National Security Agency - The Black Vault

2000s
and beyond
The Information Age, begun in the
1990s, was now progressing to
the point where technologies
previously only dreamed of, were
being developed and surpassed, and
capabilities once available only to governments
and businesses were now within reach of the
general public.
For NSA, however, the great leaps forward
were both a blessing and a curse. The Agency,
like the rest of the intelligence and defense
communities, benefitted immensely from the
technologies brought about by the revolution
in communications, but the need to keep pace
could be daunting.
Adapt &
Adjust
60
100 Days of Change
During the 1990s General Minihan encouraged
the NSA workforce to embrace a new way of
thinking about the cryptologic challenges of
the future. General Hayden sought to accelerate
these changes and implemented the new
technologies available to assist the Agency in
dealing with the challenges of the new century.
To accomplish these goals, General Hayden
commissioned a study of NSA’s organization and
operations. He appointed two committees, one
made up of in-house personnel and the other
of cleared outsiders, and tasked them to make
recommendations for change.
Based on their findings, in November 1999
Hayden instituted the “One Hundred Days of
Change.” As part of the new program, he issued a
daily “DIRgram,” a Director’s message to the
View of the National Security Operations Center floor, 2012.
94 60 Years of Defending Our Nation National Security Agency • Central Security Service National Security Agency • Central Security Service 60 Years of Defending Our Nation 95