As a carreer diplomat, have you ever felt that meetings often lack focus, reports are too lengthy or too hard to digest? Or perhaps you’ve found it challenging to prepare briefings for a principal or minister?

To help address these and similar challenges, members of the Diplomatic Skills Lab team were invited by the Swiss Embassies in Jakarta, Bangkok, Manila, Seoul, Tashkent, and Beijing, as well as the Swiss Consulate-General in Shanghai, to deliver a five-day online training that took place inNovember and December 2023.

The training covered the following key areas:

• Policy Development and Tools for Political Analysis
• Effective Reporting Techniques
• Skills for Clear and Impactful Written and Oral Briefings
• Strategic Media Engagement

Participants had the opportunity to reflect on their own challenges, exchange experiences, and explore tools and techniques to enhance their professional communication. Group breakout sessions allowed for hands-on practice, including simulations where participants drafted summaries and briefings for review and discussion in plenary sessions.

Each participant also submitted an individual report and briefing, which received detailed, personalized feedback from the trainers.

The training concluded with an in-depth session on social media strategies, where participants discussed different approaches to content creation, outreach, and levels of political ambition.Overall, the five-day course was an enriching experience for both participants and trainers. The online format, which successfully connected seven Swiss missions, not only facilitated valuable skill-building but also strengthened networking and the exchange of professional practices.