Federal 100: Jim McLaughlin
Name: Jim McLaughlin
Title: Executive Director, Targeting and Analysis Systems Program Directorate, Customs and Border Protection
Agency/Company: Customs and Border Protection
Better tools to hunt for those needles in haystacks. McLaughlin led the effort to build coalitions across federal agencies to use data and analytics to ensure the safety of international trade and the traveling public. In 2016, he developed an open-source border security system that analyzes airline data to vet high-risk travelers and new algorithms to analyze events such as the bombings in Brussels and the Orlando night club shooting. McLaughlin made sure the tools are available via GitHub, and he engaged Silicon Valley companies to help with border security data issues.