Talking Papers Senior and master chiefs are often called upon to speak publicly or to prepare a talking paper for someone who  will  speak  at  an  informal  event.  Rather  than speaking on an issue from memory or "off the cuff," a talking  paper  should  be  used  to  keep  your  speech organized and to the point. The talking paper serves as a  memory  tickler  or  quick  reference  outline.  The following guidelines will help you prepare a talking paper: • • • • • • • Keep your talking paper to one page. Specify the issue. Use a bulleted format. Double  space. Avoid  details  and  chronologies. Write  a  background  paper  to talking  paper,  if  necessary. Say what to avoid talking about. accompany the SUMMARY The proper operation of the Navy depends to a great extent on the effective administration of every Navy ship,  activity,  and  unit.  Various  command  levels establish policies and procedures by which the Navy operates.  These  policies  and  procedures  are  often  issued as  directives-orders,  instructions,  regulations,  notices, and so forth. The Department of the Navy Directives Issuance System, SECNAVINST  5215.1C,  sets  forth  policy  and rules  for  issuing,  filing,  and  maintaining  Navy directives. Every Navy unit should have a directives system that provides wide dissemination of chain of command policies that affect the unit. This unit directives system must be fashioned according to the Department of the Navy  Directives  Issuance  System.  To  do  otherwise would  cause  confusion  and  inefficiency  as  people  come and leave the unit. Because directives are used to tell people what the policies and orders of executives to subordinates are, they must be clear, concise, and easily understood. Each directive issued in the Navy is assigned a standard   subject   identification   code   (SSIC)   as prescribed  by  the  Department  of  the  Navy  File Maintenance   Procedures   and   Standard   Subject Identification Codes (SSIC),  SECNAVINST  5210.11D. This instruction contains the single, standard system of number  and  letter  symbols  used  in  the  Navy  to categorize,  subject  classify,  and  identify  directives, forms,  and  reports.  SSICs  also  provide  a  standard system  for  filing  directives,  messages,  forms, correspondence, reports, and so forth. The  Consolidated   Subject   Index   (CSI), NAVPUBNOTE  5215,  is  an  important  part  of  the directives  system.  It  is  a  numerically  indexed, subject-categorized listing used to help identify current naval  instructions  issued  by  Washington,  D.C., headquarters organizations. Telecommunications, or naval messages policies and practices, are given in the  Telecommunication  Users Manual,  NTP  3(H).  The  NTP  3(H)  must  be  strictly followed when you originate, draft, or release naval messages. As a senior or master chief, you maybe tasked to investigate  situations  and  submit  reports.  Reports  are written to transmit information accurately, to serve as records  for  later  reference,  and  to  provide  an  efficient way  to  inform  people. A  staff  study  report  addresses  a  problem  and presents  several  possible  solutions.  This  study  can  be presented  in  three  patterns:  a  single  best  possible solution,  a  combination  of  possible  solutions,  or  a  single possible  solution. Point papers and talking papers are simple reports that bring a single subject to the attention of superiors. They are short, to the point, and concise. REFERENCES Department  of  the  Navy  File  Maintenance Procedures  and  Standard  Subject  Identification  Codes (SSIC),  SECNAVINST   5210.11D,   Office   of   the Secretary of the Navy, Washington, D.C., 1985. Directives   Issuance   System   Consolidated Checklist,  NAVPUBINST  5215.3Z,  Office  of  the Secretary of the Navy, Washington, D.C., 1987. Directives  Issuance  Systems,   SECNAVINST 5215.lC,  Office  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy, Washington,  D.C.,  1970. Disposal  of  Navy  and  Marine  Corps  Records, SECNAVINST  5212.5C,  Office  of  the  Secretary  of  the Navy, Washington, D.C., 1985. 8-21