Equity in the team: include the receptionist at the reception.
technique — attributed to Jonathan Steffert
Steffert invites the full staff to embassy events. The team processing visas at the immigration office is part of the New Zealand story. The receptionist is the first New Zealander guests interact with. Including a variety of people at various levels is an intentional advantage. When the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff meets the receptionist at an embassy event, the encounter says something about who New Zealand is and what it values. The technique inverts the usual diplomatic instinct to staff events with only senior personnel. The signal sent by the inclusion is itself diplomatic content, communicating egalitarian values without speaking them.
For embassy teams, organizational leaders, and convening hosts thinking about who appears at the event versus who appears in the photos. The technique is most useful when the organization's stated values include equity but the event composition contradicts them.
equity, staff-inclusion, team-representation, values