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Deputy Director Safety and Mission Assurance

National Aeronautics and Space Administration
John F. Kennedy Space Center
This job announcement has closed

Summary

The Deputy Director, Safety and Mission Assurance (SMA), shares responsibility with the Director, SMA, for programs and projects assigned to Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and for ensuring KSC is a safe workplace and mission success is accomplished.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open date: 11/01/2022
Closed date: 11/22/2022
Location
Work site options
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$188,303 - $194,126 per year
Pay scale & grade
ES 00
Promotion potential
None
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Appointment type
Permanent
Occupations and job series
Supervisory status
Yes
Federal service type
This job is in the Senior Executive Service
Drug test
Yes
Security clearance
Sensitive Compartmented Information
Position sensitivity and risk
Special-Sensitive (SS)/High Risk
Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.
Background check type
Announcement number
KSC-23-ST-11708537
Control number
686591000

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

The area of consideration for this position is all groups of qualified individuals within the civil service, Senior Executive Service (SES) reinstatement eligible, and SES Candidate Development Program certified graduates with noncompetitive eligibility. A person is considered to be in the civil service only if occupying a civil service position at the time of application.

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Duties

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This position reports to the Director, Safety and Mission Assurance. The Deputy Director Safety and Mission Assurance:

  • Assists the Director, SMA, in planning, organizing, and leading deployment of safety, quality, and mission assurance disciplines within KSC; and acts on behalf of the Director and has full delegated authority in the Director's absence.
  • Ensures KSC SMA programs effectively and efficiently develop and promote the safety of the public, astronauts, workforce, and NASA assets. Supports and works with responsible KSC organizations to ensure an integrated safety program for KSC.
  • Ensures safe, sound, and efficient policies and procedures are in place for all work processes controlled by or performed at KSC or at contractor sites where KSC-controlled work is performed.
  • Provides SMA Technical Authority leadership for the Exploration Ground Systems Program, Launch Services Program, Commercial Crew Program, International Space Station Program, Research and Technology, Deep Space Logistics, and successor programs/projects.
  • Develops Center-wide SMA standards and guidelines tailored to unique program requirements and manages the Agency-delegated functions of range safety and payload safety.
  • Implements Agency SMA policies and practices for human space flight programs and projects assigned to KSC, ensuring that KSC is ready to support human-rated spaceflights.
  • Assists in determining Center policy for SMA implementation and identifying/resolving issues in assigned areas of responsibility, successfully making decisions or recommendations in achieving goals and objectives as outlined in the NASA and Center strategic plans.
  • When authorized, serves as the approval authority for the Center Director on waivers to Center safety policies and regulations and for the program offices as approval authority for waivers to quality and reliability requirements.
  • Partners with the Director, SMA, to make available the resources to define and provide SMA-required services and manages the organization, providing SMA services for programs, projects, Center partners, and the institution at KSC, including the combination of activities that lead up to certifying flight readiness.
  • Partners with Center and program management, ensuring appropriate Agency, program, Center, and contract SMA requirements are imposed on activities at KSC-responsible sites and ensuring compliance with these SMA requirements.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • The individual selected will be required to file an 'Executive Branch Personnel Financial Disclosure Report' (OGE-278) in accordance with the Ethics in Government Act of 1978.
  • Initial Senior Executive Service (SES) Career appointee is subject to a one-year probationary period.
  • Successful completion of a background investigation commensurate with the risk and sensitivity level of the position.
  • Must meet qualifications requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
  • Successful completion of pre-employment and random drug testing may be required.

Qualifications

You must have the skill and ability to perform the duties described above as demonstrated by progressively responsible supervisory/leadership experience, normally obtained over several years by serving in positions at the GS-15 level or equivalent.

To meet the minimum qualification requirements for this position, you MUST address each Executive Core Qualification (ECQ) and Mandatory Technical Qualification (MTQ) separately. If you fail to do so, your application will be rated ineligible. We recommend you provide two (2) examples of relevant experience for each ECQ. Responses to ALL ECQs must not exceed ten (10) pages; MTQ responses must not exceed one (1) page per MTQ. Please include your full name on all documents submitted.

If you are currently serving under a career SES appointment, are eligible for reinstatement into the SES, or have successfully completed a SES Candidate Development Program and been certified by Office of Personnel Management (OPM) you MUST submit a resume and in a separate document address the MTQs. Any ECQs submitted will not be considered. Your resume must clearly state that you are a current career SES, eligible for reinstatement, or SES CDP certified and year of certification.

When preparing your responses to the ECQs and MTQs, you are encouraged to follow the Challenge, Context, Action, and Result model outlined in the OPM's Guide to Senior Executive Service Qualification. For a sample template on how to format your ECQ narrative visit NASA's Executive Leadership Opportunities.

EXECUTIVE CORE QUALIFICATIONS:

ECQ 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.

ECQ 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.

ECQ 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.

ECQ 4 - Business Acumen: The ability to manage human, financial, and information resources strategically.

ECQ 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.


MANDATORY TECHNICAL QUALIFICATIONS:

MTQ 1- Demonstrated experience developing and implementing policies impacting multiple aeronautics, exploration, science, space operations, space technology and/or safety programs/projects.

MTQ 2- Demonstrated experience in planning, advocating, and/or executing programmatically and technically complex projects for spaceflight or institutional programs/projects.

Education

This position has a positive education requirement. To be eligible, you must clearly state in your resume the following: degree, major and/or minor, and college/university.

A bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university with major study in engineering, physical science, mathematics, life sciences, computer science, or other field of science.

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs. These education credentials must be deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, click here.

Additional information

Must be able to obtain and maintain a Top Secret/SCI security clearance.

How you will be evaluated

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

All qualifications requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement. You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

We will review your resume and required documents to ensure you meet the basic qualification requirements. If you meet the basic qualification requirements, your application will be evaluated based on your narrative statements addressing the ECQs and MTQs. Your application may then be referred to and evaluated by an Executive Resources Panel (ERP) and will be placed in one of the following categories: Not Qualified, Qualified, or Highly-qualified. Candidates may receive an interview and/or be asked to provide a list of references. The ERP will make a recommendation to the appropriate approving authority.

John F. Kennedy Space Center

At NASA, we are united by a common purpose: to reach for new heights and reveal the unknown for the benefit of humankind. Our diverse set of engineering, scientific, aeronautics and space exploration missions are leaving an enduring impact on humanity. As our missions grow more complex, we will rely on leaders with vision, creativity, and programmatic and technical expertise to lead us into the new era of exploration. In addition to programmatic knowledge, NASA's strong leadership cadre also plays a vital role in empowering our diverse workforce to achieve our shared goals. At NASA, the key to our success is our people. Join us and contribute to work that matters, while helping us create and sustain an environment that fosters excellence, teamwork, inclusiveness, safety and integrity. Align your talents with your passion, and find out why NASA is consistently named a best place to work in the federal government. Join us as we explore the extraordinary, every day.

Agency contact information

NASA Executive Staffing
Email
Agency-Executive-Staffing@mail.nasa.gov
Address
Kennedy Space Center
Space Commerce Way
Titusville, FL 32899
US

Visit our careers page

Learn more about what it's like to work at John F. Kennedy Space Center, what the agency does, and about the types of careers this agency offers.

https://www.nasa.gov/careers

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