Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Connecting DHS to the Private Sector

A few months ago, the DHS Private Sector Office started a project to gather all the training, publications, guidance, alerts, newsletters, programs, and services available to the private sector from across the department.  The idea was to centralize all this information and publish it in a catalog for our private sector partners, providing them direct lines of access to critical resources at DHS - whether they need a contact in the Intelligence and Analysis Private Sector Partnership Program, or if they just want to read the latest on this blog - the Private Sector Resources Catalog was to be a "white pages" of sorts where our partners in academia, the non-profit world, NGOs, and the business sector could find at-a-glance information on any topic or office within DHS.

The resulting product turned out to be a fantastic resource we think has value both for the intended private sector audience and for the public alike.  The catalog provides information, contact numbers and email addresses, and websites for almost every program, office, and component within DHS.  Need the 4-1-1 on the 3-1-1 liquid restrictions for passenger travel on commercial airlines, or information about TSA's Security Grant Programs?  Just visit the TSA Programs and Services section.  Want a run down of all the DHS Centers of Excellence?  Check out the Science and Technology Directorate section.  There is also an A-Z appendix of key program office and component contacts from around the department. 

We hope that our partners in the private sector and indeed the public will find this a useful resource.  President Obama and Secretary Napolitano are committed to increased transparency and public access to those serving in the public trust; the catalog is another tool that serves that purpose.

Check out the new Private Sector Resources Catalog, and leave your feedback in the comments section of the blog.