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Public Affairs Specialist

Department of the Interior
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
This job announcement has closed

Summary

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) manages the exploration and development of the nation's offshore resources. It seeks to appropriately balance economic development, energy independence, and environmental protection through oil and gas leases, renewable energy development and environmental reviews and studies.   For information about our bureau go to: http://www.boem.gov/

This vacancy may be used to fill additional positions as vacancies become available. 

Overview

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Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
05/28/2019 to 06/10/2019
Salary
$88,704 to - $115,313 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 13
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Jefferson, LA
1 vacancy
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - Occasional travel may be required.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-Time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
13
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
No
Announcement number
BOEM-MMLL-19-EG-067(DEU)
Control number
534881000

Duties

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This position is located within the Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), Gulf of Mexico Region (GOMR) located in Jefferson, LA. The primary function of this position is to serve as a Public Affairs Specialist.

At the full performance level (GS-13) the major duties of this position include, but are not limited to the following:

1. The incumbent of this position serves as an advisor to the regional management with respect to all long-range public affairs objectives, media interaction, public education and involvement, and regional outreach programs.

2. The incumbent evaluates and recommends strategy, style and manner of presentation of information and develops/ edits written materials, illustrations, exhibits, press releases, fact sheets, and articles for magazines.

3. As a public affairs specialist for the region, the incumbent organizes and executes public affairs plans designed to inform all stakeholders regarding the mission of BOEM. In addition, the incumbent serves as an alternate web site coordinator.

4. Designs and develops exhibits, outreach and educational tools including publications. Assists in responding to inquiries from the news media and other constituencies; prepare and distribute factual information to the public.

5. Write, review, edit and make recommendations concerning speeches and publications for content to be certain they are aligned with BOEM policies and procedures.

6. Evaluates the impact and effectiveness of communication efforts and advise the Public Affairs Office (PAO) of findings.

7. Coordinates the production and use of graphics created for use by the region to assure consistent message.

8. Works with the PAO to achieve the goals of GOMR. This includes assisting in the development of graphics, fact sheets, information sheets, exhibits, speeches and other media.

BOEM has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval.

Salary Information: 

GS-13: $88,704 - $115,313 per annum. First time hires to the federal government typically start at the beginning salary in the range for their respective grade level.

This vacancy may be used to fill additional positions as vacancies become available.

This vacancy is also announced as BOEM-MMLL-19EG-068(MP) for those applicants who wish to apply and be considered under Merit Promotion procedures.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen.
  • You will be subject to a background/suitability investigation/determination
  • You will be required to have federal payments made by Direct Deposit.
  • You must submit ALL required documents and a completed questionnaire.

Selective Service: If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service system, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. See http://www.sss.gov/.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualification Requirements:

To qualify for this position you must meet the Specialized Experience for the series/grade to which you are applying.  

Specialized Experience

To qualify for the GS-13, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 level in the Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service.  Specialized experience is experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled.  Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience: 1) writing and reviewing press releases, website information and/or exhibit content for audiences including media or the general public; 2) developing communication plans for senior management officials regarding program projects and events; 3) providing outreach to news media and stakeholder groups to discuss the organization’s projects; and 4) evaluating the effectiveness of communication strategies to provide feedback to senior management.

Note: Applicants must meet statements one through four above to qualify.

Additional information on the qualification requirements is outlined in the OPM Qualification Standards Handbook of General Schedule Positions and is available at OPM's website: https://www.opm.gov/qualifications/standards/indexes/num-ndx.asp

All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

Additional information

Applicants who include vulgar, offensive, or inappropriate language or information in their application package will be ineligible for further consideration for this position. 

Identification of promotion potential in this announcement does not constitute a commitment or an obligation on the part of management to promote the employee selected at some future date. Promotion will depend upon administrative approval and the continuing need for and performance of higher-level duties.

The application contains information subject to the Privacy Act (P.L. 93-579, 5 USC 552a). The information is used to determine qualifications for employment, and is authorized under Title 5, USC, Section 3302 and 3361.

Important Note: All Department of the Interior (DOI) employees are subject to the conflict of interest restrictions imposed upon all employees of the Executive Branch of the Federal Government and may be required to file a Financial Disclosure Report.  In addition, DOI employees, GS-15 and above, who work in the Office of the Secretary; along with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) employees (at ALL grade levels), are further restricted concerning their interests in Federal lands and resources administered or controlled by the Department of the Interior.  This includes holding stock in energy corporations which lease Federal lands (e.g.: oil, gas, coal, alternative energy resources, etc.). If you have any such investments you should contact the DOI, BOEM or BSEE Ethics Office before accepting employment.  DOI employees are held to the highest level of integrity.  Employees must be objective and impartial in the performance of their work.  All potential issues (e.g.: work-related interactions with friends, family members, or previous employers) must be disclosed at the time of application or during the interview process.

NOTICE: This employer participates in E-Verify and will utilize your Form I-9 information to confirm you are authorized to work in the U.S.

A preliminary background check must be completed before a new employee can begin work with the U.S. Department of the Interior. The preliminary background check consists of a search of Office of Personnel Management and Department of Defense background investigation files and an FBI National Criminal History Fingerprint Check; it may take up to 3 weeks to complete. If selected for this position, you will be extended a tentative offer of employment pending a satisfactory background check. Current Federal employees or individuals with an existing completed background investigation may not be required to undergo another background check; these will be handled on a case-by-case basis in coordination with the Bureau security office.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Once the application process is complete, we will review your application to ensure you meet the job requirements. To determine if you are qualified for this job, a review of your resume, supporting documentation and responses to the online questionnaire will be made. Your responses to the online assessment will be used to measure the degree to which your background matches the requirements for this position. You are being evaluated under the Category Rating method, which means, if you are determined to be qualified you will be placed in one of three pre-defined categories. These categories are “Platinum”, “Gold”, and “Silver”.  However, your resume must support your responses to the scored occupational questionnaire, or your score may be lowered. Candidates placed in the “Platinum” category will be identified for referral to the hiring manager and may be invited for an interview.  Veterans' preference rules for category rating will be applied.

Your answers to the on-line assessment will be used to evaluate your competencies in the following areas:

Oral Communication- Ability to independently plan and coordinate the dissemination of information relating to BOEM programs, objectives, and functions through various media.

Technical Knowledge- Knowledge of principles, methods, practices, and techniques of communication that enable incumbent to function as a technical expert on public affairs and external affairs. 

Interpersonal Communication- Skill to fully represent the Public Affairs Officer and Region on request at meetings and other official activities.  Ability to establish effective relationships with new, non-traditional and sometimes adversarial media representatives and public affairs personnel of specialized groups. 

Written Communication- Skill in developing written materials to convey information concerning complex regulatory and revenue collecting programs and functions to a public comprising diverse levels of understanding of, and the full range of, the full range of attitudes towards, the program and activities of GOMR. 


If you are a status applicant (current career or career-conditional Federal employee or former permanent Federal employee with reinstatement eligibility in the competitive service), or are eligible under a special appointing authority and you are selected under this vacancy, you may be subject to serving a new one-year probationary period.


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