Intelligence chief: Spy agencies must work differently, better

In a message to the intelligence community in his first day on the job, Negroponte wrote, “We know we need to do our work differently and do it better, but the most critical element in intelligence reform resides in you, the people who will carry it out.”

Negroponte takes over a collection of 15 highly independent spy agencies that have been criticized in numerous reports since Sept. 11, 2001, for neglecting to collect information, misreading what they had and failing to communicate.

Congress created his job in December to improve coordination among the agencies as part of the most sweeping intelligence overhaul in 50 years.

It’s unclear precisely how many employees are part of the intelligence community; those figures are classified. Yet Negroponte promised them changes.

“In the months and years ahead, we will be pioneering new ways of organizing ourselves and allocating our resources,” he wrote in the four-paragraph message shared with The Associated Press.

Even as Negroponte takes over the immense management task, he still must handle even the most basic details. He and his deputy, Air Force Gen. Michael Hayden, are looking for permanent office space for a staff that may someday number at least 500. Government officials familiar with the search say they’ve considered several locations, including an office building near the White House.

Officials say Negroponte and his close advisers also are considering how to structure the new organization, interpret the intelligence reform law and handle briefings for the president and other senior policy-makers.