Photo by Ilya van Marle
Protocol to Manage Relationships Today is a book written by the best European protocol experts; Jean Paul Wijers and Bengt-Arne Hulleman from The Netherlands, Isabel Amaral from Portugal and the British William Hanson and Diana Mather.
The book Protocol to Manage Relationships Today presents an innovative view of the value of protocol in our 21st century. In essence, protocol has always been about optimising relationships by maximising personal attention and systemising logistics. Protocol enables the staging of the personal encounter. In a world where personal attention has become scarce and technology a facilitator for rules and procedures, protocol management provides us with a unique vision in which personal time is the greatest good we can give to someone. It is the modern currency of relationships.
The book describes the successful application of contemporary protocol to build strong relationships by, among others, the Dutch King and the Portuguese President, at the Royal Wedding of Prince Harry to Meghan Markle and at the World Press Photo awards show. In the book Dutch fashion and lifestyle expert Maik de Boer explains the value of protocol in the world of fashion and in the book the protocol of the famous Berlin techno club Berghain is described.
The book does not present protocol as a rigid system of rules, but as a flexible method. Protocol in the 21st century is mainly about balancing tradition and modernity; if the rules of the protocol are applied too strictly, the event will be too formal and uncomfortable. Too casual and too little focus is also not good and applying too few rules leads to chaos. Also, too many symbols will make people laugh and if there is no symbolism we will not be able to recognise the story and/or understand why we are attending the event.
- The launch on Tuesday 10 November (in English) with the authors of the book and Ella Robertson, Managing Director of One Young World, who wrote the foreword, and François Brunagel, former Head of Protocol of the European Parliament, who also contributed;
- The launch on Thursday 12 November (in Dutch) with the authors of the book and Maik de Boer, who was interviewed for the book about fashion and lifestyle.
