Richard H. Feen: Speechwriting for all the marbles: So you want to be a policy maker …
As any seasoned speechwriter knows, drafting a major policy speech is not a simple process; in fact, it’s Herculean. It starts with grueling hours of meetings, moves to the scramble for subject experts, and reaches its peak with ego-busting clashes on obscure policy initiatives and esoteric language. Clearly, policy speeches are not for the faint of heart. Yet the chance to have an impact on a major corporate strategy or national policy, and possibly become a footnote to history, makes drafting policy speeches worth the pain.
The session promised to:
Avoid the pitfalls of writing by committee and become an instant and recognizable expert
Survive the clearance process intact and strike a balance between competing agencies and personalities
Make even the most tedious and stale policy initiatives sound inspiring without creating unreasonable expectations
Richard H. Feen is director of speech management at Freddie Mac. He’s been drafting speeches for nearly two decades for a number of top Fortune 500 CEOs (IBM, Verizon and Bob Nardelli at Home Depot), several cabinet secretaries and Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel.
Richard provided excellent notes to his presentation, the text below is the annotated content of his handout.
I. Three central questions should be asked
First give it a taste test to see if indeed it’s a “real” policy speech
Or is it just a press announcement, ceremonial or product launch?
You can flip a press release into a compelling speech
Then ask why the speech being given in the first place
Perhaps the CEO just wants to speak – personal friends asked him or he has a passion. Example Bernie Marcus the founder of Home Depot who spoke on the wonders of capitalism.
A division wants to publicize product launch and becomes the owner of the speech.
And whether you should indeed be the speechwriter
Do you have energy and time?
Is your status in the company a factor? If you are a new employee avoid complex assignments. Contractors need to be careful if they don’t know the industry and it’s a political minefield.
Look at your health and personal calendar.
Where are you on timeline? Speech development is not logical. If you’re brought in mid-way when a first draft is in place you’ll be responsible for mistakes others will make.
Circulating the speech to 20-30 people is no guarantee of anything else than dodging responsibility.
II. Now that you’re truly committed and in the trenches …
Then cover the basics as in any speech assignment
Discover who is the central target of the speech – media, competitors, etc.
Who is the audience?
Bring clarity to the policy speech!
Experts in the organization will bring too much information to you. You need to build in a memorable tagline. Example: The Bush 1 “Jobs, Jobs, Jobs” refrain which became a Herb Block cartoon “I’m concerned about my speechwriters job”
Arthur Blank at Home Depot “building with bricks not clicks” in speech responds to Internet.
Key role in Holocaust Museum where US wanted to include 11 million victims “Not all victims were Jews but all Jews were victims”.
But to have an equal seat at the table you must become knowledgeable
Otherwise you’ll just be an overpaid secretary.
Bring your wide experience to bear. Don’t hide your light under a bushel.
Make friends with subject matter experts - from chief economists to company historians.
III. Time to switch roles, from scribe to diplomat …
Avoid committee writing by simplifying the clearance process
The age-old dilemma is who to include and exclude from the review cycle.
There are risks and rewards if you choose the risky strategy of running parallel drafts of speeches within the organization. Insiders see one draft while another pseudo-draft is widely circulated and includes every initiative from every department and becomes a great background reference. This only works if your alpha draft is head and shoulders better than the circulated draft so the executive can see the clear winner.
Handling the review process is always difficult
Combining the drafts and edits is a challenge. If there’s laundry lists that must be in the speech jazz them up with fun stuff.
Don’t take sides when the review is contentious. Be open to compromise .
Some policy speeches can circulate forever and should be avoided.
And even harder is the handling of the C-Suite
Get draft in sooner rather than later - they don’t like surprises. The speech might not get to their office until a day or two before the event.
Create an early warning system. Keep your ear to the ground and make the rounds.
IV. Being present at the creation – when the speech is given.
Your attendance is definitely required
Don’t rely on others to report back
Second hand opinion is like second-hand smoke, it can kill you.
You need to see and hear the audience reaction.
If it works, praise the speaker and give credit to others.
If it does not go well it reverts to the blame game:
o Point to the poor delivery of the speaker.
o Current events or breaking news can kill a speech
o The venue might have poor sound system, audience might have had too much to drink.
Follow up, Follow up, Follow up
To press home the advantage or help recoup from the disaster
At the proverbial end of the day
For better or for worse you’ve made a name for yourself — either up or out
You’ve got up close with top management – you could even become a footnote to history
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