How Do FSOs and Security Managers Track Clearances?

Facility Security Officers (FSO) and government agency security managers track the status of security clearances and applications for hundreds of employees and new hires. This can be pretty challenging with all of the moving pieces involving various data systems, agencies, and processes. DoD’s Joint Personnel Adjudication System (JPAS), which has now transitioned over to the Defense Information System for Security (DISS), is the most commonly referenced and is operated by the Defense Security Service (DSS) to provide the big picture. However, it doesn’t really allow company FSOs flexibility to get into the nuts and bolts of tracking their own employees.

So how do FSOs keep track of the hundreds of actions involved in background investigation and clearance tracking? There are various methods available for FSOs to use: access databases, excel spreadsheets, custom-made internal data tracking systems. Factors that play into which is best are the number of employees you have and who the customer you are supporting is. Security and protection of data is the primary concern for companies in light of previous information breaches. Internal database systems must be in compliance with the Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2014.

Think about all of the processes involved in obtaining and maintaining a clearance and you can understand why FSOs with hundreds or thousands of employees might get overwhelmed. In turn, that impacts new hire applicants who are trying to just find out the status of their clearance application. We would like to gain some more insight on this topic from the subject matter experts. Perhaps some FSOs out there who read this blog would share some stories, practices, and methods on how they track and manage data on their employees?