Save the intelligence cycle

It is the way our brain works
It is the way an intelligence community has to work

Intelligence cycle is a theoretical model quite criticized but fairly coherent and insufficiently explored. With its four “core functions” (direction, collection, processing and dissemination), it may adequately describe the structure of an intelligence community (command structures, collection teams, exploitation or analysis services, communication structures) in a systemic approach (who does what?), but it does not describe the intelligence process (what does intelligence function? how to make intelligence?).

These functions are all required to operate the cycle, but processing is the heart of the systemic intelligence process. This central function has to be precisely described in order to define common procedures suited to team networking. The cyclical, iterative nature of its practices based on knowledge capitalization in our memory must be analysed to be available in a shared memory.

Processing (or exploitation) is a core function of the intelligence cycle that must be described, in a functional approach (what does intelligence function?), by a similar cycle converting information into intelligence by requiring (direction), acquiring (collection), capitalizing (processing) and producing (dissemination).

Acquisition methods must be developed in accordance with document categorization and sharing procedures adapted to net working and shared memory supplying, while intelligence requirements and production procedures, relatively easy to manage, may be properly planed.

But Capitalization is the heart of exploitation process ; it must be described, in a formal approach (how to make intelligence?), by a similar cycle organizing pieces of information in intelligence knowledge by querying (direction) the shared memory elaborated before, compiling or collating (collection) information and documents in files, monitoring it (processing), and editing it (dissemination) : 

Knowledge organization is the only way to make the intelligence cycle really working by anticipating requirements in order to deliver relevant intelligence to the right user at the right time.