Past Event
In-Person
Seminar

Managing Policy Risk: Oversight of Defense HUMINT and Sensitive Activities

RSVP Required Harvard Faculty, Fellows, Staff, and Students

​Please join the Belfer Center’s Defense, Emerging Technology, and Strategy (DETS) Program for “Managing Policy Risk: Oversight of Defense HUMINT and Sensitive Activities​” on Tuesday, October 22nd at 3:00 PM in Wexner 434AB.

 

This session will be led by Dan McFarland as part of the For the Common Defense seminar series. Refreshments will be served. This event is open to Harvard ID holders; please RSVP here.

Photo for "Managing Policy Risk"

Event Description

China's emergence as a peer competitor and the evolution of ubiquitous technical surveillance have forever changed the operating environment in which competition occurs. As DoD pivots to strategic competition, the Office of the Secretary of Defense must enable the creative employment of unique capabilities while balancing policy risk. "Left of bang", strategic competition will involve a broad category of sensitive activities. 

 

This unclassified session explores the process (and challenges) by which the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security oversees HUMINT and Sensitive Activities while exploring policy solutions to better enable DoD competitiveness. Presented through the lens of the former HUMINT Chief within OUSD(I&S), the session offers firsthand accounts of the challenges associated with congressional oversight, internal DoD equity disputes, and enforcing component policy compliance.