FROM THE DESK OF CLEARANCEJOBS.COM
Motivating cleared millennials. “Millennials currently make up one third of the workforce, and are projected to be at nearly 50 percent by 2020. Millennials aren’t entry-level workers anymore, either. They currently make up a quarter of all managers in the workforce. If you need to hire a professional with 10-years of experience, that professional may likely be a millennial. Traditional efforts to attract and motivate millennials may not work, however. . . .”
Hire the whole package. “Being technically proficient is only half the battle. Most jobs today require some sort of interaction either as a member of a team or as the leader of one. A team leader needs communication and leadership skills to supervise assigned employees as does a department head responsible for several hundred employees; leadership is a skill in one form or another needed at all levels. . . . Veterans and recently transitioned active duty personnel – both with advanced degrees – are that whole package.”
TECH, PRIVACY, & SECRECY
Wrapping our collective minds around cyber threats. “The United States faces an inflection point when it comes to the Internet’s effect on daily life. What has enriched our economy and quality of life for the past several decades may start to hurt us more than help us, unless we confront its cybersecurity challenges. . . . No one agency can beat the threat. Instead, success requires drawing upon each agency’s unique expertise, resources, and legal authorities, and using whichever tool or combination of tools will be most effective in disrupting a particular threat.” (Harvard National Security Journal via Lawfare) See also, “US-Israel Sign Cyber Defense Declaration.”
Cyber 9/11: this is only a drill. “This fictitious scenario was laid out for nearly 1,000 military, government and private sector personnel here at this year’s Cyber Guard exercise, the nation’s largest test of its network defenses. Conducted over nine days in June, the event offered a disturbing look at the type of catastrophe that could unfold during what the government’s top officials call “cyber 9/11.’ ‘For us, it’s not a question of if it will happen but when,’ said Coast Guard Rear Adm. Kevin Lunday, U.S. Cyber Command’s director of training.” (Federal Times)
DoD’s Defense Information System for Security. “The Pentagon next month is slated to launch one mega database for investigating the trustworthiness of personnel who could have access to federal facilities and computer systems. The Defense Information System for Security, or DISS, will consolidate two existing tools used for vetting employees and job applicants. The reboot represents a reform spawned by leaks of classified data and shootings on military bases . . . .”
CIA shrinks come clean to the ACLU. “Two psychologists who helped the CIA develop and execute its now-defunct ‘enhanced interrogation’ program partially admitted for the first time to roles in what is broadly acknowledged to have been torture. In a 30-page court filing posted Tuesday evening, psychologists James Mitchell and Bruce Jessen responded to nearly 200 allegations and legal justifications put forth by the American Civil Liberties Union in a complaint filed in October. . . .” (Huffington Post) See also, “New documents shine light on CIA torture methods.”
Expanding FBI surveillance reach. “Congressional Republicans have a plan to prevent deadly attacks like the Orlando nightclub massacre from happening again: Give the FBI easy access to citizens’ browsing history and email data without the hassle of having to obtain a warrant first. Arizona Senator John McCain filed an amendment to the Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations Act on Monday night that would do exactly that . . . . McCain’s amendment would allow the FBI access to people’s browsing histories and email metadata by broadening the scope of administrative subpoenas known as National Security Letters (NSL).” (Vice News)
CONTRACT WATCH
Contractors behaving better. “Formal disciplinary actions against federal contractors in the form of suspensions, debarments and proposed debarments fell 3.7 percent in fiscal 2015 over the previous year, according to the annual report of the Interagency Suspension and Debarment Committee. . . . POGO is also heartened by a ‘flurry of new rules and orders [that] have imposed more restraints and responsibilities on contractors and other federal fund recipients . . . .’” (Government Executive)
BAE support Adaptive Radar Countermeasures (ARC). “Electronic warfare (EW) experts at BAE Systems are moving forward with the second phase of a U.S. military research program to find ways to detect and counter digitally programmable radar systems that have unknown behaviors and agile waveform characteristics. . . . DARPA announced a $13.4 million contract modification to BAE Systems on Tuesday to move to phase-two of the ARC program. BAE Systems engineers have completed algorithm development and component level testing in phase-one of the ARC program, and now turn their attention to systems development.” (Military & Aerospace Electronics)
THE FORCE AND THE FIGHT
Not so fast: intel analysis of ISIS’ evolving threat. “U.S. officials and outside experts warn that the U.S.-backed air and ground campaign is far from eradicating the radical Islamic group, and could even backfire. While Islamic State’s defeats in Iraq and Syria have erased its image of invincibility, they threaten to give it greater legitimacy in the eyes of disaffected Sunni Muslims because Shi’ite and Kurdish fighters are a major part of the campaign, some U.S. intelligence officials argue.” (Reuters) See also, “Pressure Puts ISIL on Its Heels, Pentagon Spokesman Says.”
North Korean threat expanding: missile tech stepping up. “North Korea launched what appeared to be an intermediate-range missile on Wednesday to a high altitude in the direction of Japan before it plunged into the sea, military officials said, a technological advance for the isolated state after several test failures. The launch came about two hours after a similar test failed, South Korea’s military said, and covered 400 km (250 miles), more than halfway towards the southwest coast of Japan’s main island of Honshu.” (Reuters) See also, “North Korea Fires 2nd Missile After Earlier Test Fails.”
Fallujah’s humanitarian crisis. “Families fleeing the combat in the Iraqi city of Fallujah have been forced to sleep in the open desert for almost a week, with aid agencies warning that people are at risk of dying as supplies of tents and water run dangerously low. More than 85,000 people have escaped the city and its surroundings in recent weeks as Iraqi security forces battle to recapture the city from the Islamic State. About 4.4 million people in the country are now internally displaced, one of the highest totals of any country. . . . The United Nations said the pace of new arrivals caught it off guard, even though tens of thousands of people were known to be trapped in the city before the operation began last month.” (Washington Post)
