MINUTES OF 3 MARCH 1983 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING: RECRUITMENT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP85B01152R001001300065-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: December 21, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 27, 2008
• Sequence Number: 65
• Publication Date: March 14, 1983
• Content Type: MEMO

Approved For Release 2008/06/27: CIA-RDP85B01152R001001300065-4
~~
~
~
EXCOM 007-83
14 March 1983
MEMORANDUM FOR: Executive Committee Members
.25X1 FROM:
.Executive Assistant to the DDCI
SUBJECT: Minutes of 3 March 1983 Executive Committee Meeting:
Recruitment
1. The Executive Committee met on 3 March 1983 to review recommendations
of a recent Inspector Gener ~ ocularly the entry-on-
25X1 duty processing phase. chaired the session;
participants included Messrs. McMahon (DDCI); Fitzwater (DDA);_~tein (_pD0);
25X1 Gates (DDI); Hineman (DDS&T); Taylor (IG); Glerum (D/OP); and (CT Task
Force).
2. Mr. Taylor highlighted the major findings of the IG Survey on EOD
Processing. He praised the cooperation his staff had rece,~ved from the Office
of Personnel, noting many recommendations had already been'implemented. The
inspection surfaced two major categories of complaints: the length of time
required to bring new employees on duty; and the mistakes made during process-
ing. Two categories of solutions were offered--procedural and organizational.
Procedural recommendations included weeding out more applicants earlier in the
process, reducing the number of steps in the process, reducing the length of
processing tc, four months, and making the process less cumbersome for those
going through it. Organizationally, the survey recommended creating anew
Office of Employment, bringing together elements of the three offices involved
in processing--Personnel, Medical Services and Security. Mr. Taylor thought
these procedural .and organizational changes should go hand-in-hand and that
.the time was right for making them. He also pointed out that the key to
success would be more direct component involvement in the recruitment process.
25X1 3. reviewed the progress made by his recently formed Career_
Trainee asc Force. He noted plans to lessen dependence on advertising for
CT recruits and to increase dependence on the Academic Associate Program. He
noted that the D/EEO had surfaced some good candidates through participating
. in job fairs. He mentioned that administering the PAT-B earlier in the appli-
cation process had helped, but noted. the Agency still was not ettin the 60
25X1 applicant files a week required to meet its hiring goals. observed
that the drug disqualification policy--particularly differen interpretations
of that policy--eliminates many potential candidates.- The Director of Security
25X1 CONFIDENTIAL
Approved For Release 2008/06/27: CIA-RDP85B01152R001001300065-4
 Approved For Release 2008/06/27: CIA-RDP85B01152R001001300065-4
?
has agreed to help clarify that pol-icy and suggested using a "hot Tine" for
answering recruiters' questions regarding "recreationa drugs."
25X1 The DDCI f avored this idea. In response to questions, noted
several-administrative hurdles that have slowed his progress. Before turning
to Mr. Glerum, Mr. McMahon noted previous reviews of the recruitment process
and cases that had come to his attention indicating the recruitment process
needed to be improved. He pointed out that former DDCI Inman had initiated
this particular review last year because of complaints he had received.
4. Mr. Glerum acknowledged that the recruitment system had some weak-
. nesses. He believed most of the recent problems, however, could be attributed
to overloading the system to meet the FY-83 ceiling increases. As the number
of people in the pipeline approaches the goal of 680 suggested in a previous
review, backlogs and delays should be eased. Per. Glerum reviewed improvements
that have been made and noted the need to work more on improving "customer
relations," which will now be included in performance evaluations. Personnel
processing assistant slots will be upgraded from GS-07s to GS-08s. Mr. Glerum
asked members to provide him feedback directly so ha could solve problems. He
l
d
d
au
e
components for handling applicants more e;:peditiously and encouraged
them to do more "selling" of the Agency. He pointed out that a modern ADP
tracking system was necessary to improve applicant processing. Mr. Gier?rn
d
a
vised against the r ~ command ?~
n -con ro pro hems existed amon OP OMS and OS. After seriously consider-
ing e suggested changes, his office concluded that the current centralized
system would-serve the Agency better. Mr. Glerum stated. that his office cvas
prepared to deal with existing. problems and would like to get on with it.
25X1 5. asked for members' com;^~nts on the IG's recemm~ndations,
the suggested reorganization, and their willingness to support additional
line involvement in the recruitment process. t1r. Hineman noted that the
recruitment process had been a long-time concern and periodic fine tuning
had not seemed to solve anything. He found merit in ttie IG's suag~stions
but noted that as organizational changes were made, some people changes would
also probably be necessary.- He did not think upgrading processing assistant
slots to GS-08s would help much. He thought concerns about redundancy in the
suggested new office could be worked out. If the ne4v office vrere not tried,
he suggested there might be merit in returning the Office of Personnel to
the DDA. He noted that during better times applicant processing took six
months and that was still much too long. Three to four months should be an
attainable goal. Whatever changes were made, Mr. Hineman urged not turning
off the pipeline in the process.
6. Mr. Fitzwater advised that .the average applicant processing time
at NSA was six months, and at the Department of Defense it was five months.
He agreed with the problems cited in the IG survey but not the solutions.
The two major problems in his view were the long processing time and poor
COfJFIDEPiTIAL
Approved For Release 2008/06/27: CIA-RDP85B01152R001001300065-4
 Approved For Release 2008/06/27: CIA-RDP85B01152R001001300065-4
?
communications. He did not think the suggested reorganization vrould improve
the system and thought it could be detrimental to the polygraph operators in
Security. Mr. Fitzwater suggested a reorganization of Personnel's Professional
Staffing Branch (see attached), however, which he thought vrould facilitate
enhanced personal-attention and greater dialogue between components-and
applicants. He .said that personnel processing assistant slots should be
higher than GS-08s.
7. Mr. Gates noted having participated in several senior reviews of the
recruitment process with no apparent positive results. He was sympathetic to
the IG's recommendations. He suggested that problems with recruitment might
be draining other Personnel resources, with other programs suffering as a
result. He noted continuing disappointment that the Office of Personnel was
not being aggressive- in improving benefits and services. With disincentives
to Government service increasing, he pointed out the need to do whatever
possible to make it easier to bring new employees on board and to use more
imagination in working harder to retain them. He also said that personnel
increases expected in 1984 and 1985 make it unlikely that our recruitment
efforts will taper- off. He suggested that :..o~-~ fine tuning would not be
sufficient and advocated at least two organizational changes be seriously
considered: returning the Office of Personnel to the DOA to again put one
person in charge of all recruitment elements and then splitting that office
into an Office of Employment and an Office of Benefits and Services. Even if
no organizational changes were made, he urged more component involvement in
recruitment. He also encouraged more willingness to be creative in using the
student co-op program as a means of recruiting minorities. He suggested
making. better use of employee probationary periods. In closing, he noted
that the recruitment problem was an institutional one that had transcended
the tours of several Directors of Personnel.
8. Mr. Stein observed that despite the length of applicant processing
time, the process could be considered effective if measured by the few
security problems the Agency has had. He suggested the process should be
shortened, ho~rr2ver, and the people. involved. should be upgraded and provided
additional training in interpersonal skills. He favored more line involve-
ment and thought a case could be made for returning the Office of Personnel
to the DDA. He did not favor the suggested reorganization, Hating it could
be counterproductive to remove people from their professional peers (e.g.,
polygraph operators). He said that he would b~ willing to contribute-some
people to help improve the process.
25X1 9: commented that at the high point of accelerated recruit-
ment bui -up uring the Korean War, applicant processing took three months.
He thought four months was a desirable goal. He emphasized that if procedural
and organizational changes are not monitored all the way down the line, they
will not be effective. He added that in those single career track offices
like OP where many employees spend a long time in one office, more lateral
movement would be a healthy thing.
COfdFIDEPdTIAL
Approved For Release 2008/06/27: CIA-RDP85B01152R001001300065-4
 Approved For Release 2008/06/27: CIA-RDP85B01152R001001300065-4
? COidFIDEiJTIAL ?
10. Mr. McMahon said that he had found the discussion very helpful and
hoped that it had also beers instructive for Mr. Glerum. He noted that he
25X1 and would think about the points made and reach the necessary
decisions. a would not make a decision to reorganize without being certain
it would result in an obvious net plus. Mr. McMahon said that he disagreed
with the arguments given for not moving polygraph operators out of the Office
of Security.. He was sympathetic to the need .to upgrade some people in Personnel
and to bring in some additional help. He thought a great deal could be accom-
plished by. being more attentive to the public relations aspects of recruiting.
Mr. McMahon commended the IG Staff for its courageous report that provided
considerable food for thought, and he welcomed its offering solutions as well.
as problems.
11. Mr. Glerum commented that too much weight had been put on the long
.processing time and said that no evidence existed that it caused the Agency
to lose candidates. Mr. Hineman strongly disagreed. P~h-. Gates, noting that
he ti~as losing specialists :rno were getiiny better offers in the private sector,
reiterated his concern for improving the total personnel process. Mr. Glerum
advised that his office had many ideas in the benefits and services area but
that he ,was being held back in using the DCI's special authorities. The
meeting was then adjourned.
Attachment:
As stated
4
CONFIDtidTIAL
Approved For Release 2008/06/27: CIA-RDP85B01152R001001300065-4
 Approved For Release 2008/06/27: CIA-RDP85B01152R001001300065-4
.. ~ ?
Distribution:
DDCI
ExDir
DDA
DDI
DDO
DDS&T
D/Personnel
Inspector General
EXCOM Subject
EXCOM Minutes
ER
Approved For Release 2008/06/27: CIA-RDP85B01152R001001300065-4
 Approved For Release 2008/06/27 :CIA-RDP85B01152R001001300065-4
DD/OP/RF~P
-----~~
,..Jtevicw .Unit
.,.~xpeditexs
..Correspondence
(Typing pool)
C/DD/1 ~ C/DDI C/DDS~,T CN15
'~ Prof. Stf. Br. Prof: Stf:~Br. Prof. Stf. Br. C/DDO/~ Staff
;~_
C/~1 t tni.t . C/B tlnit C/G 'Unit ~ ~ C/A Unit ' ' C B Unit C/C unit ~ C/A Ut nit C B Unit C/C~ Unit
_________.r
OIS ~ OC OI. SOVA OSVVR OIA OSO PBIS OTS
~'I'l? ODf' OS AL/l CP/1.S NISA ODF,r NPIC ORD
U~LS DUItA OCR UGI .
or:A
~~ I2es>>onsihle for: ~~-~
1. Conununications with components Fr applicants (personal approach - "my base")
2. Pressuring components for decisions
3. Scheduling appointments
4. Setting salaxies
S. Correspondence
6. Follow-up -
7. Quality control '
Approved For Release 2008/06/27 :CIA-RDP85B01152R001001300065-4