What is the future of the Intelligence Community? That’s the question the Intelligence and National Security Foundation (INSF) and ClearanceJobs are considering in a webinar series underwritten by Avantus Federal exploring the Future of the IC Workforce. The webinar series expands on a conversation that started last year in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, and is continuing as agencies explore the opportunities and lessons learned.
The first conversation in this year’s webinar series unpacked the role of open source intelligence in crafting the IC of the future. It is a hot topic as the intelligence community explores how it can fix issues of overclassification and declassify information more quickly. News reports this week have highlighted the push toward the Biden Administration to update policies on classification and declassification, including Executive Order 13526. Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore. and Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan, submitted a letter to the Biden Administration pushing the White House to provide more resources to declassification efforts, and work more quickly to update policies.
The push follows statements by Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines in January on how overclassification makes the U.S. less secure. It’s a topic that has been on the radar, but has yet to move to the finish line with either policy change or additional funds to make declassification changes a reality.
The push to reduce overclassification puts the spotlight on the source responsible for 80% of information in intelligence reports today – and that’s publicly available information. That was the topic discussed by Matt Scott, senior vice president, Intelligence Division, at Avantus Federal, the Honorable Ellen E. McCarthy, chairwoman and CEO of the Truth in Media Cooperative and Noodle Labs, and Patrice Tibbs, deputy chief of the Open Source Enterprise at the CIA.
- 2:00 – The mission of the Intelligence and National Security Foundation
- 3:30 – Distinguishing OSINT and the value of OSINT
- 6:45 – The potential of open source
- 10:00 – Opportunities in the IC for OSINT
- 11:00 – Taking the pulse of the IC today
- 16:30 – Pursuing the opportunity of OSINT
- 20:30 – Understanding the value of OSINT
- 25:00 – How to make OSINT a priority
- 31:00 – The role of the CIA in OSINT
- 36:00 – 80% of intelligence reports consist of publicly available information
- 40:00 – The IC and DoD ecosystem
- 43:00 – Improving the IC business model
- 45:00 – How OSINT fuels government/industry cooperation
Register for the next webinar in the Future of the IC Workforce series.
About the Speakers
The Honorable Ellen E. McCarthy is the ChairWoman and CEO of the Truth in Media Cooperative and Noodle Labs. She also sits on advisory boards for SAP NS2, Fortem Technologies, Exiger and Babel Street providing first hand insights on cyber security, effective leadership, driving innovation, advancing diversity and digital transformation. Ms. Mccarthy has over three decades of national security service in a variety of leadership roles spanning numerous intelligence organizations and disciplines. Most recently appointed Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Intelligence and Research, confirmed by the U.S. Senate, and sworn in on January 17, 2019. In this role she reported to the Secretary of State and led a team that provided intelligence insights and activities to support foreign policy and national security purposes.
Patrice Tibbs joined Open Source Enterprise to serve as a Deputy Chief in August 2021. In this role, she is responsible for promoting the integration of open source efforts across the Intelligence Community (IC) in support of the IC Open Source Functional Manager and the National Open Source Committee Chair. Patrice joined the CIA in 2014 as a mid-career hire. She has a combined 25+ years of IC contractor and Agency staff expertise and has successfully led large teams, projects and contracts. Prior to her transition to the Federal Government, she held Senior Leadership positions as a successful industry IT Director, and Senior Program/Project Manager and SME with large and small companies to include General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT) and L1 Identity Solutions.
About the Moderator
Matt Scott, an Army intelligence veteran, is the Senior Vice President, Intelligence Division, at Avantus Federal. His expertise includes delivering and scaling emerging technologies and data-driven mission capabilities for the U.S. Intelligence Community. Prior to Avantus, Matt co-founded and led MissionTech Solutions, a provider of multi-domain cloud engineering and development solutions in the IC. He also previously held leadership positions at Booz|Allen|Hamilton and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Matt is a voice for change in how the Intelligence Community leverages technology, open sources, and its workforce. With INSA and INSF, he has led multiple public-private partnership efforts on IC technology, talent, and diversity. In addition to his position on the Board of Trustees, he also serves on the Board of Advisors for the Center for a New American Security.
