A PROGRAM FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A CAREER CORPS IN CIA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-01826R000100010040-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: December 12, 2016
• Document Release Date: April 22, 2002
• Sequence Number: 40
• Publication Date: August 31, 1951
• Content Type: MEMO

Approved Foelease 2002/0 /1 : CIA-RDP80-01829i100010001004i.
Approved For Release 2002/06/13 CIA-RDP80-01826R000100010040-0
 Approved Fo elease 200210 1j,3 : CIA-RDP80-01829MOO100O1004Q&
2 r
n
31 August 1951
I J>
i'1~MORG1?D17M FOR THE 1)IRECTOR OF TRAINING
SUBJECT: A Program for the Establishment of a Career Corps in CIA
f'EF 1RENCE: Director of Training; memorandum dated 7 August 1951,
transmitting a Proposal to Establish and Irrplernent a
Career Corps Program in CIA
O/NE comments on subject proposal follow. In transmitting
these comments we could point out that we have deliberately
stressed the to us objectionable features of your proposals. We
stand ready to help you in any way we can.
1. General.
a. The report is an important, commendable and valuable
contribution to a systematic approach to the personnel problems
of the agency. However, three separate though related problems
have been grouped somewhat confusingly under one heading. These
appear to be: (a) a proposal for recruitment procedures; (b)
a proposal for an agency-wide career management program; and (c) a
proposal for a elite "career corps". It is not clear from the
report whether there is to be a separate, smaller elite "career
corps" within the larger career management program, or whether
the career corps is gradually to be expanded to cover all
professional personnel-of certain grades. We therefore suggest
a redrafting of the proposal to clearly separate these three
aspects. We believe, in general, that the proposed recruiting
procedures are excellent and could be implemented. We also
favor an agency-wide career management program. We are opposed,
however, to the creation of a small elite "career corps",
b. Moreover, the proposal seems overly ambitious and
comprehensive in many respects. There is, in our opinion, too
much emphasis on over elaborate testing techniques, schools,
etc. The program seems to reflect more familiarity with
personnel administration than with substantive intelligence needs.
Approved For Release 200 - DP80-01826R000100010040-0
0
0
 Approved Foxelease or Z 004Q&V
Wolwy
Recruitment.
III
a. T??e concur in the proposals made for the recruitment of
professional trainees.
b. One factor making it difficult to review the proposal
in terms of the magnitude of the required effort is the lack of
any estimate of our annual requirement for new personnel. Assuming
moderate expansion and normal turnover, we could note that it is
important to gear the publicity given the program in the various
colleges with the number of vacancies likely to be available.
There is some danger in arousing interest and hopes in many
students if the intake is going to be restricted to a few.
c. In listing the most popular colleges you have not ex-
hausted the list of schools from which the agency could obtain
students with special and needed qualifications. Furthermore,
your list of schools probably should be reconsidered on the
ground that it is not nationally representative.
d. (The part to be played by women professional employees
ought to be carefully reviewed.)
e. Insofar as this involves an outlay of CIA funds, we
believe-the emphasis should be shifted from pre-selection training
to post-selection training. It is frequently wasteful and expensive
to spend funds on people who may not actually join the agency.
:'here training is given selectees, we would recommend that they
be required to obligate themselves either to serve the agency for
a given period or to reimburse the agency for outlays made on
their behalf.
f. (we would caution against selection on the basis of the
breakdown of the group of trainees set forth in Appendix A (p. 19).
The combination of qualifications to stress seems to us to be:
good brain, imagination, and good training
3. Career Management.
F"Ga CWI'V awCt -rR ,ja 0.ltK~G~- . 1 r
a. C~P? concur the proposal for the inauguration of a
career management ograxa and believes that it should be implemented
at once.(,,?This, oarticulaxly in the sense that efforts are to be
wade to widen the experience of CIA personnel, to increase the
possibilities for gaining experience in the field and for advanced
education, to the end that a competent individual can advance to
positions of greater responsibility within the agency,
0
O
Approved For Release 2MCIA-RDP80-01826R000100010040-0
 Approved ForQwlease 201J1 :'GI DP80-01826 0010001004 ,
- J -
IA
Ilk
,t\
b. We woulkquestion the extensive use of testing techniques
to determine the rotation plan for an individual once he has been
with CIA for some time and favor the more direct methiod of selection
on the basis of a review of individual performance 1d have been
particularly impressed by the varied backgrounds and personalities
of people successful in intelligence work.
c. T'e have further reservations about the training program.
Can it be demonstrated that we are justified in giving every
trainee twelve weeks of Russian language? In the mixture of
grammar and graduate school proposed are there in fact certain
"fundamentals of intelligence" that can be imparted?
d. The appraisal system and rating forms proposed raise
all the old questions about employee ratings. Dozens of systems
have been devised, but they all are weak because rating is a
subjective affair. These schemes work fairly well where you have
measurable work loads, but in an agency like CIS., you have numerous
supervisors rating on non-measurable qualities.
e. (he consider the division made between the generalists
and the ecialists as somewhat arbitrary and, in any cae,61 a
distinction which should not be made too early in the career of
the intelligence officer. he consider the distinction as perhaps
valid for some fields, such as the scientific field. By and large,
however, intelligence work is a mixture. he feel that often the
thing which a generalist needs more is an insight into the job of
the specialist, or even perhaps some intensive specialist training.
By the same token, the specialist who knows all the trees, ought
to know what the woods look like.
f. The distinction between generalist and specialist, if any,
we beTieve will come about not as a result of arbitrary designation
or election but as a result of individual expres ion through normal
development processes and reaction to training. (The result of the
evolutionary process of acquiring more experiene in intelligence
will naturally lead to the selection of the individual to positions
for which he is qualified, be they positions requiring specialisation
or general background and experience. The main contribution of
career management lies in making it possible for individuals to
prepare themselves and to make available opportunities for those
ho have in fact nrep
ared.
r. re would question the over-elaboration of training schools
in thh`upper brackets. ?ate consider it wholly inadvisable to set
up a CIA school at the National Intelligence level, and fail to
see what useful purpose this might serve. In our view, an attempt
to do this would result either in duuplicating the work of the
National her College and established civilian institutions, or
Approved For Release Eg"IMPIMP
U.RET. CIA-RDP80-01826R000100010040-0
 Approved Fo,elease -RDP80-01826000010001004Q?-
in having a second-rate curriculum of questionable value. At this
level a year of on-the-job-training would be much more valuable
than a year spent in a super-intelligence school.
4. Career Corps.
a. consider it inadvisable to set up a "career corps" if
this means the formation of a small elite corps. Employment in
CIA should be a career, in general, but ,he creation of an elite
corps within the agency would also create a morale problem among
employees not in the ttclub't. It would pile up personnel problems
for the future as well, as the Foreign Service has recently found.
b. If it is envisaged that most employees would initially
or eventually be in the corps, then there is no need to establish
a special corps. You would simply be applying a collective name
to the total of CIA employees.
c. If it is decided nevertheless that there is to be a
career cores, it should be a relatively small and elite group
(~ - 101'' of total agency -personnel). 'e concur that such a group
should be limited to those selected from employees who have been
.ith CIA at least 2 years. Such a program should be handled quietly
rather than eublicizedso as to minimize the adverse morale effects
on those not included. Moreover, in view of the past lack of a
uniform recruitin,, and promotion policy within the agency, we
s_riously question whether there,should be arbitrary grade and
a^n limitations on the candidates to be selected.
. Recommendations.
a. That the general proposals affecting agency recruitment
,policies be adopted and vigorously implemented.
b. That the proposals affecting the establishment of a career
management program be adopted and implemented as soon as practicable,
details to be iewed in the light of comments received and experience
ip operation. LevIn the implementation of training proposals, emphasis
shall be placed on a mixture of trainin through rotation and schooling
outside the a eney.)
c. That the specific proposal for the creation of a super-
:;_ntelligence school be rejected.
Approved For Release 200 AA-RDP80-01826R000100010040-0
 Approved Foelease
IA-RDP80-0182OR00010001004
d. That thf proposal to establish a c ?reer corgis per se
be reconsidered at a later date in the light of the progress made
.rich the career mana ement program emerging from the present effort.
FOR THE NSSISTAI]T DI1? ACTOR FOR A ATIONPL i'STII, AT1 S:
Approved For Releas
C)
25X1A9A