EXTERNAL CONTRACTS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80B01495R000600160010-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 26, 2005
• Sequence Number: 10
• Publication Date: April 3, 1973
• Content Type: MF

Approved For Release 2005/11/ n ECf P80B01495RQQW0160010-1
3 April 1973
MEMORANDUM FOR: Assistant Deputy Director for
Intelligence
1. Most of our current external contracts are
for projects involving detailed statistical compi-
lations or for analysis that requires a particular
skill that we do not have or that is in short supply.
We have established a continuing dialogue with
economists in the academic community who work on
Communist countries without the use of contracts.
Personal contacts have been developed over the
years with the top professionals in this field, and
we have found that our contributions to the JEC
series have been useful in stimulating an exchange
of views and research with an even larger professional
audience.
2. Our experience with external contracts has
not been entirely satisfactory. We have found it
difficult to achieve an identity of interest between
what we want done and what the contractor wants to
do. Even with close supervision it is sometimes
hard to control the focus of the final product,
not to mention its quality. Source materials have
been another problem. University libraries do not
have the range of unclassified material that is
available in OER and giving the contractor access
to classified information is complicated; at times
it is impossibl
be expected to respond in a timely fashion to ad hoc
requests.
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Approved For Release 2005/1 tL IE-hpP80B01495R000600160010-1
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3. As a rule we have been pleased with external
contracts on specialized subjects such as demographic
and labor force statistics, analysis of Soviet input-
output data, trade statistics of Communist countries,
and the trade-flow model. Other contracts of this
type are feasible, including work on ruble-dollar
ratios, analysis of Communist trade statistics, and
models of various sorts. Our contributions to the
NIS program also might be considered, but we are
less sanguine about the likely quality of contract
work for this purpose.
4. Outside of the specialized subjects mentioned
above, there are only limited opportunities for
external contracts. In order to be responsive to
the needs of policy officials, it is essential that
we maintain an in-house research capability on
virtually all countries and on the major sectors
of the most important countries. We would want to
be very selective in contracting out basic research
projects in order to avoid detracting from our own
ability to respond to policy issues.
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MAURICE C. ERNST
Director
Economic Research
Approved For Release 20'lTIA-RDP80B01495R000600160010-1