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HKS211x
Graham Allison, David E
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The online HKS-211x class will submit outlines only, not full-length memos
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Submitting Assignments:
All assignments must be emailed to their assigned Teaching Fellow by 6 p
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U
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Eastern Standard
Time on the due date in order to receive credit toward a certificate
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Guidelines for Strategic Options Memos:
Strategic Options Memos are a means of communicating policy analysis and recommendations to
senior policymakers
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The following guidelines are not to be a procrustean bed
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They provide a baseline that can serve as an outline for a good
memo
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Thus when in
doubt, follow the guidelines
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For example, in the Syria case, you are asked to take as your coordinates the national interests
of the U
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, not those of Syria or neighboring countries
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HKS-211x: Assignment Guidelines/SOPs

p
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Drafting outlines requires doing most
of the analytic work required for a three-page Strategic Options Memo
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They should include standard memo headers (To, From, Re:)
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Content/Structure
Strategic Options Memos and Outlines should include the following sections:
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Issue: What is the policy question to be answered? A one-sentence summary of the issue facing
the policymaker
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S
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” See
“Commission on America’s National Interests” (1st assignment reading)
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Sometimes
useful to array using threat/opportunity framework
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Not a history lesson
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S
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Operational Objectives [optional]: Given interests, threats, opportunities, and the capabilities
that can mobilized, in many cases, it is useful to summarize one or two operational, achievable
objectives to advance national interests identified above in addressing challenge
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Strategic Options: What are the major strategic alternative courses of action? What are the
pros and cons of each? Identify at least 3 distinct strategies that could be implemented to
achieve the operational objectives and advance the national interests identified earlier in the
memo
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Assess pros and cons of
each
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Do not

HKS-211x: Assignment Guidelines/SOPs

p
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Recommendation: A concise (generally one-sentence) summary of the option you recommend
and why you recommend it
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Where feasible, include indicators of effectiveness or early clues about whether the strategy is
succeeding, or needs to be adapted or changed
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Incentive: Let the decision maker know why he or she should address this issue now
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Brevity: Be brief
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Put yourself in the
decision maker’s place: what facts and analytic insights are essential for making a sound decision?
Avoid overly elaborate analysis and the temptation to show off technical skills
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Bias: You often cannot avoid having a personal point of view
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4
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While frankness is
important, consider how your memo would look on the front pages of national and/or local
newspapers
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Big Picture: How does the issue relate to other issues under consideration? Will the consequences
of alternative courses of action be importantly affected by developments on other fronts? Keep in
mind the “Big Picture” to avoid getting bogged down in irrelevant or trivial details
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6
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Answer the question asked
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7
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Sidestepping or blurring these issues will lead to unpleasant
surprises for the decision maker—and in turn for the memo writer
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Uncertainties: Give your best estimate of probabilities
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Instead of saying that an outcome will “probably”
occur, give your best guess—do you mean “better than even,” “two out of three chance,” or
“95%?” It may feel uncomfortable to attach precise estimates, but it is worse to bury your best
judgment in ambiguities
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HKS-211x: Assignment Guidelines/SOPs

p
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Leave the politics out, for the most part
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Rarely
will your boss seek your political advice
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Conversations about how to
manage this politically (what are the tactics of Congressional relations, etc
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Of course, your analysis should not be politically naïve

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