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strideshift.ai
For Reviewers — Not Shown to Learners
What you're looking at
We've taken the existing 4-hour protocol training recording and transformed it into a short-form video module (~4 minutes) with interactive comprehension exercises. This is one module of eight planned. The content is drawn directly from Ms Joubert's training — restructured, not rewritten.
What we need from you
1. Visual style direction
You'll see four visual styles for the same video content. You don't have to pick one — these are starting points to help you articulate the look and feel you'd like. Let us know what resonates, what doesn't, and we'll refine from there.
2. Corporate identity
Please send us DIRCO's CI guidelines (logos, colours, fonts) so we can apply your branding to whichever style is chosen. CI can be applied to any of the four styles.
3. Representation sensitivity
We want to get this right. Please flag anything in the visuals that feels wrong regarding cultural representation, dress, or context. Your guidance here will shape all subsequent modules.
Why we recommend Paper Art
The paper art style has practical advantages for DIRCO's context:
• Representation becomes neutral. Paper cutout figures are understood as symbols, not portraits. Nobody debates whether a paper figure is wearing the right outfit or has the right skin tone — the abstraction signals "this is a concept" not "this is a person."
• Cultural accuracy pressure drops. The training covers greetings, dress codes, and customs across cultures. Photographic images invite scrutiny about authenticity. Paper art signals teaching, not documentation.
• Labels and diagrams integrate naturally. Arrows, numbers, and text labels look like they belong in a paper world. In photographic styles, overlays always look bolted on.
• The content does the work. With less visual distraction, learners focus on the protocol principles themselves — which is the point.
strideshift.ai for Cisco South Africa & DIRCO
Full narration script
Act 1 — The Framework
Scene 1 — The Question
"Imagine a state dinner. Two hundred guests, fifteen courses, six heads of state. Before anyone picks up a fork — someone had to decide where every single person sits. Who faces the door. Who sits to the right of the host. That decision isn't guesswork. It follows five rules. And those five rules govern every formal interaction on earth."
Scene 2 — Environment
"Rule one. The environment dictates the protocol. A bilateral meeting in Pretoria follows South Africa's rules. The same meeting in Maputo follows Mozambique's. When you're the host, your house, your rules. When you're the guest, you adapt. This is the starting point for everything else."
Scene 3 — The Host
"Rule two. Identify the host. The host takes the centre position — not because they're the most senior person in the room, but because they're responsible for what happens in it. The host sets the agenda, controls the flow, and carries the weight if anything goes wrong."
Scene 4 — Right-Hand Side
"Rule three — and this is the one people get wrong. The most important guest sits to the host's right. Always. In every culture, in every setting. Left of the spectator, right of the host. Once you understand this, you can read any room. The person to the right of the host is the person who matters most that day."
Scene 5 — Seniority & Reciprocity
"Rules four and five work together. Seniority determines the order — the most senior guest to the right, the next to the left, alternating down the table. And reciprocity means you honour what your guest values. Their dietary needs. Their religious practices. Their cultural norms. Protocol isn't just structure. It's respect made visible."
Act 2 — In Practice
Scene 6 — The Bilateral
"Here is what this looks like in practice. A bilateral commission meeting between two nations, held in the host country. The host delegation sits on the spectator's right. The host flag is positioned first. The host head of state takes centre. The visiting head of state sits to the host's right. Every element in the room tells you who is home and who is the guest."
Scene 7 — Flip the Room
"Now flip the room. The same two leaders meet in the other country. Suddenly, the visitor is hosting. The flags reverse. The seating reverses. The leader who was host is now the guest. Nothing about the people changed. Everything about the protocol changed. Because the environment changed."
Scene 8 — The Delegation Table
"With larger delegations, the same principles scale. The host delegation faces the door. The two leaders sit at the head of the table, opposite each other. Each delegation arranges by seniority down their side. The most senior advisor sits nearest their principal. The most junior, furthest away. One glance at the table tells you who holds authority in each team."
Scene 9 — The Close
"Five rules. That's all. Environment. Host. Right-hand side. Seniority. Reciprocity. Every state dinner, every summit, every bilateral meeting on earth follows this framework. The question isn't whether these rules apply. It's whether you'll notice when they're broken."
Interactive Module 1
What you'll learn
Rule 1: The environment dictates the protocol
Rule 2: Identify the host
Rule 3: The right-hand side rule
Rule 4: Seniority determines order
Rule 5: Reciprocity — honour your guest's values
A strideshift.ai learning prototype for DIRCO
Step 1 — Watch
Exercise 1 of 5
Exercise 2 of 5
Exercise 3 of 5
Exercise 4 of 5
Exercise 5 of 5
PRETORIA — South Africa hosts
MAPUTO — Mozambique hosts
Module Complete
out of 5 correct on first attempt
The Five Rules
"Environment. Host. Right-hand side. Seniority. Reciprocity. Every state dinner, every summit, every bilateral meeting on earth follows this framework. The question isn't whether these rules apply. It's whether you'll notice when they're broken."
This is a preview of DIRCO's interactive protocol training. The full programme covers seating, dress code, dining etiquette, forms of address, greetings, and VIP movement — with video modules, interactive exercises, and per-learner completion tracking.
Built by strideshift.ai for Cisco South Africa & DIRCO