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(U//FOUO) Interview with... Carl Johnson, Assistant Deputy Director
for Customer Relationships (S1)
FROM: SIGINT Communications
Unknown
Run Date: 06/22/2004
FROM: SIGINT Communications
Unknown
(U//FOUO) Here's another in our series of interviews with SID leaders. Today's interview is with
Carl Johnson of the Customer Relationships Directorate (CRD, S1)
What was your first job at the Agency?
(S//SI) My first job at NSA, May 1976, was as an Air Force Traffic Analyst. I was part of a team
hand-picked by General Ardisana to update the technical health of the primary threat - USSR.
The project was called "PULSEBEAT" and I was personally responsible for updating Soviet Long
Range Aviation and Airborne Command Post TEXTA.
(S//SI) I was assigned to A62 wherein I applied knowledge learned on my previous assignment
as a Soviet Radioprinter Analyst in Misawa, Japan. These were exciting times, mainly because
the Soviet Union was our most immediate threat and A Group was the biggest target effort at
NSA. This was a great way to be introduced to NSA and to get "knee deep" in traffic analytic
technical learning.
What was the most memorable experience you've had during your career?
(S//SI) Managing the EP-3 Crisis (emergency landing of the US Navy EP-3E reconnaissance
aircraft on China's Hainan Island) while Chief of the China and Korea Product Line. My most
important concern was getting our air crew out of China safely and quickly. A huge bonus would
be getting the aircraft returned to the U.S. but that was ancillary to freeing our crew. When that
crew was released, I breathed a big sigh of relief. When they walked into my office at NSA, I was
very near tears looking at how young they were -- truly a highlight of my career!
What is the biggest challenge facing your organization right now?
(U//FOUO) Making CRD a full partner within the SID construct. We (CRD) view our business as a
vital and integral part of the SIGINT production continuum. CRD is the focal point of much of the
day-to-day interactions with our customers, but all of us in SID are in the fight together. We are
working hard to emphasize and reinforce how the collective efforts of all of us in SID -- together
with those of the IAD -- support the SIGINT and national defense missions. We all must share
more broadly, perform analysis and report faster-yet-precisely, and work against our highest
priorities. It takes the full SID complement to make us successful and a failure by any part
could lead to the collapse of any other part.
What is the most exciting project for the future that your org is currently undertaking?
(S//SI) CRD is the leading edge of SIGINT. We work to understand clients and to ensure their
satisfaction. We have projects underway to make both the clients and our fellow co-producers
understand the total picture better. JOURNEYMAN aims to assist analysts and reporters perform
their jobs better and more efficiently. IN Matcher will save our work force time by automating IN
selection. Tool developments will further enhance reporting capability and will help analysts/
reporters/ linguists write better products. New products and services will be more futuristic to
meet transformation goals and client needs. As we disperse mission to gain efficiencies and for
better mission assurance, the DSOC model is instructive on how CRD will engage customers.
New policies that are aggressive and progressive are being written. We're providing support to
troops and crises in unprecedented ways, to include having over 100 NSA persons in harm's
way. These are exciting times and CRD is out front for SID.
(U) See other interviews in this series:
Interview With... Fran Fleisch, China & Korea (S2B) Production Manager
Interview With... Deborah Maklowski, NSA/CSS Senior Intelligence Authority and IA Skill
Community Advocate
"(U//FOUO) SIDtoday articles may not be republished or reposted outside NSANet
without the consent of S0121 (DL sid_comms)."
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DERIVED FROM: NSA/CSSM 1-52, DATED 08 JAN 2007 DECLASSIFY ON: 20320108