Behind the scenes of protocol management

 Swasdee ka, everyone...hope you're having a chill weekend plan na ka.

I have several little stories to share learning from a former ambassador's direct experience...and 5555! to me, they're so very interesting and fun to know ka.

The first story was about seating for a Thai Prime Minister during his state visit. 

At a reception preparation, he noticed that our PM was seated to the left of the host country's President.

We know that our PM had to sit on the right of the host.

What would you do ka? Honored the host and let go? Checked it out?

He chose the second one to ask the organizing team to learn that their President went to a war before and lost his right ear's hearing ka.

The strict protocol was no longer an issue ka!

The second one was about one regional Summit....we know that every host country would offer their traditional attire for their fellow leaders from other countries.

Well! What happened was when one of our PM's then forgot to bring it for the opening ceremony even when the protocol team told his personal secretary. But he was the one who packed his suitcase by himself.

How to solve this issue ka?

Several options came up to seek batik attire from different sources without success. Finally, they had to manage through THAI staff and it was solved. Yet, while waiting for the shirt, the PM got so stressed that his doctor had to give him an injection to treat his bad muscle cramps ka.

The last story was about attire for a Summit function ka!

The PM team was told by the host's director-general who served as liaison for the Thai PM to wear the red shirt. In between, one junior staff told the group that all had to wear white.

Who would you believe in this case?

What happened at the function was that almost all others were wearing white and only our and Malaysian PMs were in red.

Which story gives you some further thinking and what are they ka? Share with me if you wish ka.

Happy weekend ka.

visa system or techno glitch or both?

 Hello all...hope you had a very good Songkran festival ka.

My niece and her Italian hubby with their two boys from London were visiting then so we had a few things to share and do together. The only activity that would never get my involvement was water splashing in Siam and Silom areas ka. The family, especially my nephew-in-law, loved it so much that he wanted to come visit again next year!

Things went on smoothly with lots of playing, chatting, and eating until their airport check-in. There was a visa issue with Leo, their eldest son who holds an Italian passport like his Papa but didn't get access to the info on the system, which made it impossible to check in ka. We all were sweating with nervousness there. 

Long story short:

1. It's found that one possibility was that Leo had a new passport and even with some prior processes after getting the new passport back in 2024, his info disappeared somehow. No matter what was done, the system didn't allow any check-in. 

2. The EVA staff team was professional and super helpful. Quite a few seniors came to identify the issue and how to help out without success. They were sent to another counter with 2 seniors in their calmness and sharp sense of service. I did write a thank-you note with the two main staff's names to the airlines but had to pass it onto my niece as the contact system needs more info that I don't have.

All tried different processes to think that Leo's info was lost while transferring from the previous to the current passports. Anyway, finally with an online charge of 20 pounds, the check-in system was open to allow getting his boarding pass along with all others in good time.

3. My nephew-in-law was joking that he almost got a heart attack from facing this matter and would love to have gin tonic instead of espresso. He then said he could 'five five five' 555! started laughing with relaxation ka. Funny dee after some tense nervousness ka!

Can you 'five five five' after reading this email mai ka?

Being straightforward

 Hello all....on this long holiday, I hope you stay cool at home or wherever you're visiting ka.

There's one keyword I'd like to share ka.

The thing is I've been re-invited to serve on a committee and the chair told the meeting that I'm straightforward. 

It was the first time I heard it said about me in public ka. In fact, in my own little circle, my friends said the same thing to me some time after my retirement. I didn't realize how straightforward I've become so I checked in with myself to see how true it is....the answer is a 'yes'. 

I sure have thought of some reasons too.

- Having worked at Fulbright Thailand could help shape the ways I react and respond to be more direct, dealing with younger generations and being exposed to Americans.

- Getting much older to feel it's better to express my thoughts and comments....though I now have to slow down a little in some environments.

- Talking with younger gens who could find it harder to interpret what's said as they're at the speed of 'social media' and they don't practice 'reading between the lines' as much as before.

I only hope I offer my ideas assertively, not aggressively.....feel strongly about it as we see quite a number of younger gens express so aggressively with the unbearable choices of words that aren't pleasant to say in public. I learn to ignore their crude words to get into what they want to say. Unfortunately, I feel those impolite terms seem to be more and more acceptable. This doesn't mean I completely go against the use of swear words .... a few are ok but not every sentence is filled with vulgar expressions. 

Straightforwardness isn't equal to rudeness ka.

Still conservative to share what will be softer, not harsher ka.

What do you think ka?

Happy Songkran ka.

Of Pain and Prosperity

 Hello all. I just got back from a workshop/learning session held for International Relations Officers (IROs) by CUPT (Council of Thai University Presidents)in Pattaya. I had a role in jointly designing the whole event with my little 'TPop Plus' team and representatives of CUPT, i.e. Vice Presidents/Assistant to the Presidents for international relations from Mahidol, Mae Fah Luang, and Prince of Songkla universities.

The one and a half day event covered two big pictures on national policies, internationalization (IZN), and three separate workshops on the first day discussing three themes on, 'Now', 'Next', and 'New'....for IROs to share their thoughts on what they've been doing, next steps of improvement, and transformative actions as future-ready missions. The three groups were blended to form another three groups to share learnings and work on the final outcomes to present to three senior leaders-turn-commentators for comments and additions. 

My session was to integrate what they learned and the steps forward, including world trends, relationships with bosses, and networking approaches.

Naturally, the participants were mixed in terms of years of experiences, goals and directions of universities, and their own capabilities. In any case, my general observations and learnings are:

- Gaps between senior leaders and IRO teams persist, creating misunderstanding, pain, and motivation to work toward the same goals. It also means generational mindsets are different and haven't been well-taken up.

- A good number of IROs have various and diverse talents that their senior management hasn't realized....even IROs themselves have yet to reflect and excel.

- Top down approaches are still (far too)common while bottom-up initiatives need to be empowered.

- Quite a few stay passive or reactive (out of fear as well), partly because of the institutional environments and because of their own less curious selves.

- Some ideas on what they wanted to learn after this event includes relationship building with bosses, communication and networking, geopolitics and global mindset, meaningful IROs and recognition, work and time management, to mention but a few.

If IROs are empowered and they themselves try to reach their highest potential by being future-ready, our universities sure will thrive with hope and prosperity.

Any comments popped up to share with me mai ka?