Clarification from the agency

Internal Employees/Agency Employees Only. Applicants must be current United States Coast Guard permanent Federal civilian employees serving on career or career-conditional appointments.

You will serve as the Head of the Assessment and Authorization Department, responsible for the operational implementation of the Coast Guard's cybersecurity program, while managing, supervising, planning, developing, initiating and leading staff.

Being a Coast Guard civilian makes you a valuable member of the Coast Guard team.  Typical work assignments include:

• Accessing critical cybersecurity operations in support of the mission and functions of CGCYBER.
• Ensuring Coast Guard information systems (IS), platform IT (PIT) systems are categorized, assessed and validated in accordance with the RMF standards.
• Overseeing the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of Coast Guard networks, systems and data.
• Developing and issuing guidance for the assessment and authorization of Coast IS, PIT systems that reflect unique operational environments and requirements.
• Reviewing authorization and assurance documents to confirm that the level of risk is within acceptable limits for each software application.
• Developing new concepts, theories, and guidance to ensure the effective, safe and secure operation of CG classified, unclassified and cross-domain information systems.
• Providing technical and administrative supervision to a staff of civilian and military personnel and contractors.

Conditions of employment

• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for Selective Service.
• U.S. Citizenship is required.

All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement. This includes Time-In-Grade requirements for current status employees applying through merit promotion procedures. Status applicants applying for a promotion must have 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade.

Qualifications

To qualify at the GS-15 level: Applicants must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-14 level in the federal service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the particular ability, skill, and knowledge to successfully perform the duties of this position and is typically in or related to this line of work. Examples of specialized experience includes: Ensuring the designation and management of qualified Authorization officials (AO) for all agency IS and PIT systems and that all systems are authorized in accordance with the RMF; developing and issuing guidance for PIT systems that reflects agency unique operational environment and requirements; providing oversight and program direction to ensure compliance with authorization decisions, including denial of authorization to operate (DATO) and enforce authorization termination dates (ATD); providing oversight and program direction for the elevated privilege program; providing oversight and program direction for the disaster recovery, continuity of operations, and interconnect service agreements; observing workers' performance; demonstrates and conducts work performance critiques; providing informal feedback and periodically evaluating employee performance; resolving informal complaints and grievances; developing work improvement plans, recommending personnel actions as necessary; and providing advice and counsel to workers related to work and administrative matters.

In addition to the qualification requirements above, applicants must have IT-related experience demonstrating each of the four BASIC COMPETENCIES listed below:

Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.

Customer Service - Works with clients and customers (that is, any individuals who use or receive the services or products that your work unit produces, including the general public, individuals who work in the agency, other agencies, or organizations outside the Government) to assess their needs, provide information or assistance, resolve their problems, or satisfy their expectations; knows about available products and services; is committed to providing quality products and services.

Oral Communication - Expresses information (for example, ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information (for example, technical, sensitive, controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately.

Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.

National Service Experience (i.e., volunteer experience): Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

The Office of Personnel management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees.  If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule, C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.

How you will be evaluated

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

We will review your résumé and supporting documentation to ensure you meet the basic qualification requirements. If you meet the minimum qualifications, your experience, education and training will be rated using the on-line self assessment questions that are based on the following competencies or knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to perform this job:

1. Knowledge in information systems security principles and concepts. Federal IT Security and risk management processes, policies, standards, procedures and strategies.
2. Knowledge of the enterprise IT architecture and project management principles and methods sufficient to provide leadership, oversight and program direction.
3. Knowledge of negotiating for the acceptance of agency positions on key Government-wide policy initiatives exercising judgment and discretion with DoD, DHS, and OMB.
4. Knowledge of monitoring and auditing the configuration, cost, design, analysis, operational performance and the internal security procedures of National Security Systems (NSS), Mission Essential Systems (MES), High Value Assets (HVA) and classified information or critical infrastructure.
5. Knowledge of concepts and techniques of supervision and management.
6. Skill in written communication to develop and issue technical guidance in implementation of Information Assurance (IA) or Risk Management (RMF) processes or procedures.
7. Skill in oral communication to requirements to non-technical personnel, and prepare and present briefings to senior management officials on complex/controversial IT security issues.

Your resume and responses to the self-assessment questions are an integral part of the process for determining your qualifications for the position. Therefore, you must support your responses to the self-assessment questions by providing examples of past and present experience in your resume. If you are best qualified, you may be referred to the hiring manager for consideration and may be called for an interview. Consideration will be given to performance appraisals and incentive awards as an indicator of quality of prior experience; no points will be assigned.