RESULTS OF A PRELIMINARY SURVEY MADE OF THE AGENCY'S CORRESPONDENCE PROCESSING SYSTEM

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP70-00211R000800090012-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: January 4, 2017
• Document Release Date: May 25, 2006
• Sequence Number: 12
• Publication Date: May 8, 1961
• Content Type: MF

Approved For Release 2006/05/25: CIA-RDP70-00211 R000800090012-0
MEMORANDUM FOR: Mr. Kirkpatrick '-
SUBJECT Results of a Preliminary Survey Made of the
Agency's Correspondence Processing System
1. A preliminary survey made of the Agency correspondence processing
system reveals a number of instances which reflect a duplication of effort,
waste of manpower and a general disregard for good management practices.
2. As background information, I would like to mention that the Centre
Mail Room in the new Headquarters Building receives a total volume of ab.isnt
', nailllvn pieces of mail a year with the principal sources being the U. S. Post
Office Department, interdepartmental courier service, letter drops, and direct
25X1 liaison with other departments of the Government, foreign embassies, private
enterprises, etc. The Central Mail Room employs ouriers, operates on a 24-
k our basis, and makes 8 deliveries daily to some 1 registries, 61 of these are
located in Headquarters _re located in the various Agency buildings of
downtown Washington. The Central Mail Room couriers do not effect delivery of
mail beyond one of the registries, since that is a responsibility of the registry.
As an example of the number of places serviced by these couriers, the USXB
material alone is delivered to approximately 28 widely separated receiving; points,
and it is necessary, on occasion, to assign 4 couriers and 4 vehicles on this run.
3. Listed below are some examples of what I consider mismanagement.
OIgTRIES. The 61 registries located within the new Headquarters Building are
the same units which existed in the various temporary buildings downtown before
the move to Langley. No effort has been made to reduce their number and size
after our consolidated move to the new building. As a result, we have in the now
building some 19 separate registries servicing the first floor alone, and this same
pattern exists on each and every floor. However, I would like to point out further
that these 61 registries here at Langley are only the main service points where
mail is delivered from the Central Mail Room. In all of the area divisions of DD/P,
there is not only a main registry but all branches within the divisions have registries
which are not shown in the total figure of 61. An example of this situation is in
25X1 the EE Division which has a main registry and smaller registries within the branches.
Some of these branch registries consist of one girl in the branch working part time
to log and disburse incoming and outgoing documents; in other case, such as the
the registry consists of 4 or 5 employees working full-time.
Attached is a list of the 61 registries in the new building.
MORUCIDIF
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COURIERS. The Central Mail Room uses some of its couriers to deliver mail to
State Dept, AEC, White House, Pentagon, FBI, etc. There are also couriers
operating out of DD/P, O/Security, OCI, as well as out of O/DCI making separate
deliveries to these same points, with the result that you have a duplication and a
crisscrossing of couriers on deliveries made to downtown Washington.
LOGGING PROCEDURE. There is no mandatory requirement within the Agency
for the use of Standard Form 240, Correspondence Receipt and Log Record
Document. However, the Central Mail. Room requires each of its couriers to
use this document when Secret or Confidential material is delivered. (Top Secret
material requires separate procedures.) Since the use of this form is not
required, it is therefore left to the judgment of other couriers within the Agency
to use or not to use this document. This results in an Agency-old practice,
particularly within the DD/P area, of the use of bootleg forms (forms which are
not Agency approved and are merely devised to suit the needs of a particular office).
POST OFFICE DEPT DELIVERY. The U. S. Post Office Dept. makes S deliveries
daily to R&S Bldg downtown. There, the mail received from the P. O. Dept is
sorted and distributed. Even though the Agency has moved to Langley, it is
interesting to note that the P. O. Dept still delivers its mail to R&S Bldg rather
than making direct delivery to the new building. This is particularly interesting in
view of the fact that 80% of the mail received in R&S is sorted and merely sent on .
to the Central Mail Room in Langley. The P. O. Dept has deliveries o:f mail to
the Pentagon each day, as well as to the post office in McLean, and there would
appear to be no great problem in the P. O. Dept revising its schedule for deliveries
direct from the city post office downtown to the new building here in Langley.
4. I would like to point out that the Records Management Staff of the DD/S
will be conducting a survey very shortly of the courier system within the DD/P.
As I understand it, this will be a fairly comprehensive study, and it will probably
take several weeks before it is completed.
CONCLUSIONS. The processing of correspondence is a very extensive one and
involves not only the efficient operation of the registries, but also the judicious
use of couriers. The Central Mail Room, by working 24 hours a day and with
its 8 deliveries daily to the various registries within the Agency, is making
every effort to see that the mail is promptly collected and distributed. However,
it is through the vast network of registries that the processing of correspondence
is hindered and needlessly delayed. Some of these registries should be con-
solidated with other registries or eliminated in toto. In essense, there are too
many people engaged in the handling of correspondence throughout the Agency.
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RECOMMENDATIONS. In view of the magnitude of the problem and the need
to alleviate this particular situation, it is recommended that Records Management
Staff immediately conduct a survey of the Agency's correspondence processing
system with emphasis on 1) reduction of a large number of the registries through
elimination, consolidation, etc. ; 2) centralized control over the use of couriers
throughout the Agency; 3) implementation of approved standard procedures for
the logging of all correspondence; 4) delivery of mail by the Post Office Dept
to the new Headquarters Building, rather than to R&S Building.
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Approved For Release 2006/05/25: CIA-RDP70-00211 R000800090012-0
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Approved For Release 2006/05/25: CIA-RDP70-00211 R000800090012-0