Report cites small improvements in sharing of intelligence information

The intelligence community has made modest progress on information sharing and integrating computer systems, according to a report released by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence on Wednesday.

ODNI has completed 39 initiatives addressing information sharing and business process modernization goals in the October 2007 500 Day Plan for Integration and Collaboration, the report stated.

These efforts included updating Executive Order 12333 to strengthen the role of the director of national intelligence, developing an enterprise management system to better align resources with policy priorities and strategies, and establishing a National Intelligence Coordination Center to integrate assets and direct communitywide activities.

ODNI also modified policies and established task forces to emphasize the "responsibility to provide" philosophy of information sharing that has replaced the "need to know" concept. And the office centralized procurement of common information technology products to eliminate redundancy, began to establish a unified e-mail system and released policy guidance aimed at standardizing security clearances across intelligence agencies.

"These accomplishments helped initiate the transformation we need," wrote then-director of national intelligence Mike McConnell, in the first installment of the two-part report. "I believe that transformation is an ongoing process, not just a response to a report or study. Our progress to date has made our country safer."

But, the intelligence community still has a long way to go, the second part of the report noted, citing 2008 inspector general findings. The IG scored the maturity level of the six overarching goals identified in the 500 Day Plan on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being least mature, meaning that efforts show little or no collaboration among intelligence agencies. Scores were based on interviews, focus groups and survey data.

The intelligence community was the furthest along on its broad goal to clarify and align governance across agencies, according to the IG. The auditors assigned it a mark of 2.4 in that area, reflecting partial success in standardizing processes, and improved planning and cooperation among organizations. Progress in improving how information is collected and analyzed earned the second highest score, with a 2.26. The IG found that the intelligence community was the furthest behind on its goals to modernize business practices, giving ODNI a 1.5 in that category. The community also performed poorly in accelerating information sharing, earning a score of 1.61.

Low scores are the result of ODNI being a fairly new organization that combines 16 federal offices under a single umbrella, according to the report. Some intelligence agencies still are defining their roles and responsibilities within the larger enterprise.

"The IC cannot change overnight, but in 500 days we achieved significant progress across many areas of our enterprise," the report stated. "We know what remains to be done, and we now have the structures in place to continue to transform the intelligence community into an intelligence enterprise."

Steps to better meet the goals defined in the 500 Day Plan already are under way, according to the report. These include establishing a program to identify near- and long-term goals for information sharing, and developing the technology, processes and policies required to meet those goals.

Agencies also will continue to expand the use of collaborative tools, such as Intellipedia, the intelligence community's version of Wikipedia, and A-Space, an online workspace for analysts to share information using wikis, blogs, instant messaging and other tools.

The 500 Day Plan builds on the April 2007 100 Day Plan, which encouraged intelligence agencies to integrate people, processes and technologies. Both are extensions of the October 2005 National Intelligence Strategy.