Clarification from the agency

This announcement is open to all current Federal Competitive Service, Career and Career-Conditional employees. Applicants who have non-competitive eligibility, such as, Schedule A disability, Peace Corps or VISTA, reinstatement eligibles, Eligible Family members (EFM), etc. AND those eligible under the Veterans Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA), VRA, or Interchange Agreements with other Merit Systems may also apply, including CTAP/ICTAP eligibles.

This position is located in the Office of the Executive Director, Human Capital division within the Staffing, Benefits, Pay & Processing Unit of the Office of Inspector General (OIG).  The OIG has statutory oversight responsibility covering the Department of State and the Broadcasting Board of Governors. This oversight responsibility includes conducting and reporting on audits, inspections, investigations, and special inquiries of all overseas and domestic organizational entities of these organizations.

The Office of the Executive Director within the OIG is responsible for the policies, planning, and management of a full range of administrative and related services in support of the mission and functions of the Office of Inspector General. The Human Resources Branch provides the full range of human resources management services and consultation to support the goals, objectives, and mission of the Office of Inspector General. Under the Inspector General Act of 1978, as amended, the Inspector General is granted substantial management and human resources authorities over his/her operations and activities. As delegated by the Inspector General, the Human Resources Branch exercises extensive authorities related to the establishment of positions and the selection, appointment, and employment of personnel.

The incumbent of this Human Resources (HR) Specialist position performs work in providing consultative services and carrying out human resources operations in the primary areas of staffing, benefits, classification, pay, processing, placement, and other HR related support functions.

Consistent with the authorities delegated to the Human Resources Branch, the incumbent performs work in support of human resources management programs of the Office. The incumbent is assigned responsibility for carrying out operational human resources functions (e.g., staffing, recruitment, placement, etc.) and for providing advisory and consultative services to the managers and employees of a specific organization or organizations within the Office of Inspector General.

Primary duties include:

--Provide guidance to management on all phases of the recruitment and placement process. The incumbent provides comprehensive staffing and placement services, maintains contacts with appropriate offices in the Office of Personnel Management. The incumbent performs such duties as conducting job analyses, determining appropriate rating and ranking factors, developing crediting plans, and preparing or initiating the preparation of various promotion and placement documents, assessing applicant qualifications, and effecting hiring actions.

--Provide customer support to employees and customers within Senior Executive Service, Foreign Service, and Civil Service.

--Interpret and apply appropriate Classification Standards as it applies to Staffing and Placement actions.

--Provide advice to managers on the resolution of a broad array of human resources issues and problems including techniques corresponding to a range of conduct or performance problems. The incumbent provides information on the legal and regulatory aspects of the situations involved and, depending on the facts of the situations, will provide recommendations in the form of a number of alternative approaches for consideration by management. The incumbent also advises and explains rules and procedures to employees with respect to their rights and obligations. 

--Analyze the human resources needs and requirements of the serviced customers and taking proactive steps to help ensure that those needs and requirements are met timely and effectively, in accordance with law, rule and regulations.

--Advise managers on classification issues and assisting them in the development of position descriptions and updates.

--Respond to inquiries posed by managers and employees on pay, leave, insurance, health benefits, Thrift Savings Plan, retirement, and related matters. The incumbent interprets and applies the pertinent laws and regulations on a variety of human resource related topics and inquiries.

Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship is required.
• Incumbent will be subject to random drug testing.
• Verification of employment eligibility in the United States is required.
• One year probationary period, unless excepted by regulation.
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a Secret security clearance.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all the required qualification requirements, including education, and any selective placement factors described below by the closing date of this announcement.  Education may only be substituted in accordance with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook.  Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order to be credited towards qualifications.

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the education requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States.  It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. Click on the link for a list of accredited organizations recognized as specializing in interpretation of foreign education credentials.

NOTE: Applicants must meet time-in-grade and time after competitive appointment requirements, by the closing date of this announcement.

Applicants applying for the GS-13 must have 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 level in the Federal service which provided the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the duties of the position.  Qualifying specialized experience must demonstrate the following:  

--Experience working independently in the area of staffing and recruitment and processing federal government vacancy announcements and accomplishing the tasks associated with such work for example: adjudicating veteran's preference, conducting strategic recruitment discussions with hiring officials, conducting job analysis, formulating crediting plans, and analyzing candidate qualifications.

--Experience drafting and posting public vacancy announcements as a part of the overall recruitment process; rating and ranking of candidates; adjudication of eligibility of applicants; preparation and audit of certificates; AND preparation and maintenance of essential recruitment case files.

--Experience working independently as a consultant with management and employees to provide human resources advice in areas such as position management, recruitment, placement, classification, performance, benefits and compensation, and other related HR functions.

--Experience applying analytical methods to identify, evaluate, and recommend to management appropriate action(s) to resolve complex interrelated problems and issues; researching and interpreting Human Resource regulations, i.e. Code of Federal Regulations, Delegated Examining handbook, Merit Promotion policies and procedures, to apply a variety of special hiring authorities to perform internal and external recruiting strategies.

--Experience initiating and submitting Requests for Personnel action documents, reviewing personnel documents or accuracy, implementing corrective actions when errors are identified.

There is no substitute of education for specialized experience for the GS-13 position.

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, a review of your resume will be conducted and compared against your responses to the assessment questions to determine if you are qualified for this job.  Note:  Responses to questions that are not fully supported by the information in your resume may result in adjustments to your rating. 

Applicants who meet the minimum qualification requirements, as described in the “Qualifications” section of this announcement, will be assigned a score between 70 and 100.  The assessment is used to measure the degree in which your background matches the competencies (knowledge, skills, and abilities) required for this position. Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies

--Knowledge of, and skill in employee relations, staffing, recruitment, and placement concepts, practices, procedures, and regulations.

--Ability to communicate in writing in order to prepare emails, briefings, memoranda, letters and other correspondence associated with the responsibilities of this position.

--Ability to communicate orally to provide consultative services to management and employees regarding Human Resources services the office offers.

--Knowledge and skill in applying a wide range of human resources management concepts and principles, laws and practices in order to serve as a human resources generalists in the subject areas of but not exclusive to: staffing, classification, processing, compensation, benefits, position management, etc.

--Knowledge and skill in advising hiring officials in strategic recruitment and hiring procedures; and identifying effective courses of action to meet desired outcomes.

Agency Career and Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP and ICTAP) candidates must be rated "Well Qualified" for the position and earn a score of at least 85 (when applicants are rated in a range of 70 to 100) to receive consideration for selection priority.  Applicants found to be among the top qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring official for further consideration and possible interview.