Clarification from the agency

All groups of qualified individuals

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• Serve as the Agency's focal point for strategic and tactical communications providing leadership for CMS in overseeing, leading, and managing CMS' national public information/public affair programs.
• Direct the public information and public affairs programs designed to enhance and preserve good working relationships with the general public, national organizations, advocacy groups, and other organizations with an interest in CMS' programs.
• Serve as a principal advisor to top management in CMS and HHS on public affairs activities.
• Fosters the infrastructure necessary to meet the ever-increasing demands for consumer information and carry out legislative mandates in an intense time schedule fraught with tight deadlines.
• Ensure stable and reliable information about CMS and its programs are available in the face of continuous changes in the health care market, quality performance expectations and measurement, and in communication technology.
• Cultivate and maintain collaborative relationships between CMS and national, State, and local organizations, the White House, and advocacy groups to promote awareness of Medicare, Medicaid benefits and CMS benefits, services, and initiatives.
• Oversee technically complex projects and initiatives related to external communication activities for government programs that are of significant interest to the public and Congress.
• Direct the analysis of interrelated issues about CMS communications programs that affect the public, particularly the methods CMS uses to communicate mission-critical information to target audiences.
• Determine how to implement new program requirements within an intense time schedule fraught with tight deadlines, in a period of extreme volatility in the health care marketplace, and in a highly politically sensitive environment.
• Direct the implementation and maintenance of programs, instructions, and systems to ensure efficient communication of program information to the public and the effective use of technology to research the most appropriate audience.
• Oversee interactions with stakeholders, including external advocacy groups, HHS leadership, other CMS components, and other Federal government entities.
• Represent CMS at major meetings and conferences with government and non-government officials and has broad powers to commit the Agency to a course of action.

Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship required.
• Background and/or Security Investigation required.
• One year SES probationary period required.
• The Ethics in Government Act, PL 95-521 requires the applicant selected for this position to submit a financial disclosure statement, SF-278, prior to assuming the SES position, annually, and upon termination of employment.
• Status applicants must submit a copy of their most recent SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action, which verifies status.
• All initial appointments to an SES position are contingent on approval from OPM's Qualifications Review Board unless the selectee has successfully participated in an OPM approved SES Candidate Development Program.
• All male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must have registered for the selective service. You will be required to sign a statement certifying his registration, or the applicant must demonstrate exempt status under the Selective Service Law.
• Only experience obtained by the closing date of this announcement will be considered.

Qualifications

All competitive candidates for SES positions with the Federal Government must demonstrate leadership experience indicative of senior executive level management capability. To meet the minimum qualification requirements for this position, you must show in your resume that you possess the Fundamental Competencies, five Executive Core Qualifications, and the Professional/Technical Qualifications listed below. Evidence of this experience must be incorporated into your five page resume. Separate narratives for the Executive Core Qualifications and/or Professional/Technical Qualifications will not be accepted or considered. Typically, experience of this nature is gained at or above the GS-15 grade level in the Federal service, or its equivalent with state or local government, the private sector, or nongovernmental organizations.

Fundamental Competencies:
Interpersonal Skills, Oral Communication, Integrity/Honesty, Written Communication, Continual Learning, and Public Service Motivation.

Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs)

1. Leading Change: The ability to bring about strategic change, both within and outside the organization, to meet organizational goals. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to establish an organizational vision and to implement it in a continuously changing environment.
2. Leading People: The ability to lead people toward meeting the organization's vision, mission, and goals. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to provide an inclusive workplace that fosters the development of others, facilitates cooperation and teamwork, and supports constructive resolution of conflicts.
3. Results Driven: The ability to meet organizational goals and customer expectations. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to make decisions that produce high-quality results by applying technical knowledge, analyzing problems, and calculating risks.
4. Business Acumen: The ability to manage human, financial, and information resources strategically.
5. Building Coalitions: The ability to build coalitions internally and with other Federal agencies, State and local governments, nonprofit and private sector organizations, foreign governments, or international organizations to achieve common goals.

Professional/Technical Qualifications (PTQs)

This position also requires that you possess PTQs that represent knowledge, skills, and abilities essential for success in this role. The following PTQs must be evident in your resume.

1. Proven expertise and leadership in the area of strategic and tactical communications including effective management of interactions with the press and media. Ability to translate complex policies and determine effective and targeted information to various external audiences including consumers, the press, the general public, Congress, advocacy groups and other governmental organizations.

2. Ability to meet increasing demands for information for varied and complex audiences and ensuring that the most reliable information on CMS' programs is readily available, despite short turnaround times and tight deadlines. This includes extensive experience in providing information to the press and responding in a timely manner to press inquiries. This also includes communicating both internally and externally during a crisis situation, when communication needs are most urgent.

3. Proven ability to build strong partnerships with various groups in order to increase their awareness of CMS' programs and ensure their promotion of CMS' initiatives/priorities to their customers and audiences. This includes National, State and Local organizations, the White House, advocacy groups, other governmental organizations and the press.


It is STRONGLY recommended that you visit the following Office of Personnel Management (OPM) webpage for more information regarding the Fundamental Competencies and ECQs.
https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/senior-executive-service/executive-core-qualifications/#url=Overview

If selected, you will be required to complete an ECQ package by drafting narratives for each of the ECQs for submission and certification by an OPM Qualifications Review Board (QRB) in order to be placed in this position. If you are currently serving in a career SES appointment, are eligible for reinstatement into the SES, or have successfully completed an SES Candidate Development Program approved by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), you will not need to draft the ECQs.

How you will be evaluated

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

We use a multi-step process to evaluate and refer applicants:

1. Minimum requirements: Your application must show that you meet all requirements, including the education and/or experience required for this position. You may be found 'not qualified' if you do not possess the minimum competencies required for the position. If your application is incomplete, we may rate you as ineligible.
2. Rating: A panel of Senior Executives will review your application and evaluate your qualification for this position based on the information in your application. Your application will be rated, based on the extent and quality of your experience, education, and training relevant to the duties of this position. Interviews will be at the discretion of the panel and/or selection official.
3. Referral: If you are among the top qualified candidates, your application will be referred to a selection official for consideration and possible interview.