Sample Documents in Simulated Cases

Written communications are an important tool of commercial diplomacy.   Commercial diplomats—government officials and representatives of businesses, industry associations and non-governmental organizations—are routinely called on to inform and persuade others concerning highly complex issues. Good writing skills are essential to success in both of these endeavors. Whether engaged in the informal, initial stages of exploring how to tackle a new trade issue, or the formal negotiation phase of hammering out a consensus agreement, a commercial diplomat needs to be able to clearly and persuasively articulate the country’s and/or organization’s ideas and positions. The difference between a well or poorly written "non-paper" can determine whether a new idea or approach to an issue receives fair consideration within an organization—a private or non-governmental organization, government agency, or multilateral institution such as the World Trade Organization. Similarly, the difference between clear or muddled testimony written for governmental officials can determine whether a proposed policy is supported or opposed; and the difference between a well or poorly crafted newspaper opinion article can determine whether the article will have an impact on public debate. 

While there are only three basic functions of commercial diplomacy documents (to inform, persuade or instruct), a number of different document types are used to perform these functions. Commonly used documents include: Policy papers, Memos, Briefing papers, Press releases, Public testimony, Op-ed articles, Instruction cables, Meeting summaries, Advocacy letters. A sample of such documents is found in the various simulated cases written by students enrolled in the Masters Degree program in Commercial Diplomacy at the Monterey Institute for International Studies. Each graduate must analyze and develop a strategy for resolving an actual trade issue, as if they were the person responsible for that issue in an organization of their choice. As part of laying out a recommended strategy, they are required to prepare a series of operational documents that would normally be a part of any effort to resolve the issue. These sample documents can be found by going the section of the website that contains the simulated cases. You can access the list of simulated cases by going to the Simulated Cases page or by clicking on the following hyperlink: Simulated Cases.

PowerPoint Presentations Used in Simulated Cases  

A set of PowerPoint Presentations designed to persuade a key target audience of a recommended course of action in address a trade policy issue is found in the various simulated cases written by students enrolled in the Masters Degree program in Commercial Diplomacy at the Monterey Institute for International Studies. Each graduate must analyze and develop a strategy for resolving an actual trade issue, as if they were the person responsible for that issue in an organization of their choice. As part of laying out a recommended strategy, they are required to make an oral presentation to other students on the issue at stake and their recommended strategy for solving the problem from the point of view of the organization they represent. As part of that oral presentation they are encouraged to prepare a set of PowerPoint slides. A sample of these PowerPoint presentations is found in the section of the website that contains these simulated cases. You can access the list of simulated cases by going to the Simulated Cases page or by clicking on the following hyperlink: Simulated Cases