Business Diplomat: Confidentiality Online
Excerpt: What can be shared on screen, who is copied and whether a meeting is recorded are now questions of diplomatic etiquette, says Lana Jalagonia. Interviewed by: Olha Pashchenko Interviewee: Lana Jalagonia, Diplomat; Second Secretary, EU Assistance Coordination and Sectorial Integration Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia
Discretion has always belonged to diplomacy. In this part of its interview series, Business Diplomat presents Lana Jalagonia’s description of what discretion requires online.
New questions
“Participants have to be much more conscious of what can be shared on screen, what documents are circulated, who is copied into correspondence, and whether a meeting can be recorded.” Each is a small decision with potential consequences.
Blurred boundaries
“The boundaries between formal and informal communication are also less clear online. A negotiation may take place in a formal video conference but then continue through email or an instant-messaging platform.” Hence: “Knowing when to remain formal and when a more informal tone is appropriate has therefore become part of diplomatic judgement.”
A wider table
She also notes a benefit. Online meetings are “somewhat more accessible and less hierarchical”: experts can be brought in remotely and several institutions can take part at once, without the cost of travel.
The role of Business Diplomat
The platform’s mission is to give young people experience, bring a diplomatic order to the business world, and benefit states by revitalising the economy. Business Diplomat can teach confidentiality habits that young professionals will need from their first international contact.
Conclusion
Digital channels need clear habits of discretion and judgement about formality. Business Diplomat aims to teach them.
Olha Pashchenko
Contributing writer at EUReflect.
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