PERSONNEL INITIATIVES

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80B01554R003300260012-9
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: February 23, 2005
• Sequence Number: 12
• Publication Date: May 22, 1979
• Content Type: MF

Approved For Release 2005/03/16: CIA-RDP80B01554R00303300260012-9
22 May 1979
MEMORANDUM FOR: Deputy Director of Central Intelligence
FROM: Director of Central Intelligence
SUBJECT: Personnel Initiatives
Here are some personnel ideas that are kicking around the
campus.
a. Harry Fitzwater should be nearing completion of a project
he started as Director of Training to use computer modelling
techniques to determine personnel requirements for the DDO for the
next 5-10 years. When Harry has something to look at, let's get
together and see whether or not this route might be profitable to
follow for the other directorates. If it seems to be, and if the
results can be made to keep abreast as requirements change, -then
wouldn't this enable us to give more precise qualitative goals to
our recruiters in. the field?
b. In recruiting professionals for NFAC and possibly other
directorates, might we not be well served if, rather than seeking
the BA/MA/PhD type exclusively, we consider as an equivalent the
individual with a Bachelor's degree from a strong college plus two
post-BA, but non-PhD degrees--one in a substantive field, the
other in a technical field? These individuals, though certainly
limited in number, have been characterized by some educators as
the "wave of the future." The arguments educators use which seem
especially applicable to our needs are:
? Given the interdisciplinary thrust which we seek, the
two-MA type will be able to handle interdisciplinary problems
better by virtue of having graduate degrees in two different
fields. That this breadth will enable him to integrate
knowledge better within his own analytic capabilities;
? Will be more flexible, open-minded, open to evidence
from diverse sources and also more articulate because he is
less influenced or biased than the individual coming from a
single discipline or. school; and
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That he may develop stronger loyalties to the Agency
or public service in general than the PhD who often has a
stronger loyalty to his disciplinary field.
Whether or not this rationale is totally valid, it might
be worth our looking at this type of individual because certainly
they possess rather unique capabilities; their numbers may be
growing; and, in many ways, they may fulfill our future needs as
well if not better than the traditionally educated PhD.
c. When we have settled on the personnel requirements for
each directorate, consider consulting with the Educational Testing
Service or a comparable organization to take a comprehensive look
at our personnel requirements and how well they are revealed by
our battery of entry screening tests. We have been using the same
kinds of tests for quite awhile with apparent success, but perhaps
we could do better.
d. Take a look at the idea of a fundamental training/orienta-
tion year for all new entry-level professionals as an alternative
to the present CT Program. I recognize that the DDO gets most of
its people via the CT Program and is very.committed to it. But,
if that route has been successful for the DDO, why would it not
also be good for other entry-level professionals as well?
A uniform training year at entry would give us the opportunity to
look at all new recruits and sort them out according to how they
do and where their interests lie. The training period might have
a somewhat more general content than the present CT Program and
include a systematic rotation among all the major directorates and
components. The recruits would be exposed to the entire organiza-
tion, and each component could look over the recruits. The recruit
and the Agency would be able to make a more informed decision on
where the recruit fits best. It might also help to break down
internal parochialisms if we start the recruit off with a.broad
perspective of the whole Agency rather than isolating him immediately
in one directorate.
e. The Student Trainee and Graduate Intern Programs seem to
be excellent mechanisms for looking candidates over before we have
to make a firm commitment to them. Should we expand either program?
Should we develop additional programs perhaps to include other
categories of candidates?
Approved For Release 2005/03/16 : CIA-RDP80B01554R003300260012-9