We’ve seen plenty of commanders get upset because they weren’t informed about something in a timely manner. We’ve rarely (maybe never) seen a commander get frustrated because he was too informed.
How often are you checking the news? Where and how do you flag breaking news and developments for your organization?
If they’re only seeing the news in your daily media report, they’re reading yesterday’s news.
Once a day? Not us, dawg. The news happens all day. So we happen all day, too.
We, and our leaders, read the news more often than the people who give our organization resources, authorities, approvals and operational support. That’s how we stay on top of developing narratives. It’s how we know when to proactively inject context and forever lines. It’s how we predict which questions reporters will sling our way, so we can respond fast.
Yes, our inboxes are filled with news alerts. It’s a lot, but we handle it because we can’t afford to not have the information at our fingertips.
So what can you do to stay on top of the news and keep your command teams abreast?
We run Slack channels. Anyone from our teams will bang pertinent articles onto Slack for all to see. Get the command team, the J2, J3, everyone on this Slack. When they get a second, they will scroll through this filtered and personalized news feed.
When an important news article pops, text it to the commander. Maybe you’ll say, “Sir, for SA, this is in the news. Working with DoD to respond.” If we’re rolling with the boss like a boss, we can let them know in person. We surely don’t wait until he reads the media report the next morning. Sometimes he writes back, sometimes he asks us about it, sometimes he doesn’t respond. No matter, he has the information.
Staying on top of the news may seem overwhelming to start. So many alerts. So much to read. You’ll find you’ll gain a working knowledge in a short time. You’ll see new stories break and develop then fade away. You’ll see them come back and correct. As you enjoy this working knowledge, reading and following the news won’t seem so overwhelming.
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When something happens medically I expect the surgeon to know about it. A legal issue? Our friend the JAG better be aware. News? You sure as hell better know.
(Photo by Keith Hayes, DVIDS)
