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(U) Working From a (Northwest) Corner Office
FROM:
Operations Chief, Yakima Research Station (F92)
Run Date: 07/13/2006
(S) The SIGINT world is small, and getting smaller: how an analyst can tie into the system and
be productive even when located far away from the main production centers.
(S//SI) Pop quiz: Where is the analyst who has produced over 700 reports in 30 months on
state and Islamic Extremist weapons procurement in the Horn of Africa (HOA)?
a. At Ft. Meade, in S2A2 (Sub-Saharan Africa)
b. At NSA-Georgia (Somalia shop)
c. At CENTCOM (Primary Customer)
d. At Yakima Research Station in Washington State (no connection)
(U//FOUO) The correct answer is the most unlikely: Yakima. This story demonstrates that global,
net-centric operations is not only a viable concept but also has tangible benefits beyond mission
assurance.
(C) The analyst is Captain
US Army Reserve. When
separated from
active duty at the GRSOC* in late 2003, he became a reservist but moved to central
Washington, near his extended family. Rather than lose a skilled analyst working a unique
mission, the (then) GRSOC arranged for the Army Reserve to mobilize
for a year. Yakima
Research Station (YRS), near his new home, agreed to host him as a virtual member of the
GRSOC mission.
(S) Thirty months later, this experiment can be called an unqualified success.
's activation
has been extended twice, his productivity is higher than ever, and his connectivity is not just to
Georgia. He has been part of an intelligence team that models active collaboration between
SIGINT, Human Intelligence (HUMINT) and Imagery Intelligence (IMINT) analysts.
(S//SI) What makes
's story possible is, in large part,
. Only a well-trained and wellmotivated analyst like him can be entrusted with such an independent mission. But his work is
enabled by network connections that allow him to reach data and interact with analysts around
the globe as if they were in a nearby cubicle. Consider the scope of contacts in his average
workday:
Most of his intercept comes from SSO . He consults daily with analysts in S2A2 and
Georgia on a shared queue of traffic.
analyzes English voice and fax material, but an increasing percentage of his traffic
is in other languages. He forwards traffic electronically to linguists at several sites for
processing.
drafts Egrams in Skywriter, just like other Georgia reporters. The fact that he is
3000+ miles from the releaser is irrelevant to the process and invisible to the customer.
routinely tips incoming Horn of Africa arms shipments via secure email to analysts
at NGA** in Washington, D.C., and to CJTF-HOA** in Djibouti. His tips have lead to
numerous IMINT and HUMINT reports that confirm and enhance SIGINT.
has even acted as a long-distance mentor for reserve analysts who drill at NSAGeorgia and Ft. Dix, NJ. Through the net he gives them work assignments, receives their
analysis and report drafts, and provides performance feedback.
has used the net to continue his professional skill development at Yakima by
completing hundreds of hours of online NCS courses.
(C) The primary advantage of being able to perform a given SIGINT mission from anywhere on
the net is mission assurance through dispersion, but this case shows us that there are other
advantages.
(U//FOUO) Quality of life is a big one. Employees who place a premium on work-life balance, like
, appreciate an opportunity to work outside of the Baltimore-Washington corridor in a place
that offers affordable housing, no traffic, low crime and a family-friendly, small-town culture. As
NSA competes with private industry to hire technical workers into entry-level positions, or even
to retain our skilled, mid-career employees, the quality-of-life quotient offered by a location like
Yakima may be the only incentive that can offset higher salaries.
(S//SI) Other benefits accrue simply from skill sharing in another location. For example,
working with our FORNSAT target development team has given
useful new SIGINT
Development insights. He receives local transcription/translation support from YRS linguists, who
in turn gain knowledge of Chinese and Russian weapons proliferation. Finally,
has used his
reserve experience to help YRS establish and manage a training program with a local Navy
Reserve unit.
(U//FOUO)
s story demonstrates the value and viability of net-centric operations, even
with an Army - or analyst - of one.
(U//FOUO) Notes:
* GRSOC = Ft Gordon Regional Security Operations Center, renamed NSA/CSS Georgia in May
2005 (ref DIRGRAM-423) .
** NGA = National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency; CJTF-HOA = Combined Joint Task ForceHorn of Africa
"(U//FOUO) SIDtoday articles may not be republished or reposted outside NSANet
without the consent of S0121 (DL sid_comms)."
DYNAMIC PAGE -- HIGHEST POSSIBLE CLASSIFICATION IS
TOP SECRET // SI / TK // REL TO USA AUS CAN GBR NZL
DERIVED FROM: NSA/CSSM 1-52, DATED 08 JAN 2007 DECLASSIFY ON: 20320108