Western New Year, Lunar New Year, Super Bowl, Winter Olympics, Valentine's Day, President's Day: these are just some of the milestones marking time for us in the U.S. in the last two months. I find the clock is running faster and faster, and I seem to be falling further behind.  My mother taught me that it's never too late to thank someone or apologize.  I try to remember that for big and small things, including the tardiness of my newsletter this month, for which I apologize.  

My mother also believes it's always a good time to tell the people you care for that you love them.  So if you missed your opportunity to express some love on Valentine's Day, click on the article in the "Protocol in the News" section and learn how to say "I love you" in another language.  This month, the Protocol Lady helps you handle a situation when someone intentionally speaks longer than scheduled, and in the case study, we consider a tricky communication style used in negotiations. 

This week, I'm watching the Winter Olympics for not only the sports excitement, but also the protocol and cultural learning opportunities.  If you spot a moment of political drama or an interesting twist of ceremony, at the Olympics or anywhere else, I'd love to hear about it. 

Sonia Garza-Monarchi 

Garza Protocol Associates, LLC.

Ask the Protocol Lady: 

What to do when someone speaks too long?

How many times have we seen this happen?  Sometimes it's a minor issue, but other times, it's a major offense.

For a stunning example, at the opening of the Syrian Peace Talks in Montreux last month, the Syrian Foreign Minister exceeded his allotted time and argued with the UN Secretary General about it.

In this case, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem, who was leading the Syrian delegation,  ran over time as he delivered his opening speech.  U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon asked him several times to stop, but he refused, saying  "you live in New York, I live in Syria," and demanding time to finish his remarks.  

When the Minister finally concluded his speech, the Secretary General lamented that "the constructive mood which I set has been broken," and he pleaded with Ahmed Jarba of the Syrian National Coalition, who was to speak next, not to match Muallem's tone with accusations aimed at specific governments or extensive anecdotes of atrocities. Jarba then accused the Assad regime of being "terrorists" and asked the conference attendees "who do you trust?"   For the full story, click here.

Perhaps the events you are hosting or planning are not quite as high-stakes as these peace talks, but it is always awkward when this happens. So, if someone as distinguished as the U.N. Secretary General can't successfully persuade a speaker to conclude, what can you do if this occurs at your event?  

After more than 20 years in this business, I've learned that no amount of planning can anticipate every challenge, but it can help prepare you for most things so that you can respond quickly and professionally to address whatever situation you encounter.

So for emcees, moderators, hosts and event planners, here are some general guidelines for managing your speaker schedule:

First, clearly explain the expectations for speakers: i.e., you will speak for seven minutes, speeches must not be offensive or inflammatory, etc. You may want to help your speakers coordinate their content, so that they don't waste time covering the same (undisputed) ground twice, like reciting the trade statistics between Country X and City A, or the the history of a particular project.  

Second, you might also want to build a little extra time into the schedule, if you know your speakers tend to take more than their alloted time.  Perhaps you tell them they have seven minutes each, but on your own master timeline, you have an extra couple of minutes of padding between speakers to make up for any minor excesses. 

Third, have an experienced moderator, one who can be charming, but who will also be firm about sticking to the timeline.

Fourth, have a timekeeper, a person or device that shows the speaker the amount of time left at various predetermined intervals.

Fifth, let each speaker know what the consequences will be if he exceeds the time allowed, since you are trying to respect everyone's time and stick to the program.  If there is media coverage that will be affected by a change in timing, or a key dignitary must depart at a certain time, use that fact to enlist cooperation. 

Technology today gives you more options when you must force a speaker to conclude, but these should be the very last resort.  It's much easier in the long run to persuade your speakers to agree to the rules of engagement in advance. For example, you could inform speakers that they will get a notice when they have one minute left. If the speaker continues to speak past that time, the moderator will come up and thank him, just before his microphone will be turned off. This will be done out of respect to the next speaker, to allow sufficient time for everyone else.

You could also arrange to have "ushers" escort a persistent speaker off the stage, but again, only after everyone has been informed of the rules.  Another approach is to make the audience aware of the rules prior to any speeches.   If a speaker knows up front what will happen, and also that the audience will be keenly aware of his trangression, there's less chance that he will try to hijack the program.

I've seen both of these last two methods used, but I don't believe they were pre-planned.  Rather, they were desperate, last minute measures.  I think they would be more effective announced in advance as planned deterrents and rules of engagement.

Have you seen a speaker go into unwelcome overtime at an event? How was it handled? I know a priest who told me his brother once stood up and signaled time out to get him to end his long sermon one Sunday morning.  I'd love to hear your stories, tips and techniques.  

 The Protocol Lady