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This Public Notice is issued under direct-hire authority to recruit new talent to occupations for which there is a severe shortage of candidates. We have a severe shortage of qualified applicants for our IT Specialist positions. To help us fill these jobs, we have been granted “Direct Hire Authority” or DHA. This means that when we have a vacant job, we can hire any qualified candidate, either from this notice or from any source. The benefit of applying to this notice is that your application may be shared with a hiring manager if they request resumes from this notice.

Current civil service employees may receive new appointments if selected under this Direct Hire Authority.

For information on DHA, please visit https://www.opm.gov/directhire/index.asp.

NOTE: "While a full range of supervisory functions are performed by this position, the position does not meet the minimum standards for coverage under the General Schedule Supervisory Guide. As such, the position meets the definition of a supervisor under the Civil Service Reform Act (CSRA) but does not meet the definition under OPM Classification Standards and thus is not classified as such."

Location of position: GSA, Federal Acquisition Service,  Office  of Technology Transformation Service (TTS). This position is 100% remote and can be filled anywhere in the U.S. 

Location will be determined upon selection.

The IT Specialist (OS/INFOSEC) duties include: 

• Performing highly complex IT work primarily involving design, development, testing, and evaluation of platform (i.e., operating system) cybersecurity (e.g., site resilience, platform recovery, threat reduction) throughout the development, deployment and maintenance of information security and information assurance and cloud infrastructure hardware and software.

• Serving as an authoritative subject matter expert for Login.gov platform and site reliability engineering, and development and managing and directing multiple highly complex and innovative cybersecurity infrastructure projects to improve platform resiliency, reliability, uptime and information security, respectively.

• Providing expert technical advice, leadership, and direction on all infrastructure and site reliability related initiatives and determining project objectives, priorities.  Anticipating potential threats and identifying opportunities for improvements.  

• Evaluating a range of qualitative and quantitative metrics around user needs, resource prioritization, and program management. Developing and applying best practices to ensure infrastructure meets service-level agreements (SLAs), service-level objectives (SLOs), and/or key performance indicators (KPIs).

• Establishing a shared understanding across team members and stakeholders, administering complex governmental relationships and organizational structures to obtain consensus around common program/program segment project goals.

• Providing leadership in the design, development, and deployment of cybersecurity and cloud infrastructure solutions leveraging current and emergent technologies and best practices. Mentoring team members, as necessary, and evaluating team practices and establishing and/or ensuring compliance with standards. 

• Utilizing interpersonal skills to develop cooperative relationships. Working closely with product teams, compliance teams, security teams, and applications developers in a leadership role and navigating through conflicting priorities from stakeholders. Using empathy, creativity, coalition building, situational awareness, and tact to problem solve and manage stakeholders. 

• Directing, coordinating, or overseeing work of personnel. Exercising significant responsibilities in dealing with management officials of other units/organizations and advising higher-echelon management officials.

• Providing technical, as needed, and administrative supervision over federal subordinates. Ensuring agency policies and priorities are followed. Developing  performance standards and evaluating work performance of subordinates.

• Resolving minor complaints from employees, referring group grievances and more serious unresolved complaints to a higher-level supervisor or manager. Effecting minor disciplinary measures (e.g., warnings and reprimands) and recommending action in more serious cases. Interviewing candidates for vacant positions in the unit and recommending appointments, promotions, and reassignments. Identifying and providing for training needs. Finding ways to improve production and/or increase the quality of work of the organization directed. Carrying out and complying with Equal Opportunity policies and program activities.

Conditions of employment

1. US Citizenship or National (Residents of American Samoa and Swains Island)
2. Meet all eligibility criteria within 30 days of the closing date
3. Register with the Selective Service if you are a male born after 12/31/1959
4. Direct Deposit of salary check to financial organization required

If selected, you must meet the following conditions:

• Current of Former Political Appointees: 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 or NonCareer SES employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the HR Office. Failure to disclose this information could result in disciplinary action including removal from Federal Service.
• Undergo and pass a background investigation (Tier 4 investigation level).
• Serve a one year probationary period, if required.
• Have your identity and work status eligibility verified if you are not a GSA employee. We will use the Department of Homeland Security’s e-Verify system for this. Any discrepancies must be resolved as a condition of continued employment.

Qualifications

For each job on your resume, provide:

• the exact dates you held  each job (from month/year to month/year)
• number of hours per week you worked (if part time).    

If you have volunteered your service through a National Service program (e.g., Peace Corps, Americorps), we encourage you to apply and include this experience on your resume.

For a brief video on creating a Federal resume, click here. 

The GS-15 salary range starts at $136,908 per year. If you are a new federal employee, your starting salary will likely be set at the Step 1 of the grade for which you are selected. 

 
Applicants applying for the GS-15 grade level must meet the following requirements: Have IT-related experience demonstrating EACH of the four competencies AND one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-14 level in the Federal service as described below:

IT SPECIALIST COMPETENCY REQUIREMENTS:

• Attention to Detail - This skill is generally demonstrated by assignments where the applicant keeps abreast of latest technology, information, research, etc., to maintain knowledge in field of expertise (for example, reads trade journals, participates in professional/technical associations, maintains credentials).
• Customer Service - This skill is generally demonstrated by assignments where the applicant promotes or develops and maintains good working relationships with key individuals or groups.
• Oral Communication - This skill is generally demonstrated by assignments where the applicant serves on panels, committees, or task forces as a representative for the organization on technical or professional issues.
• Problem Solving - This skill is generally demonstrated by assignments where the applicant monitors current trends or events (for example, technological, economic, political, social, educational, or employment trends or events) and applies the information as appropriate

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS: Specialized experience for this role is defined as:

• Experience with infrastructure/site reliability technologies.
• Experience in the design, development, and deployment of cybersecurity or platform infrastructure solutions.
• Experience leading and/or managing multifunctional cybersecurity or platform infrastructure projects including the overall planning, analysis, design, development, and implementation for new systems.
• Experience building alignment with stakeholders.

How you will be evaluated

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

Applications will be evaluated against the basic qualifications. Qualified candidates will be considered in accordance with the Office of Personnel Management Direct Hire Guidelines. Veterans' Preference does not apply to the direct hire recruitment procedures. Certain selections made under this notice will be processed as new appointments to the civil service. Current civil service employees might be given new appointments to the civil service. You may not be considered for the position, if any part of the application is incomplete or missing the required supporting documentation. Falsifying your background, education and/or experience is cause for not hiring you or dismissing you if hired.

If you are an Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan eligible or a GSA Career Transition Assistance eligible, you must be considered well qualified to receive priority (ICTAP/CTAP). Well qualified is defined as possession of the majority of competencies required for the position and will be determined, based upon a review of your resume against the competencies required for the position being filled.

• Mastery of, and skill in applying, platform and site reliability engineering theories, concepts, and practices; cybersecurity and cloud infrastructure design principles and methods; interrelationships between cybersecurity and cloud infrastructure disciplines; and infrastructure/site reliability technologies sufficient to investigate, evaluate, and select tools and methods for improving cybersecurity and cloud infrastructure performance quality throughout the life cycle.
• Expert knowledge of IT project management and associated iterative principles, methods, and practices, including estimating and identifying resource requirements, defining milestones and deliverables, monitoring activities, and evaluating and reporting on progress/accomplishments to lead multifunctional cybersecurity and cloud infrastructure projects.
• Skill leading multifunctional cybersecurity and cloud infrastructure projects including analysis, design, development, and implementation for new systems or major enhancements to an existing SaaS system; 
• Ability to assign tasks to project members; ensuring customer and management involvement throughout the operating system/platform, cybersecurity, and/or cloud-based infrastructure development process(es); and coordinating demonstrations of new or enhanced systems/applications to customers and management.
• Ability to build and maintain business relationships with product teams, security teams, compliance teams, and application software developers, stakeholders, and other involved parties at various levels within customer agencies and across GSA throughout product life cycles; 
• Skill collaborating across organizational boundaries and operational roles to build strategic relationships, achieve common goals, and resolve sensitive cybersecurity, cloud infrastructure, and related issues;
• Mastery of, and skill in creating a work environment that fosters diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, trust, respect, and collaboration, since the best work comes from including diverse skill sets and backgrounds. 
• Expert skill in providing coaching, mentoring, and/or sponsorship to others in the organization, tailoring approaches to the needs of the individual.