Clarification from the agency

This vacancy is open to all groups of qualified individuals.

BC is one of the major operating components of the Commission, with law enforcement responsibilities for antitrust charges arising under Sections 2, 3, 7, and 8 of the Clayton Act and under Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act.  The Bureau's law enforcement activities affect virtually every segment of the U.S. economy.

The Mergers II Division is one of six litigation divisions in BC responsible for antitrust enforcement in a variety of industries, including coal mines, chemicals, entertainment, and computer hardware. 

The Assistant Director (AD) is a member of BC's senior management team and is delegated to act for the Bureau Director in interpreting and carrying out the FTC's objectives in assigned areas of competition matters.  Major duties include:

• Serving as the primary link between BC and other Bureau leaders and FTC Commissioners, and maintaining contact with a wide range of public, private, and international groups with diverse interests in competition matters;
• Devising and implementing Division policy and reviewing policy recommendations that affect the Division and other Bureau missions;
• Evaluating investigative reports for sufficiency of evidence to support formal legal action, drafting formal complaints containing charges of law violation, and preparing briefs for and conducting the prosecution of complaints before the Federal District Courts or the Commission's Administrative Law Judges, drafting proposed findings of fact, conclusions of law, and orders;
• Providing counsel and guidance for staff members on policy questions and matters of legal strategy and reviewing legal documents prepared by the staff for consistency with agency policy, soundness of judgment, and legal sufficiency; providing assistance and guidance to the FTC regional offices in connection with cases tried at the local level;
• Appearing before the Commission, Congressional committees, industry regulators or representatives, and various forums to discuss the Division's work, emerging trends in competition law, emerging problems of law violations, proposed legislation and regulation, and related matters; and
• Managing and supervising the activities of the personnel and staff within the Division, performing human resources management functions relative to the staff supervised, and ensuring the training and effective utilization of the staff assigned.

Conditions of employment

• Must file an Executive Financial Disclosure Report
• May be required to serve a 1-year SES Probationary Period
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered with the Selective Service

As a basic requirement for entry into the Senior Executive Service (SES), applicants MUST demonstrate progressively responsible leadership experience that is indicative of senior executive level managerial capability and directly related to the competencies outlined under Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) and Technical Qualifications (TQs). Typically, experience of this nature will have been 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. Applicants must provide detailed evidence of possession of each of the ECQs and TQs listed below in supplemental statements. These statements will assist reviewing officials in determining the best qualified candidates to refer to the selecting official. Qualifications and experience determinations will be based only on the information you submit. FAILURE TO MEET OR FULLY ADDRESS ANY ONE OF THE MANDATORY ECQS AND TQS WILL ELIMINATE A CANDIDATE FROM FURTHER CONSIDERATION.

**If you can claim Noncompetitive status—you are a current or reinstatement eligible Career SES or a graduate of an Office of Personnel Management (OPM) approved SES Candidate Development Program (CDP) and your ECQs have been certified by OPM’s Qualifications Review Board (QRB)—you are not required to address the ECQs.  However, you MUST submit supplement statements addressing all mandatory TQs.  Current and reinstatement eligible SES, you must include with your application a copy of your SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action, documenting your SES Career Appointment. CDP graduates, you must include a copy of your OPM CDP graduation certificate or other proof that your ECQs have been QRB certified.**

Qualifications

EXECUTIVE CORE QUALIFICATIONS – MANDATORY

You will be evaluated on the following Executive Core Qualifications:

ECQ 1 - LEADING CHANGE

This core qualification involves 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. Core Competencies: Creativity and Innovation, External Awareness, Flexibility, Resilience, Strategic Thinking, and Vision

ECQ 2 - LEADING PEOPLE

This core qualification involves 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. Core Competencies: Conflict Management, Leveraging Diversity, Developing Others, and Team Building

ECQ 3 - RESULTS DRIVEN

This core qualification involves 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. Core Competencies: Accountability, Customer Service, Decisiveness, Entrepreneurship, Problem Solving, and Technical Credibility

ECQ 4 - BUSINESS ACUMEN

This core qualification involves the ability to manage human, financial, and information resources strategically. Core Competencies: Financial Management, Human Capital Management, and Technology Management

ECQ 5 - BUILDING COALITIONS

This core qualification involves 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. Core Competencies: Partnering, Political Savvy, and Influencing/Negotiating

The following competencies are the foundation for success in each of the Executive Core Qualifications: Interpersonal Skills, Oral Communication, Integrity/Honesty, Written Communication, Continual Learning, and Public Service Motivation

TECHNICAL QUALIFICATIONS – MANDATORY

You will be evaluated on the following Technical Qualifications:

TQ 1 - Demonstrated executive level experience in legal areas relevant to the Federal Trade Commission’s work, including antitrust law, mergers and acquisitions, and federal court litigation.

TQ 2 - Demonstrated executive level experience in managing and analyzing complex legal issues and questions of litigation strategy; reviewing pleadings, briefs, and legal memoranda; analyzing economic evidence in support of antitrust investigations and litigations; and providing oral and written legal advice and recommendations.

TQ 3 - Demonstrated executive level experience overseeing the work of attorneys responsible for analyzing economic evidence surrounding antitrust, merger, and competition matters, to include coordinating work of expert witnesses and leading all aspects of an antitrust investigation through final action.

 

How you will be evaluated

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

A preliminary review of applications will be made to determine if minimum qualifications as defined in this announcement are met.  Applicants who meet all of the mandatory executive core and technical qualifications will be evaluated by a panel of SES members to determine the degree to which they possess each of the listed qualifications.  This evaluation, using the resume, Executive Core and Technical Qualification narratives will determine which applicants are Highly Qualified based on the information provided in the application.  Highly Qualified applicants will be referred for further consideration. 

As a prerequisite for an initial career appointment to the SES, the selectee’s ECQs must be certified by OPM’s QRB.