The Department of Transportation (DOT) has formed a senior advisor program to bring private sector best practices to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Under this program, executives from some of the nation’s leading firms will be loaned to the TSA to help establish the new agency.
“We need to tap into the expertise of the private sector as we shape the Transportation Security Administration, the first federal agency of the 21st century,” said Secretary of Transportation Norman Y Mineta. “It is essential that the security systems of TSA effectively deter terrorism, but with minimal disruption to transportation and complete service to travelers and other users of transportation; and we’re turning to the private sector to join us in this effort.”
The executives will bring a wide range of private sector expertise in areas including procurement, recruiting, metrics and quality, operations and process modeling, training and development, organization design, and effectiveness. according to DOT. Each participant, appointed as an intermittent consultant in the federal government, will play a hands-on role in critical projects relating to their specific areas, but they will not be in decision-making or supervisory roles.
“Secretary Mineta asked us to accept the help of a small number of the country’s most talented executives, men and women who will roll up their sleeves and work side-by-side with the government team standing up this new agency,” said Kip Hawley, a former chief executive officer and transportation and supply chain executive recruited by Mineta to lead the initial TSA start-up effort. “We have found an extraordinary group of leaders willing to do just that.”
In agreeing to serve in this capacity, executives and their companies agree to resolve any conflicts of interest and sign a non-disclosure agreement, and individuals will provide personal financial disclosure and security clearance information. The TSA will not provide salaries or federal benefits, but will pay for certain travel expenses and per diem not to exceed $6,000 per month.
The initial executives in the Senior Advisor Program are: Chris Billings, Walt Disney World Co, Orlando, Florida; Lisa Glatch, Fluor Corporation, Aliso Viejo, California; Tom Kennedy, Solectron Corporation, Milpitas, California; Randal Null, Intel Corp, Santa Clara, California; and Ben T Smith, A T Kearney, Inc, Santa Clara, California.