Welcome to Germaine Theory

 Thanks for the Memories The Leadership and Media Strategies course, from which this blog was born, is coming to an end. I have thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to share some of my thoughts with you and hope that you have enjoyed reading them. Blogging is something that is a bit scary at first because sometimes sharing how you feel can be unnerving. I believe all people, no matter how accustomed to it they may become, have an innate disdain for rejection. With a blog, you’re potentially inviting rejection every time that you hit the publish button. However, we bloggers, must endure. I say we because I now consider myself one of the many. I know that I have a lot of work ahead of me and I intend on learning and recreating until I find my niche. I will publish another blog, that’s for certain, I just have to decide on a topic that I am passionate about; that is currently to be determined. If you liked the blog postings and are interested in the new direction of the blog, continue t...

You Sank My Battleship How does the strategic communications professional measure the success of a campaign? One way to do that is to follow the money, right? If the campaign is a success the revenue should increase, the polls should move in your candidate’s favor, etcetera, etcetera…you should see evidence of the win. However, in some instances, before the needle is moved, there are intangible results that can be seen as progress; the click of a hyperlink embedded in a social media ad, a spike in views at a time directed by a campaign to potentially win a prize. These are examples of changed behaviors. They were not necessarily the desired end result but what they show is market engagement. Market engagement can lead to revenue. As a strategic communication professional, you can take this information and adjust your approach to maximize your reach and pinpoint your target audience. It’s like Battleship, you keep firing at different grid squares and eliminating what doesn’t work un...

The Vanessa Guillen Tragedy Fort Hood, Texas was a place that many people in the Army have heard about, largely due to the fact that it is one of the Army’s largest bases. However, outside of that, Killeen is a smallish Texas town that wouldn’t hold much interest for anyone outside of its city limits. The relatively recent news that has exposed the disturbingly unconscionable behavior (to say the least) of some of the soldiers stationed there sent shockwaves through the ranks of the entire Army. The murder of SPC Vanessa Guillen was an unimaginable incident that the Army Public Affairs Office was exceedingly unprepared for. The nature of the incident is somewhat different than some other business related public affairs crises in that it is of a criminal nature. This fact largely restricted the amount of information that was authorized for release. At the outset of the incident what was known was that a soldier was missing and that further investigation into the background of the so...

I Know You’re Listening As technological advances in advertising methods have increased the efficiency in targeting market segments almost down to the cellular level, one has to ask, is this good business or an invasion of privacy? Depending on whom you ask and the day of the week the answer will vary. I have an Alexa Echo and two Alexa Echo Dots. I primarily use them to play music and for mundane morning tasks like checking the weather or traffic. I also have an Amazon Prime membership that is fairly active (we’re always ordering things). There have been times that my wife and I have had discussions about a product or service, with no mention of the activation word, ‘Alexa’, but we would get a notification about a similar product or service without prompting the machine. The light would turn green to alert us to the notification (for all non-Alexa users, the light is normally blue). Other times the conversation would lead to an immersion into the topic of the conversation on our A...

Leaderment; an Analysis of Leadership v. Management   Which is more important, leadership or management? It’s an age old question that has helped many leaders of industry better understand their roles and missteps, and guide their companies into the winning side of history. Those that misunderstand the concepts and continue to perform within the status quo are doomed to celebrate a life of mediocracy, at best.   In my beginnings as a young Noncommissioned Officer in the Army I received leadership 101; leadership is and management does. That was my crash course. I thought I had an understanding of what it meant, but as a young NCO trying to impress my boss, I said nothing, just smiled and nodded. What he was trying to tell me was as important as any lesson that I would ever receive. His words stayed with me throughout my career and are still applicable, and will be beyond my days as an Army NCO. The relationship between the leader and the manager is one of irony. The two...

The Servant Leader Welcome back my fellow theorists. Which leadership style best describes you? Authoritarian, delegative, participative? This week we will take a look at the concept of the servant leader. Alexander the Great was revered by his troops and is said to have lead them into battle from the front; doing the job that he asked of his subordinates. The idea of the servant leader has been around for quite some time. Leadership that turns the dial way up in the empathy, humility and constructive criticism departments and conversely turns the dial way down on reprimanding, public embarrassment, and distrust. There are different ways to lead subordinates. As President and Chief Executive Officer of the Deseret Book Company, Sherri L. Dew knows something about leadership and motivating others to accomplish a goal. According to the Bloomberg article, titled ‘How the Mormons Make Money, How the Mormon Church Makes Its Billions’ , Ms. Dew took a struggling company and made it profi...

Say Again, Over Communication is something that is vital to life but unceremoniously recognized for its importance, like breathing. Communication is a fundamental part of the human experience and is a relatively simple concept to understand. A message is transmitted from a point of origin and received at its destination. We will take a look at the process of receiving the message and the importance of Active Listening.    As an Army leader, the counseling of subordinate Soldiers is one of the most important things that you will ever be tasked with. As stated in Army Training Publication 6-22.1, ‘ The Counseling Process’ , “Counseling is the process used by leaders to review with a subordinate the subordinate’s demonstrated performance and potential. Counseling, one of the most important leadership and professional development responsibilities, enables Army leaders to help Soldiers and Army Civilians become more capable, resilient, satisfied, and better prepared for current...