Oct. 11 - 17, 2008
On Oct. 12, Orlando FSD Lee Kair (left), pictured with outgoing Assistant Administrator Mo McGowan, became the head of Security Operations. Since joining TSA is 2004, Kair has served in key roles, which included heading up the agency’s "war rooms" to establish and implement Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response operations, enhanced IED detection at checkpoints, local hiring, career progression and others. "Lee is an innovator and a people person who knows the details of security issues and TSA's role in providing a smooth, trouble free experience for passengers," said Administrator Kip Hawley. "Lee has energized the workforce and enhanced relationships with key partners in the airport, airline and law enforcement communities. His team spirit and tireless energy will serve our nation well in this critical new role." During McGowan’s tenure, TSA's role has expanded in several key areas, including behavior detection and travel document checking. Read an interview with McGowan and the news announcement. Photo by Rigina Pietrowski |
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ENGAGE! Well-Received During First Week
From the Office of Strategic Communications/Public Affairs
Last week, ENGAGE! training landed to good reviews at airports across the country.
"Officers are ecstatic about it," said Robert Nunnery, AFSD-screening, Shreveport Regional Airport. He said he encountered some skepticism before the training began, "but now the people who are scheduled for the last classes can't wait. They want to go right now."
Fewer than 80 TSA employees will participate in ENGAGE! at the Category II Shreveport, a small number compared to the 850 who will participate at the Category X Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport. But the signs of enthusiasm for the training appear to be the same for both.
"The feedback from employees has been tremendous," said Steve Lorincz, AFSD-screening at Detroit. "The officers are part of something that is truly remarkable. You could sense the pride growing in the room. We have all this experience, and this training really brings it all together like a puzzle."
Nunnery emphasized the cultural change that Evolution will bring agency-wide through ENGAGE! and COACH! training and why that change has resonated so positively with the workforce. "The reason a lot of people first joined TSA was because of 9/11; they wanted to serve their country. This training is helping them to remember that."
Evolution: Kip Answers Your Questions
Editor's Note: The following is the first in a series of four segments that detail Administrator Kip Hawley's responses to questions from officers at a recent ENGAGE! graduation ceremony.
What is meant by "discretion?" How much and what kind of discretion will people have?
Discretion is about understanding and acting on risk.
"Discretion" comes from a firm grasp of all aspects of the job and is a natural part of thinking risk management. Discretion comes from being switched-on. For TSA, discretion means taking advantage of the formidable, collective experience that TSOs bring to the mission.
Discretion means taking the time to think about a bag or a passenger and acting on it. The bottom line is that TSOs must resolve a suspicion of a possible threat. TSOs should use peers and supervisors to advise and help as needed, and they should call on their professional judgment, experience, intuition, and training to determine what actions to take to mitigate security threats. TSOs should apply discretion to achieve common sense results that positively resolve suspicion.
It does not mean shortcutting security to reduce wait times or deciding to "take a chance" on something because it's more convenient, faster or easier.
What happens when someone uses discretion and makes a mistake? How do I know my supervisor or manager will back me up?
Mistakes are going to happen. Not every TSO is experienced. Not every TSO will find it easy to engage. ENGAGE! emphasizes networking precisely because the more information and experience we share, the less likely we are to make a mistake.
When a mistake does happen, the principle of COACH! is to understand what happened, why it happened, and what the key lessons are going forward. It's up to the individual to learn from mistakes and demonstrate progress and commitment. COACH! is aimed at LTSOs, supervisors, TSMs, AFSDs, and FSDs, and it is backed up by the personal commitment of TSA's top leadership.
Realistically, there will be disagreements about whether a mistake was the result of a reasonable decision or a byproduct of carelessness or inattention. Reflecting on a supervisor's judgment may be helpful in these situations. If a team member believes that they are being judged unfairly on the principles of ENGAGE!, he or she can turn to a mentor for guidance or participate in Model Workplace processes to address their concern.
PS: It is important to remember that the objective of ENGAGE! is not to do away with the SOP but to use it as a guide in a world where terrorists seek to find the gray areas not covered by the terms of the SOP.
Mo McGowan Talks About TSA and Its Future
By Andy Szul, Office of Strategic Communications/Public Affairs
Photos by Ann Oh
Mo McGowan has been with TSA since 2002 and most recently served as assistant administrator of Security Operations. Before joining TSA, Mo worked for a Fortune 500 company in the area of network protection and served for 25 years as a law enforcement officer.
In your role as assistant administrator, what were some of the challenges of managing daily field operations for a workforce of about 50,000 employees?
A major challenge is effectively communicating in an operational way with that many employees so that everybody understands the mission, the intent of the operational tempo and requirements we have. We were able to take real-world intelligence and transfer it into an operational environment very rapidly. We enhanced our own communications and management efforts. I'm also pretty proud of going on IdeaFactory and engaging the workforce.
What are your impressions of how the public perceives TSA and is our reputation with the traveling public improving?
One of the things that we wanted to do for the officers and the entire workforce was to bring in a level of professionalism where they felt good about themselves and the traveling public. I think the latest example would be the officer uniform. We get so many positive comments now from the traveling public about the uniforms and how they feel very comfortable with the officers.
Kip [Hawley] instilled a heightened confidence. He worked with Congress and international partners and engaged the media to try to demonstrate that we are a very professional workforce. I can't say travelers are always happy – after all, who is happy standing in line at the security checkpoint? But I can say that overall the American public is glad we are here.
With the expansion of the behavior detection and travel document checking programs, what direction do you envision security operations going in the next five years?
We'll focus a lot more on hostile intent. We'll be much more nimble with our layers of security, and probably add more layers that are more integrated with technology as we go forward.
Terrorists evolve and want to penetrate our security operations, so we have to constantly evolve. The minute we say 'great, now we have BDO and TDC,' the terrorists will try to find a way to penetrate those layers. We have to constantly keep looking at and increasing security layers. Technology will play a more significant role in that.
How have you benefited from working closely with TSA's National Advisory Council?
I am very comfortable with the workforce, including with the NAC, and I think they are very comfortable around me. The NAC doesn't sugarcoat anything for me, and they know I don't do that. They may not always like what they hear from me, but guess what, I don't always like what I hear from them. And that's a good thing. That provides clarity for them and they provide clarity for me in relating the challenges they face in the field. I came from the field, so I understood to some degree, but the NAC educated me more to that.
Now, more than seven years after the 9/11 attacks, does the traveling public has a sense of complacency toward security and, if so, how does that affect TSA's mission?
Innately, the traveling public realizes that the world changed on 9/11 and there has to be security. What frequently happens is if something doesn't directly affect our country, such as an event on foreign soil, the public doesn't see that as an immediate threat.
As we become more flexible and nimble and change our operational processes, too often the public doesn't hear the message or doesn't understand where that message is coming from – whether it's intelligence or real-world experiences, so that's when you hear complaining. For instance, 3-1-1 or taking your shoes off, they need to understand why this is relevant today. It's part of our lives now because people really intend to do us harm.
Photo by Christopher Wallstrum
Officer Finds More Than Just Chips in Pringles Can
While performing a routine search of checked bags, an officer in Kodiak, Alaska discovered drugs hidden in a modified Pringles potato chip can (pictured). TSO David Carson noticed that the can’s weight did not feel right. After taking a closer look, he found a white powder substance and pills in a secret compartment at the bottom of the can. Alaska state troopers confiscated the allegedly illicit drugs and sent it to the state crime lab for analysis in support of possible criminal charges.
TSA Named Finalist in 'Best Practice' Competition
By Jim Watts, program manager, Operational Process & Performance Metrics, Office of Security Operations
From left is Karthik Krishnamurthy, director of
products for data warehousing, Cognizant, one of
the event sponsors; Jim Watts, program manager,
Operational Process & Performance Metrics;
and Julia King, executive editor and national
correspondent, Computerworld. Photo courtesy
of Kelly McGill/ComputerWorld
TSA's Performance Information Management System (PIMS) has been recognized for exceptional performance in the category "Driving Business Process Management with BI," becoming a finalist in the 2008 Computerworld "Best Practices in Business Intelligence" competition.
Launched in 2004, PIMS is TSA's business intelligence tool for sharing and reporting performance management and operational data. PIMS is used to create Security Operations' Management Objective Reports each pay period, generating more than $100 million in operational efficiencies in fiscal 2007 and 2008.
PIMS is operated by Operational Process & Performance Metrics, Office of Security Operations, and managed by Linda King, branch chief, under the leadership of Robert J. Scanlon, assistant general manager.
The Future Face of TSA Leadership
Photo by Eric Echevarria
As part of the kick-off for Senior Leadership Development Program 3 (SLDP3), participants gathered for the Executive Leadership Orientation Conference at the Bolger Conference Center in Potomac, Md., Sept. 21-26. They met TSA senior leaders, attended executive leadership training, did team-building activities and learned about the program. Pictured, top row (from left) are Ruben Ramos, Office of Security Operations (OSO); Paul Ross, Office of Law Enforcement/Federal Air Marshal Service (OLE/FAMS); Mark Lendvay, OSO; and David Wynn, OSO; third row (from left) are Ray Williams, OSO; Patrick Sullivan, Todd Trafford and William Benner, OLE/FAMS; Robin Kane, Office of Finance and Administration; and Timothy Lewis, OSO, Mid-level Leadership Development Program; second row (from left) are Mark Roberts, Office of Intelligence; Stephen Rice, Office of Information Technology (OIT); Deborah Grade, Office of Human Capital (OHC); Jennifer Carmichael and Andrew Colsky, Office of Special Counselor; Cynthia Elliot, Office of Chief Counsel (OCC); Patrick Quinn, OHC, SLDP3 senior leader advisor; front (from left) are Kevin Lawson, OIT; Lewis Roach, Transportation Sector Network Management; Kathleen Connon, OCC; Melanie Harvey, Office of Acquisition; Kimberly Hutchinson, Office of the Deputy Administrator; Rhonda Hatmaker, OSO, and Peggy Hawkins, OHC, SLDP3 national program manager. Not pictured is Martin Elam, OSO.
Officer Gets Behind-the-Scenes Tour at HQ
Photo by Frances Maldonado
Editor's Note: Each month a TSO spends a day at headquarters with Mo McGowan, who until this week was assistant administrator for Security Operations.
During a recent visit to headquarters, Troy Shipp, a lead TSO/TSA approved instructor, had an opportunity to participate in several leadership meetings. The officer and McGowan discussed career advancement opportunities and allowing part-time officers the same opportunities afforded to full-time officers. At a meeting chaired by Administrator Kip Hawley, Shipp joined in a discussion about results of TSO performance in threat detection that were compiled from covert testing – and found leadership open to his input. For example, he said, Hawley "directed the development of new training material based on my input."
Kudos & Clips
Simulated Bomb Tests of Jets Launched
By Thomas Frank, USA Today, Oct. 14, 2008
Last year, the government posed a question for scientists: Could a computer program show how bombs might rip through jets? Read more.
TSA: Grooming a Smoother Path Through Airport Security Checks
By Elissa Leibowitz Poma, MSNBC.com, Oct. 2, 2008
Drawing inspiration from ski slopes, the Transportation Security Administration's new self-select security checkpoint lanes are dramatically cutting travelers' wait times at dozens of airports. Read more.
Editor's Note: Loretta Rotondo is executive assistant to the federal security director at Rhode Island's T.F. Green Airport.
Mentoring is Foundation of Relationship for Loretta & Megan
By Matt Bower, Warwick Beacon, Sept. 30, 2008
Loretta Rotondo joined the Rhode Island Mentoring Partnership four years ago and began mentoring Megan, then a first-grade student at Randall Holden School, but when one day a week wasn't enough for the two, Rotondo became involved with Big Sisters of Rhode Island. Read more.
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