GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS FOR AGENCY MID-CAREER COURSE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP63-00309A000200060017-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: December 12, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 19, 2001
• Sequence Number: 17
• Publication Date: January 20, 1960
• Content Type: MEMO

STANDARD FORM App v d For Release 2 01AQXFW~
Office Memorandum ? UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT
? Chief, Intelligence School
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This paper sets forth my personal ideas regarding the need for
a Mid-04r
per Training Program for professional personnel in the
Agency and some general recommendations as to the form I feel it
should take.
suBJECr: General Recommendations for Agency Mid-Career Course
1. Introduction
Admittedly, many of the suggestions are based upon my recent
experiences as a student in the State Department Mid-Career Course.
I do feel strongly, however, that there are some aspects of the
State Department program which would have equal validity for personnel
in our own Agency. I have tried to adapt these ideas, however, to the
particular needs of our agency and have added some additional thoughts
of my own regarding objectives and emphasis.
2. Need for Program
a. Within the past few years the Agency and the Office of
Training have been giving increasing attention to the recruiting,
development, and training of the Junior Officer Trainees. The present
JOT, when he has completed his formal one-to two-year training pro-
gram, has a much more thorough understanding and grasp of foreign
policy, the relationship of intelligence to policy, the theory and
practice of international communism, and the organization of the in-
telligence community and of CIA`than did his professional predecessor
who entered the Agency five to ten years ago. There were no compar-
able opportunities for the newcomer of that era, and he has, for the
most part, lacked the broad base of understanding and perspective
which the present JOT has been able to obtain in a relatively short
time.
b. It is this lack of breadth which may~in the long run, put to
serious disadvantagerthe mid-career officer in his career develop-
ment, as opportunities at the higher level become more and more
competitive.
DATE: 20 January 1960
c. As the DCI has pointed outs' on several occasions the Agency
has already reached the point at which we will have to continue to
perform more and more sophisticated and specialized tasks with no
more, and possibly fewerpersonnel. This situation in itself makes
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it vitally important to develop superior talent at the mid-career
level now, since the day is not far off when these people will be
holding the decision-making positions in the agency and will need
breadth of a type which cannot often be achieved merely by diligent
and creative effort in one of the compartmentalized tasks which
make up the bulk of Agency assignments.
d. What is needed, in my opinion, is a substantial and
sufficiently broad training program which can be used in part as
a criterion for selecting those who have the greatest potential
for higher level positions in the Agency. It is true that the
quality of work performance can usually be readily determined by
an astute supervisor or division chief by this time in a mants
career. Nevertheless, as a man does increase his area of responsi-
bility, so does the need for greater perspective and understanding
increase. The Chief of a Field Station, for example, is much closer
to the policy formulated by the Secretary of State and the Ambassador
than is his GS-12 or GS-13 Reports Officer; his sights need to be
higher, his vision clearer, and his perspective broader.
e. It appears to me that one of the basic management problems
in the Agency is caused not by the lack of more formal "management
training" programs per se; but by the fact that there may be too
many specialists in higher level positions,4whose backgrounds are
not broad enough to cope with their increased responsibilities.
One of the functions of the proposed course would be to broaden the
perspective of those who had al ready been earmarked by their offices
as having particularly good potential for eventual advancement into
senior positions.
f. Obviously, the success of such a program would be to a large
extent dependent upon the selection of students to take the course.
Students who were selected merely to fill a quota or because they
could be most easily spared would be wasted; this would be creating
a selective career development opportunity for those least able to
profit from it.
The trainees, to my mind, should be selected by Career Boards on
the basis of such questions ash-egg. Who have received the best
Fitness Reports? Who are th future executives and administrators
of this office (or division)?f Who has done an excellent job so far,
but needs some broadening before we can promote him to a more respon-
sible job?
3. Type of Program
a. By the time the CIA officer has reached the d-career point
(and I am thinking generally of the GS-12 to 13 rangeland roughly
the 35-42 age bracket) he has already developed the basic tools of
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his trade--in the case of the DD/I, research and analysis method-
ologies--in the case of the DD/P, operational (tradecraft) and re-
porting techniques--but he still has 20-25 years of his career
ahead of him. The main purpose of the mid-career program, then, would
not be to bring the student "pup-to-date" on these methods and tech-
niques. It appears to me that the technical, operational, orientation)
and refresher courses now in existence would continue to perform this
function.
The purpose of the mid-career program, on the contrary, would
be to present the student with new concepts, new ideasrwhichiin
turn,)would provide him with a broader base for conducting future re-
search and future operations and for making future decisions necessi-
tated by increased responsibility. It would also the student,
through a presentation of ral and written exercises, to increase his
competence in these areas/and to present to Career Service Boards
evidence of excellence in these skills, which often become increas-
ingly important in higher level positions.
b. One of the most stimulating features of the State Department
Mid-Career Program was the emphasis upon an understanding of peoples,
cultures, and social frameworks. Here in CIA, whether running agent
operations or writing Current Intelligence Reports, we too are con-
cerned with people or with events as being shaped by people. People
in turn are shaped by their cultural and anthropological backgrounds
as well as their individual personalities and their current environ-
ment.
Therefore, one of the major approaches of study in a mid-career
program should be an exposure to various methods of studying human
behavior from the standpoint of the social sciences. A systematic,
though necessarily cursory study of the method of psychology, cultural
anthropology, sociology, and other pertinent social sciences with
lectures given by prominent teachers who have had not only academic
proficiency but field experience would be the most efficient and
stimulating way to handle this phase of the course. The objective
of this phase would be to broaden the outlook and understanding of the
student and to teach concepts which in a later applied situation would
assist equally as well the analyst writing an Economic Intelligence
Report, the 0O/Contacts Officer reporting a conversation with an Arab
alien, or a case officer evaluating the report of. his agent in the
field.
c. Another significant aspect of a Mid-Career program should
be a basic understanding and appreciation of American Foreign Policy,
the Agencies of government which contribute to its formulation, and
the role which CIA and the intelligence community play in contri-
buting to and implementing the foreign policy process. This segment
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could be conducted in part by the OTR staff/ but would need to be
'iplemented by speakers at the policy level in other appropriate
agencies of government. The program I have in mind here would be
an expansion of the introductory phase of the present JOT program
with more emphasis on policy formulation and interdepartmental re-
sponsibilities and less time on internal CIA organization as such.
d. A third essential phase of the program would be a segment
on the Current Status and Objectives of International Communism.
Since the objectives of American foreign policy, as well as the in-
telligence community will always be determined by those of our
targets or opposition, a current analysis of the Communist program
and objectives would be an essential ingredient of such a program.
e. The three elements listed above constitute, to my mind, the
minimum essentials of such a program. A fourth element, concerned
with Executive Management, could be readily justified, especially
if one of the major objectives of the program is to identify the
executives of the future. It is much more economical to teach
managerial skills to an officer before he reaches an executive
position than after.
4. Length of Program
In order to provide at least minimum opportunity for oral and
written work on the part of the students, the course would need to
be at least six weeks in length. If a management phase were added,
it would have to be increased to eight. The average length of time
for such career development programs for jr. executives in industry,
such as those sponsored by AT&T-,is eight weeks.
In general, I would suggest the following breakdown:
1. (two weeks) The "academic" phase of the course, perhaps
entitled "The Interpretation of Mants Social Behavior," utilizing
talks by competent psychologists, anthropologists, sociologists,and
political scientistsrwho have had practical research experience in
foreign areas.
II. (two weeks)
a. The Formulation and Execution of National Policy
b. The Role of Intelligence Today
This phase of the course should include (1) Lectures and
discussions on the role of the Executive Branch in the planning
and formulation of Foreign Policy, with emphasis on agencies
concerned in the execution of foreign policy, such as State
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Department, ICA, USIA, and Department of Defense and (2)
An historical and evaluative approach to the study of
American intelligence, together with an analysis of the
support role of the USIB, its agencies, its operationsdand
(3 A current review of the mission, function, and organi-
zation of CIA.
III. (two weeks) "The Current Status and Objectives of Inter-
national Communism." (To be handled by the School of International
Communism, OTR).
IV. (two weeks) Executive Management. (To be handled by the
Management Faculty, IS, OTR).
TOTAL: (eight weeks)
5. Recommendations for Administration
The general administration of the course should be the responsi-
bility of the Intelligence School, since between 4-6 weeks of the
instruction would come under its purview. The two weeks in Communism
would be given by the SIC. Conceivably, some of the lectures in the
first two weeks of the program might be given by area specialists in
the Language and Area School, or other Agency components. The Opera-
tions School would contribute to the second phase of the course in a
general way, but tradecraft and techniques would not be emphasized.
The course could be administered by two professional people and one
training assistant. Class size should be small, not more than 20,
so as to allow for as much student participation and individual eval-
uation as possible. Although various faculties of OTR would be brought
into the program, a single "Course Director" or "Course Chairman" for
the entire program would be desirable.
6. Conclusion
I feel the development of such a program would go a long way in
closing a significant gap in our training program, and even more im-
portant, would provide an excellent screening device for Career
Service Boards seeking to identify and develop superior personnel
with above-average potential at the Mid-Career level in the Agency.
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