What is an International Council “Global Leaders” Program?
A “program” for current and emerging international leaders is a labor-intensive exercise that requires the combined skills of project management, event planning, logistics, sales and marketing, government client relations, cultural knowledge and sensitivity, hospitality management and public diplomacy. Doing it best is an intricate choreography of balancing substantive issues, different objectives, diverse cultures and community resources. “Programming” is as much an art as a science and “flexible response” is the operating principle.
Each program, whether with 2 visitors or 25, demands a full understanding of the expectations of three distinct “clients” of the International Council of the Tampa Bay Region, each with individual agendas: The US Department of State and its Embassies overseas; National Programming Agencies; and the international visitors themselves. Moreover, while programs are organized under a single topic or subject area, large groups are typically comprised of many different nationalities, cultures, and professional status, experience and objectives.
The International Council averages 50 programs per year totaling over 200 global emerging leaders, or approximately one program a week! Many times, we host more than one group in a given week, while planning and preparations for the next group are ongoing. Typically, a program organized by the International Council looks like this:
· 4-6 day duration · 2-25 individuals per program · 2-4 week notification and preparation · Professional agenda and logistics (including approximate travel times and directions) · Coordination with hospitality and transportation professionals · Up to four business appointments per day · 5 lunches and 5 dinners · Hospitality and social gatherings (at least once per program) · Cultural activities (including history, arts and cultural events)
Programming includes professional meetings and hospitality, allowing our visitors to experience how Americans work, live and play. It is vitally important that international visitors see our cultural and educational resources, and to meet Americans in social settings, to learn what we are really like, to see that we live in harmony regardless of political, social or religious differences. Informal, “home hospitality” gatherings – whether at a baseball game, a museum, at the beach, or at a backyard BBQ – are the best ways in which our cultural values are conveyed and exchanged, and where long-lasting friendships are formed.
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