CSM – High Impact Consulting.

Since 1994, CSM has provided strategic and performance management consulting services to more than 50 federal agencies.    Recognizing that most consulting efforts seek to produce a document that describes the journey that must be taken to change direction and enhance performance, CSM seeks to align itself closely with senior agency executives and join them on every step of the journey.  We have no independent financial or other objectives:  agency goals become our goals; our success is their success.  We seek to become a part of the inner circle of senior agency executives, try to see the world through their eyes, and try to assist them in the development and implementation of a strategy that confronts the real issues that must be overcome if meaningful change is to be obtained. 

During the past 14 years, we have been most fortunate to form strong and lasting partnerships with several highly distinguished federal executives, who have shown confidence in our approach and our advice. They have permitted us to work at senior levels of the agency to develop strategies and implementation initiatives that have strengthened agency leadership, changed agency direction, and significantly elevated performance.  These individuals have shown great leadership and courage in taking on issues that others avoided, and a commitment to the ideals of public service as they sought to raise agency performance to the level expected by the American people.

In recognition of the “journey” taken collectively by CSM and our strategic partners, the following briefly annotates our most significant partners and our most important accomplishments:    

1996 – 1999:  Deputy Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)    

CSM led an executive working group under the Deputy Director’s personal direction that produced a Bureau-wide comprehensive planning process.  This effort established a three-tiered prioritization of FBI programs that changed the focus from criminal investigations to national security and counterterrorism, before 9/11, and instituted proactive strategies and outcome-based performance objectives for each FBI operational, administrative, and technical program, 

1998 – 2000:  Director, Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Program, US Department of Justice

At a point in the program’s history when it was primarily administrative in nature, CSM was hired as a strategic advisor to the Director and facilitated the development of the first Justice Department Drug Strategy.  This strategy was the driving force behind a comprehensive review of the OCDETF program and a modernization plan, which resulted in the elevation of the program to the Office of the Deputy Attorney General.  As a part of the modernization, and to focus and coordinate efforts, CSM facilitated the development of district level-planning while working with U.S. Attorneys' Offices throughout the nation.  This ultimately led to the design and development of the Law Enforcement Information Exchange (LInX) information sharing projects.

1999 – 2000:  President, Legal Services Corporation

At a time when LSC was under heavy criticism and a threat of elimination from Congress, CSM worked very closely with its key executives to develop a strategy to redirect its efforts toward delivering quality legal services to the needy.  With CSM’s assistance, the organization consolidated its grants programs to make them more effective and define specific performance measures, which resulted in increased funding for Legal Services.  The consolidation of the grants programs involved replacement of a chaotic, multi-grant system with a prioritized process to systematically allocate state grants for legal services. This effort actually provided increased funding and improved access to attorneys for the underprivileged.

1998 – 2002:  Executive Assistant Director, Counterterrorism and Counterintelligence, FBI

Just prior to 9/11/2001, the Executive Assistant Director hired CSM to facilitate the development of a strategic plan for the newly established Counterterrorism Division.  CSM, as the executive advisor to the EAD, helped the organization develop specific performance expectations, and the corresponding internal evaluations to determine if it was meeting those expectations.  CSM also guided the development of the first Director’s Report, which was an objective and unfiltered assessment of the current state of the program to ensure it received the attention and support required to overcome the sometimes-lethargic tendencies of government bureaucracies.

2001 – 2002:  National Counterintelligence Executive (NCIX)

Based on the impact CSM had at the FBI in the above project, the Deputy Director of the FBI requested that CSM guide the agency’s executive managers in the development of a new organization created by Presidential Decision Directive 75, which was intended to coordinate all counterintelligence activities in the Federal Government.  The strategic plan focused on the asymmetric threat facing the U.S., the main tenets of which are still in place today.

2001 – 2005:  Director, Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS)

The Director of NCIS hired CSM as his executive advisor for assistance in transforming his organization in the aftermath of the attack on the U.S.S. Cole and 9/11/2001.  CSM helped the Director establish a counterterrorism program, develop a national program and agenda, and undertake a full agency modernization.  The result was dramatic and has introduced the agency to a level of performance previously never achieved.  As a result of the new strategy and modernization, NCIS is the lead law enforcement agency in the country, achieving dramatic success through the Law Enforcement Information Exchange (LInX) in nine regions across the nation.

2002 – 2005:  Assistant Director, Counterintelligence Division, FBI

After the shockwaves sent through the U.S. Intelligence Community by Robert Hanssen and Aldrich Ames, many of the country’s leaders were calling for disbanding the FBI’s counterintelligence program and replacing it with an agency modeled on MI-5.  The Assistant Director for the Counterintelligence Division hired CSM to advise him on how to rebuild an ailing program that had significantly diminished in the post-Cold War environment.  CSM provided strategic consulting services that aided the AD in developing a performance-based strategy.  This strategy identified specific activities the Division must undertake to reduce the threat, focus its efforts on the most significant threats, and institutionalized evaluations of the program throughout the nation.  The strategy was also the driving force behind the establishment of the Domain Section, which has resulted in unprecedented partnerships with universities and the private sector, as well as within the U.S. Intelligence Community.

2002 – 2005:  United States Attorney, Western District of Washington, US Department of Justice

In the aftermath of the International Monetary Fund meeting riots and sluggish law enforcement responsiveness, the newly-appointed US Attorney for the Western District of Washington was looking to establish clear priorities within the law enforcement community, and to implement greater coordination among federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.  The U.S. Attorney, with CSM as his strategic consultant, led the development of a district-wide law enforcement strategy that identified priorities and provided federal leadership for significant investigations and significant expansion of collaborative operations.  The result was a ten-fold increase in Title III investigations and border task forces, and the development of the first law enforcement information sharing network of its kind—the Law Enforcement Information Exchange (LInX) project in collaboration with NCIS.

2006 – 2007:  Assistant Director, Counterintelligence Division, FBI

The Assistant Director requested CSM’s assistance in updating the CI National Strategy and using program management to ensure that it is fully realized in HQ and in the field.  CSM continued the previous reviews of CI programs in the field and expanded the program assessment to Headquarters, as well.  Based on the assessments in the field and HQ, CSM developed a program management course for all HQ staff, which was tailored specifically to the Division’s situation, challenges, and priorities. 

2006 – Present:  Director and Assistant Director, NCIS

Based on CSM’s work with NCIS, there are now nine successful LInX projects across the country.  CSM has acted for years as the chief strategist for the key step of establishing a comprehensive and effective governance structure for a LInX project. The governance effort allows NCIS to bring together all of the federal, state and local law enforcement agencies in the area, and facilitate a governance board that gives rise to seamless collaborative relationships. These relationships are the key to the success of any LInX project.