Clarification from the agency

Open to current and former Federal employees with competitive status and VEOA Applicants. This is not a Bargaining unit position.

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As a Program Manager (DEI Specialist), you will: 

• Identify and evaluate DEIA training and awareness opportunities, as well as organizational training needs to agency leadership. Facilitate listening sessions and develop or assist in developing curriculum when needed.
• Serve on agency-established workgroups in support of DEIA initiatives and provide reporting of DEIA progress as requested by workgroup leads.
• Be responsible for developing internal and external communications to foster relationships with modes across DOT, colleges, universities, and professional organizations. The incumbent may also be tasked with supporting specific recruitment strategies for key positions/vacancies that are hard to fill or unique.
• Assess and design efforts to improve awareness of a variety of cultural, generational, ethnic, gender, and other differences, related to issues of employee engagement, equal opportunity, conflict resolution, and other workforce issues, and provide support to meet the increasingly related workforce management challenges.
• Conduct comprehensive studies, and surveys or develop questionnaires as needed to identify systemic problems or barriers to problems and causes.
• Draft policy statements, briefings, and reports and make presentations to a variety of high-level, internal, and external officials, on the status of DEIA initiatives in the Department.

The ideal candidate has experience leading, working with, and/or championing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) in the workplace. The candidate should have experience presenting to a variety of audiences and thrive in environments where collaboration is necessary to accomplish agency goals. The candidate should also have strong program/project management skills and the ability to easily to adapt to changing priorities. We are seeking a highly driven, self-motivated team player with a passion for furthering strategic goals related to DEIA.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen and eligible for consideration.
• You must meet specialized experience to qualify.
• Submit application and resume online by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date.
• Required documents must be submitted by the closing date.

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:

• SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for the Selective Service.
• TIME-IN-GRADE: Federal applicants must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade in the competitive or excepted service in the executive branch to satisfy time-in-grade restrictions contained in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F.
• BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION: You may be required to complete a background/security investigation and meet preliminary requirements prior to onboarding.
• PCS/RELOCATION/RECRUITMENT:  Permanent Change of Station (PCS), Relocation, and Recruitment Incentive authorization varies by position/selection and a service agreement may be required.
• PROBATIONARY PERIOD: You must complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed).
  
• GOVERNMENT TRAVEL CARD: This position involves travel.  A government contractor-issued travel card will be issued and must be retained for official business only.
• TELEWORK ELIGIBILITY: This position may be eligible for occasional and/or regularly scheduled telework. The number of telework days approved will be determined by your immediate supervisor or manager following the agency’s telework policy and guidance. If participating in the telework program, you will be required to sign a telework agreement detailing agency telework policy requirements, working conditions, and expectations for the position.

Qualifications

To determine which grade(s) you may be eligible for, review the following grade specific details.  You will be asked a few questions as part of your application but make sure to verify how you meet this experience in your resume.

For the GS-13:

On Experience, you must have at least one year of experience, equal or equivalent to the GS-12 grade level, which included:

• Experience promoting a continuing business case for programs such as in diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, human capital, training and development, or human resources as a strategic priority that supports the agency’s mission.

For the GS-14:

On Experience, you must have at least one year of experience, equal or equivalent to the GS-13 grade level, which included:

• Experience developing and promoting a continuing business case for programs such as in diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, human capital, training and development, or human resources as a strategic priority that supports the agency’s mission.

You cannot use education to qualify at grades 12 and higher, you must have experience.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:

1. Technical Competence - Uses knowledge that is acquired through formal training or extensive on-the-job experience to perform one's job; works with, understands, and evaluates technical information related to the job; advises others on technical issues.
2. 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 presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately.
3. Organizational Awareness - Knows the organization's mission and functions, and how its social, political, and technological systems work and operates effectively within them; this includes the programs, policies, procedures, rules, and regulations of the organization.

For all types of consideration, 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

Applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

How you will be evaluated

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

DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE: PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume/ application does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s). Your resume must contain sufficiently detailed information upon which to make a qualification determination. Please ensure that your resume contains specific information such as position titles, beginning and ending dates of employment for each position, average number of hours worked per week, and if the position is/was in the Federal government, you should provide the position series and grade level. 

To compete with other competitive status government employees: If you meet the qualification requirements, your application will be scored based upon your responses to the vacancy questions. The top rated applications will be reviewed for the quality of your experience, education and training relevant to the position. If referred, all relevant documents including performance appraisals and awards submitted with your application package will be forwarded to the hiring official for review.

Eligible Federal employees also seeking consideration for noncompetitive reassignment for this position must indicate interest in the assessment. Noncompetitive federal candidates must have competitive status on a SF-50, meet minimum qualifications, have served at the same grade or higher, and held or exceeded the promotion potential of this position.

All applicants:  Your application will be rated on the extent and quality of your experience, education and training relevant to the position. The answers you select in the on-line process must be substantiated in your application package.  If upon review, it is determined that your described work history, competencies, and/or supporting documents do not support your answer choices, your application may be updated on your behalf or you may not be referred to the selecting official. Please ensure that your work history provides enough details to support your answers. The Automated Staffing Office is ultimately responsible for determining your final rating.