This paper reviews the development of the Department of Homeland Security following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. It examines the political factors that drove DHS formation, the organizational culture of responsibility implemented to improve efficiency and accountability, and the necessity of collaboration between public and private sector leaders to address national security threats. The paper concludes that despite criticism, the DHS has successfully prevented major terrorist attacks on American soil while achieving significant cost savings through its culture of responsibility and integrated operations.
Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, many observers posited that "things will never be the same," and this prediction has been borne out with the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, which has since been tasked with coordinating responses to threats against the United States. To determine its history and responsibilities, this paper provides a review of relevant literature concerning the development of the Department of Homeland Security. An explanation of the role of politics in the formation of the Department of Homeland Security is followed by a description of the organizational culture of responsibility involved in its formation and operational functions. Finally, a description of the need for collaboration among leaders in both the public and private sectors to provide effective security functions is followed by a summary of research findings concerning the development of the Department of Homeland Security.
In view of the repeated warnings prior to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the event served as a wake-up call to the federal government that a coordinated response to these threats was needed to prevent a recurrence and to ensure the security of the nation's interests at home and abroad. The role of politics in the formation of the Department of Homeland Security was based on the prevailing perception at this point in United States history among constituents that something—anything—must be done to protect Americans from similar terrorist attacks in the future (Weinkopf, 2003).
In response, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was formed following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, although the process required several months. Although the first director of the Office of Homeland Security, Tom Ridge, was appointed just 11 days after the terrorist attacks, Congress did not pass the Homeland Security Act until November 2002. This legislation authorized the formation of the cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security, which was formally created on March 1, 2003 (Creation of the Department of Homeland Security, 2015).
According to Hayton, George, and Zahra (2002), an organization's culture provides the basis for establishing shared values, expectations, and desired outcomes. For the Department of Homeland Security, a culture of responsibility has been promoted to help the agency deliver timely and effective services as well as to achieve cost savings through economies of scale (A shared vision, 2015).
To date, the DHS has implemented an organizational culture of responsibility through more than two dozen initiatives that focus on the following areas: accountability, efficiency, transparency, and leadership development (A shared vision, 2015). The culture of responsibility at the DHS has been highly effective in achieving more than $1 billion in cost savings, including the following specific accomplishments:
These measurable outcomes demonstrate that organizational culture directly impacts operational efficiency and fiscal responsibility (A shared vision, 2015).
Because threats to national interests may be nebulous and affect multiple localities, collaboration between public and private sector leaders is essential to provide a coordinated and holistic response (Ramsey & Kiltz, 2014). In this regard, the Department of Homeland Security emphasizes that "since the Department's creation, the goal is simple: one DHS, one enterprise, a shared vision, with integrated results-based operations" (A shared vision, 2014, para. 1).
Some indication of the need for collaboration between public and private sectors can be discerned from the wide range of public sector agencies and private sector services that are coordinated by the Department of Homeland Security (Ramsey & Kiltz, 2014). For example, the DHS was formed by the consolidation of all or part of 22 different federal agencies and departments (Creation of the Department of Homeland Security, 2015), and there are thousands of state, tribal, and local agencies that can be involved in homeland security operations (Weinkopf, 2003).
The Department of Homeland Security officially began operations on March 1, 2003, but the wheels were set in motion for its creation in the minutes following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, when Americans were confronted with the harsh reality of massive threats to the security of the country that they had taken for granted since the end of the Civil War. Although the DHS has been the target of criticism, the fact remains that no 9/11-level terrorist attacks have recurred on American soil since its formation, and the culture of responsibility being promoted has achieved significant cost reductions in operations. In the final analysis, it is reasonable to conclude that the Department of Homeland Security will remain an important part of the nation's defenses against terrorist attacks for the foreseeable future.
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