My thesis on the Challenges facing Intelligence Analysis in the Knowledge Age has at last been published on the Net. The uniqueness of the thesis lies in the investigation on how 3rd Generation Knowledge Management might impact on how we see and practice Intelligence in this era where what we know and how we share it, impact on decision-making in this fast moving and connected age.
Also, I think that this is the first attempt to look at new intelligence analysis models and theories, which have to a large degree been ignored in the traditional schools. I sincerely hope that it will add to the debate in the status and growth of the intelligence analysis discipline... after all, it is one of the 10 best jobs in the world!
The summary...
The intelligence community throughout the world is still reeling after several intelligence failures. Proposals to improve Intelligence Analysis have had little impact as analysts, their managers and their organisations continue to cling to outdated threat perceptions, methodologies and organisational structures and cultures. This thesis looks through the lens of Knowledge Management at the various challenges that the Intelligence Analysis practice is faced with in the Knowledge Age. Firstly, theories and concepts from Intelligence Analysis are challenged when compared with those in Knowledge Management and the possibility of applying new vocabularies in intelligence is discussed. The second challenge intelligence analysts face is to understand and adapt to the changed world with its connected, non-linear and rapidly enfolding events and patterns which broadens their scope to a multi-faceted, complex and multi-disciplinary threat picture. The third challenge is to re-look the existing analytical methodologies, tools and techniques, realising that these are most probably inadequate in a complex environment. The fourth challenge Intelligence Analysis faces is to reach out to other disciplines and assess how new analytical techniques, both intuitive and structured, as well as cognitive models, collaborative and organisational structure concepts from within the Knowledge Management discipline can improve Intelligence Analysis’ grasp of the Knowledge Age. In conclusion, it is argued that intelligence analysts might be ready to reinvent themselves to address Knowledge Age issues, but that intelligence organisations are not able to support a new intelligence paradigm while still clinging to threat perceptions and structures befitting the Cold War.
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