MINUTES OF THE 27 MAY 1976 OTR STAFF MEETING

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP81-00896R000100010044-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 27, 2001
• Sequence Number: 44
• Publication Date: June 4, 1976
• Content Type: MFR

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4 JUN ,3
STATINTL
MEMORANDUM FOR THE RECORD
Secretary
SUBJECT: Minutes of the 27 May 1976 OTR Staff Meeting
1. The 27 May 1976 OTR Staff Meeting convened at 1400
hours and adjourned at 1635 hours. The DTR opened the
meeting by introducing Deputy Chief,
CIA Operations Center.
STATINTL 2, opened his remarks by noting that
the Opera______ an image problem in the Agency.
About four years ago the staff of the Center reviewed their
recruitment and training methods and established a minimum
set of standards. The image problem surfaced recently when
an individual, who knew very little about the Center except
the old Watch Officer image, reviewed the PETB on a highly
STATINTL promising candidate and recommended against his assignment
to the Center. stated that the Center had
been created to centralize the function with the latest
technology. Concerning the caliber of the new officers:
they are in the 20-26 age bracket; it is their first Agency
assignment (17 of them currently); and they are all college
graduates with a variety of degree subjects. They often can
pursue graduate study while working in the Center. They are
young, potentially very valuable Agency officers who keep
bumping into the old image of Watch Officers working in a
second class environment. The Center has embarked on an
intensive briefing program during the last 18 months in an
attempt to dispel this image.
STATINTL 3. briefly went through a series of
slides to s ow Rte emission, activities, and support role of
the Center. He noted that the physical layout of the Center
resembles a newsroom. He is looking for young, articulate,
poised individuals and will not take rejects from other
components. After two years in the Center, a person will
have a good grasp of the issues of the day and will have
dealt with all echelons in the Agency. Five years is a
maximum tour--more than that can be physically dangerous.
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requested that OTR instructors discuss the
Center with their students in current terms, not in terms of
the old Watch Office concept. The Center wants to project
the image of a sober, professional group of people to
outsiders. It cannot compete with other facilities, but it
does emphasize the cooperation with other centers.
4. The DTR reported on the DDA's morning meeting. He
then went around the table for the members' inputs.
5. Pendin Actions. The DTR asked for status reports
from the response le action officers on items due or pending.
6. Letters of Instruction. The DTR noted that LOIs
from the Unit Chiefs are due to the DDTR by 4 June (later
amended to 14 June). They should be similar to the current
ones but should reflect the new objectives and be related to
the-program for FY 1977. He stated his continued desire for
a briefing on LOI. Chief, FTD, alluded to a particular
problem here and offered to arrange for to brief
the group on this subject. This will be done prior to a
regular 16eting. The DTR noted that should
also brief personnel (Action: Chief, FTD).
7. The DTR will send copies of his draft LOI to the
Unit Chiefs, since this will have some effect on their
Letters. Chief, FTD, stated that the greatest benefit of
the LOI is as an agreement between the employee and the
supervisor. The DTR recalled the lack of job descriptions
in technical offices in which he has served. There is a
tendency to mix up LOIs and job descriptions. The DTR
stated that we need to help OTR people improve. He cited
8. OTR Instructions and Notices. The DTR stated that
these documents need to be reviewed and either updated or
rescinded. He charged the Unit Chiefs with reviewing those
which apply to their components. He noted that the STATINTL
Instructions and Notices are in good shape, and -ld STATINTL
stand fast before reviewing theirs. He also stated that
there should be a notice on the format for Instructions and
Notices; EO/TR was charged with preparing this. The DTR
also asked the Unit Chiefs to review any memoranda which
should be transferred to the instruction format (Action:
EO/TR).
program of career profiles.
the fact that individual skills have been inventoried in the
computer by OJCS. noted the Office of Personnel
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STATINTL
STATINTL
STATI NTL
STATINTL
9. New Concepts in Training. The-DTR referred to his
recent conversation with the new DDO. The first point
covered was the lack of training in liaison activities. The
DTR summarized points covered in 'a paper prepared by the
D/OT. The members discussed liaison training which had been
given in the past and noted the inherent dangers in pulling
out an old course for revival without a clear idea of the
objectives. OTR's resources also bear on this problem.
suggested that he provide the DTR with a paper
covering what is currentl iven on this subject in courses
at - The DTR asked to add this subject to a
Curriculum Committee Agenda (Action: STATINTL
10. The DTR next turned to the DDO's expression of
concern about cover. The members discussed several facets
of this problem, both from personal experiences abroad and
from recent problems involving Career Trainees. Two sug-
gestions were made for approaching this problem: that CSI
undertake.a project to study the overall problem; and that
the D/OT meet with Chief, CCS, to ascertain any ways in
which OTR could help to alleviate the problem. The DTR took
these suggestions under advisement.
11. The final item on this subject was the matter of
clandestine training, within the concept of the clandestine
corps. The DTR requested the Curriculum Committee to con-
sider this entire matter and come up with a response to the
DDO. He stated that OTR should make recommendations to the
DDO on how we can train these corps personnel. STATINTL
suggested that OTR should sit down with the DDO to define
what the corps concept means now and what it will mean in STATINTL
the future. The DTR asked to arrange a meeting of
D OT , FTD, LLC, on this question
(Action: I.
12. Positive Indicators. EO/TR explained the back-
ground of this objective. T e DTR stated that the DDA feels
positive indicators will aid in determining where to make
future cuts, discussed the problem of coming up
with qualitative indicators and asked for comments on the
indicator list which had been circulated earlier. The
members made some suggestions for changes and additions to
the list during the overall discussion, of the question.
Several mechanisms for deriving qualitative indicators were
suggested, including student evaluations (although they
cannot and should not be standardized) and the repeated
requests for briefings by outside groups such as Brookings.
It was also agreed that CSI should attach a questionnaire to
each study it sends out.
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OTR Staff Meeting
Thursday, 27 May 1976, .1400 Hours
Room 1001
AGENDA
1. The CIA Operations Center
eputy ie ,
Operations Cen
2. The Day's Reports
3. Status of Pending Actions
4. Letters of Instruction Mr. Fitzwater
5. OTR Instructions and Notices Mr.,Fitzwater
6. New Concepts in Training Mr. Fitzwater
CIA
ter
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