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(U) The Art of Sharing: Insight and Continuity
FROM: Charles Berlin
Assistant Deputy Director for Customer Relationships (S1)
Run Date: 04/07/2005
(C) As you may know, MG Quirk and the crew are visiting our outstanding SIGINTers and
customers out in the field. As of 2 April, we have visited Iraq and will move on to Afghanistan
and Pakistan in the next few days. I'd like to share with you a key understanding we got from a
customer engagement here in Iraq.
(U//FOUO) BG John DeFreitas is the senior military intelligence officer in Baghdad. We met with
him in his headquarters located in one of Saddam's old palaces. It was quite a contrast to see
the workman-like operations center set up in the ornately decorated, marble halls of the
"Perfume Palace". After the usual briefing covering his mission and requirements, BG DeFreitas
leaned back and gave us the good stuff (there is no substitute for meeting a customer face to
face in his own space).
(U//FOUO) He explained that his intelligence problem was very, very complex and constantly
changing and the operational paradigm is shifting from "US led" to "Iraqi led". He readily
admitted that he did not have a monopoly on understanding the situation or the way ahead. He
implored us to consider a special kind of sharing which he called insight . Our customers are
learning to ask for more than sharing data - they want us to share our conclusions, our
suspicions and our hypotheses - our insight . Naturally, they want it labeled as such but they are
expecting us to go beyond SIGINT fact, even beyond SIGINT assessments to predictive
intelligence. Yes, BG DeFreitas knows we are a single "INT", but he is a sophisticated user of our
service and has realized that the global SIGINT system is made up of thinking people and he
wants to mine that knowledge base. He is open to all thoughtful conclusions that you have.
Don't just share data; share yourself. Find a way to do that in a chat session, a VTC, a
product report or even a simple phone call. You can make a difference when you put your brain
online.
(U//FOUO) Continuity is a second concept that BG DeFreitas feels is critical to success. He told
us that there is a lot of turn-over out here in the combat zone and even back home in the
CONUS. BG DeFreitas is concerned about the impact of a lack of continuity on his mission.
Clearly, he appreciates that one of the things the global SIGINT system brings to the fight is
target depth and expertise. He wants to be assured that this important attribute does not
atrophy or stumble - he's counting on it. What can you do to help assure continuity? Well, if you
are working the Iraq problem consider volunteering for a deployment out here to get close to
the customer and the target. Capture what you know in a database, a report or a pass-on book.
Participate in the various VTC and chat rooms where this mission is being discussed. It's all right
to lurk for a while but eventually you will have to marshal your courage and put out an idea and
let your peers review it and criticize it. It may be a bit painful at first but you will be happy when
you see beyond the apparent criticism to see the value-added that comes with the application of
multiple brains to an idea. One impediment to sharing yourself encountered by the responsible
analyst is the hesitancy to act for fear of being wrong. Our credibility is important to our brand
and we want our customers to know they can bet their lives on our products and services. But
taken to the extreme this can result in analysis-paralysis waiting for the 100% solution to
appear (it never does, by the way). One of our important customers is telling us he is ready to
hear our emerging thoughts, especially if they advance the state of discourse on the subject. If
you have maintained continuity on the target, your insight will be important to share even if it is
at the 50% level. Get the discussion going with your analysis and keep it going with your
insight.
(U//FOUO) As the global SIGINT system transforms to a truly net-centric organism, we need to
learn the behaviors that we humans need to exhibit in this new environment. We have been
given a big hint in so many words from one of our most sophisticated and engaged customers
that we must change from our transactional relationship (you send in your requirements and
we'll send you some reports) to an intimate relationship where we really talk and, in the talking,
come to a mutual conclusion. This way of behaving is intensely human and is more art than
science. It is not the realm of fact alone - it is the realm of the meaning of the facts. Our
customers need to know so much more than the what they need to know the so what.
"(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