Analytic Culture in the U.S. Intelligence Community (PDF) - CIA

ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
to assume. This is all the more pronounced because, for the most part, the
Intelligence Community organizations lack a civilian counterpart.
Occasionally, the anticipatory socialization of people entering the intelligence
analysis discipline will derive from accounts of current or former practitioners.
More generally, however, a newcomer’s initial impressions stem from the fictional
media portrayals, which tend to emphasize the supposed glamour of operational
tasks and pay little attention to the reality of research-based analytic
work. The absence of hard knowledge about intelligence work is attributable, in
part, to the organizational secrecy of the Intelligence Community and, in part, to
the actual socialization process that occurs after one has been accepted for
employment and has passed the required background investigation.
A newcomer’s experience is often contrary to initial expectations. Employees
are discouraged from talking about the specifics of their work outside of
the organization or with those who have not been “cleared.” On an individual
level, this experience translates into professional culture shock and social isolation.
Organizationally, an intentionally closed system of this kind has a
number of potential performance-related consequences, among them perpetuation
of the existing organizational culture by hiring familial legacies or those
most likely to “fit in,” job dissatisfaction, low morale and consequent reduction
in employee readiness, increased employee turnover, greater likelihood of
“groupthink,” and strong internal resistance to organizational change. 16
Since the attacks of 11 September, the Intelligence Community has become
more open about its role in government, its day-to-day working environment,
and its employees’ functions and responsibilities. While this openness is an
extension of an ongoing trend toward public outreach—an example is the
CIA’s Officer-in-Residence program established in 1985—the community has
accelerated this trend toward openness in an effort to help the public, and its
representatives, understand the missions and value of the Intelligence Community.
17
This trend toward openness has improved employee retention by counteracting
the culture shock of misinformed anticipatory socialization and resultant
employee turnover. This trend also helps prepare the organization for the
inevitable changes to come by increasing the potential recruitment pool,
expanding the intellectual diversity of its staff, and fostering better relations
with its broader constituency, the American public.
16
Irving Janis, Groupthink.
17
See CIA Officer in Residence Program in Web Resources in bibliography.
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