Organize an action plan presentation like a soldier

In an article in Time magazine (August 29, 2011 issue), “The New Greatest Generation,” a veteran explains how military officers are trained to construct an action plan for every mission.

If you are giving a presentation that lays out an action plan, you can use the same structure. It has 5 parts:

Acronym: SMESC

Mnemonic: Sergeant major eats sugar cookies (No, I didn’t make this up!)

1. Situation: What’s the problem?
2. Mission: What’s our strategy for solving the problem?
3. Execution: What tactics are we going to use?
4. Support: What are the logistics? (What people and equipment do we need?)
5. Command: What other organizations (teams, suppliers, etc.) have to be involved?