Countering Improvised Explosive Devices in the US
Booz Allen helps clients integrate missions in a “whole-of-government” approach to detecting, deterring, and responding to IEDs.
In February of 2007, President George W. Bush issued Homeland Security Presidential Directive 19 (HSPD-19), mandating that government agencies at all levels coordinate in order to detect, deter, and respond to Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attacks in the United States. As part of its Mission Integration initiative, Booz Allen Hamilton offers benefits to our clients through the application of a whole-of-government approach to countering IEDs domestically.
Booz Allen’s Jessica Hais worked on a series of national security issues ranging from U.S. China Policy to intelligence community reform, while working with the Partnership for a Secure America, an NGO created by 9/11 Commission Chairs Lee Hamilton and Thomas Kean. She spoke with boozallen.com about how the firm is advising clients on collaborating in the world of joint missions, such as addressing the challenges of countering IEDs domestically.
boozallen.com: We hear a lot about IEDs being used overseas. What prompted the government’s concern about IEDs being used in this country?
Hais: Just as we are seeing increasing numbers of IED attacks in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other places in the world, we are also seeing an increase in the factors that make explosive device components accessible and relatively easy for terrorists to deploy within the United States. In creating counter-IED policy to protect the homeland, the government is taking a proactive and necessary position against a dangerous and potentially imminent threat.
boozallen.com: Why does HSPD-19 mandate cooperation across government?
Hais: Countering IEDs is not a single-agency challenge; it’s too large and complex. There are literally dozens of federal government agencies who must work together to counter IEDs domestically. The US law enforcement community, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and many agencies within the Department of Homeland Security, will take the lead. The government must also rely on the Department of Defense to provide expertise based on overseas experience in counter-IED campaigns. There will also be a role for the intelligence community, which includes 16 agencies and organizations across the defense, civil, and security domains. And, of course, there are the many state and local agencies, which will provide critical operational and tactical support to this domestic effort.
boozallen.com: With that many players, it must have been a tremendous challenge just getting your arms around the issue.
Hais: To best understand the challenge, we broke the problem up into pieces. We identified not only the threat, but also which agencies we anticipated would step into certain roles. With that knowledge we developed a stakeholder matrix. That’s where our Mission Integration approach comes in. Our approach allows for an examination of policy and strategy; operations, management and budget; as well as technology, people and culture. A focus on only a few of these elements, or, at times, only one, results in a stalemate or less than optimal results. All of the participants need to understand how their missions touch the problem and how they can bring to bear their experiences, lessons learned, and capabilities to create a viable solution. On this kind of difficult, multi-faceted challenge—and countering IEDs is only one of many facing us today—agencies need a way to collaborate. The Mission Integration concept provides the structure for developing strategy, information sharing, and reducing impediments created by culture differences.
boozallen.com: What kinds of skills, expertise, and capabilities does Booz Allen bring to countering IEDs?
Hais: We like to say that we apply a “whole-of-firm” approach to this “whole-of-government” effort because we bring people, technology, and capabilities together from across the firm. We have experts with deep knowledge of every involved entity within the domains of law enforcement, homeland security, defense, and the intelligence community. We have a solid understanding of countering IEDs from our support of overseas operations. We can draw on our professionals in IT; Modeling, Simulation, Wargaming, and Analysis; counterterrorism; and strategic communications. We work every day with government leaders, helping them achieve mission success.
boozallen.com: What does the future hold for Booz Allen’s Mission Integration counter-IED effort?
Hais: We’ll do what we always do—work side-by-side with our clients to better understand and address their challenges. Through our Mission Integration initiative we will continue to work with stakeholders to help them come together and collaborate on strategy, analyses, and mitigation plans. The IED threat is real and we are committed to helping our clients and others be ready for whatever happens next in the realm of countering IEDs.
interview posted July 15, 2009
