the successful
delivery of the message. The introduction of words
or phrases that speakers would not ordinarily say
can be distracting and seem inauthentic. On the
other hand, speechwriters are communications
advisors, and good ones who have developed the
proper rapport and empathy with the commander
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