GAO supports the Congress in meeting its constitutional responsibilities to legislate, appropriate, and oversee the Federal government for the benefit of the American people. GAO, commonly referred to as the investigative arm of Congress, or the congressional watchdog, is independent and nonpartisan. GAO assists Congress in making informed decisions by providing information on policy and program issues, as well as by providing recommendations to make government more effective and responsive.
Summary
GAO supports the Congress in meeting its constitutional responsibilities to legislate, appropriate, and oversee the Federal government for the benefit of the American people. GAO, commonly referred to as the investigative arm of Congress, or the congressional watchdog, is independent and nonpartisan. GAO assists Congress in making informed decisions by providing information on policy and program issues, as well as by providing recommendations to make government more effective and responsive.
This opportunity is ONLY OPEN to qualified full-time or part-time GAO employees on permanent appointments. This procedure will be conducted under the processes outlined in GAO Order 2335.8.
Assistant Directors manage all aspects of a specific set of engagements or a single engagement or project and can function in a staff role or as an expert specialist. Band III staff plan, advise, consult, conduct, or direct work under general guidance. Work is guided by broad policy and program guidance and is judged on adherence to GAO protocols, and other policies and the degree of effectiveness in fulfilling GAO's mission requirements. Band III staff are responsible for an assigned segment of an issue area or for providing support to a unit head in managing the unit's work. The paramount characteristics that distinguish this band from IIB staff are a mastery of GAO audit and evaluation work and the ability to identify issues that have the potential to provide dollar savings or nonfinancial benefits to the government and taxpayers; planning, developing, and managing multiple engagements to achieve mission objectives and outcomes; and the development and management of people. Duties of Band III Assistant Directors include but are not limited to the following:
Identifies key issues related to significant savings, improvements, or benefits and achieving results in key efforts identified in strategic plan and defining own and others work in terms of measurable or observable outcomes;
Provides vision, direction, and focus to align audit and evaluation work to accomplish GAO strategic goals by managing multiple, highly complex, or sensitive engagements, ensuring soundness of engagement/project design and the effective utilization of assigned staff within and across units;
Anticipates information needs of external parties and facilitates making this information readily available;
Initiates or reviews engagement/project proposals to assess relevance, scope, and technical adequacy to meet ongoing requirements for area(s) of assigned program responsibility;
Develops and monitors the process for planning engagements or projects; using planning tools, such as the EAGLE, design matrix, and project planning software; and contributing to the improvement of operations through advanced use of technology;
Helps others to achieve results by providing advice on methods and procedures; serving as a quality assurance point for final products, maintaining accountability by advising superiors of progress or problems, and representing GAO in discussions with congressional and agency officials; and producing or guiding others to produce clear and logical products that are targeted to the audience in terms of scope, reflecting the value of the work done;
Fulfills GAO's expectations for developing and supervising employees by ensuring clear expectations, providing regular feedback, coaching staff in skill development, overseeing individual development activities, and providing opportunities to develop increased capabilities, evaluating performance accurately, and appropriately recognizing the contributions of both individuals and teams; and managing own individual career development;
Manages the research of computer software concepts such as data representation, data structures, file systems, operating systems, computer languages, software development methodologies, and network protocols; and
Oversees the analysis of software systems using knowledge of techniques, procedures, and processes such as operating system theory, data structures, computer system architecture, software engineering, and computer communications;
You must meet all qualification requirements by the effective date of promotion.
Must be a current GAO employee on a permanent appointment.
Job locations are based on agency needs. Generally, you will remain in your current official duty station (ODS) if selected. However, based on agency needs, you may be offered a position in a different location and if you accept, your ODS will change.
Qualifications
Band III
Must be a full-time or part-time GAO employee on a permanent appointment. In addition, applicants must have at least one year (52 weeks) of specialized experience, equivalent to at least the next lower band level (PE-IIB, PA-II, PT-III, or MS-I), that demonstrates substantive knowledge of GAO's programs and activities, its mission, policies, objectives, management principles and processes; and the ability to manage staff, and independently analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of administrative services and staff resources. The 52 weeks of specialized experience described above must be completed by May 18, 2025, the effective date of promotion.
In addition to meeting the requirements listed above, ALL applicants must meet the following 2 selective placement factors:
(1) Extensive experience and demonstrated abilities in analyzing key aspects of automated information systems, such as development, acquisition, testing, operation, and maintenance.
(2) Extensive experience and demonstrated abilities in analyzing elements of one or more of the following information technology domains: information security, enterprise architecture, information management, investment management, and telecommunications.
Education
Applicants must have a Bachelor's degree in computer science or bachelor's degree with 30 semester hours in a combination of mathematics, statistics, and computer science. At least 15 of the 30 semester hours must have included any combination of statistics and mathematics that included differential and integral calculus. All academic degrees and course work must be from accredited or pre-accredited institutions. You must submit transcripts with your application in order to determine if you meet the Basic Occupational Requirement for this series.
You must meet both the education and experience requirements for this position before the effective date of promotion. Transcripts to verify your education should also be submitted with your application.
Additional information
For information on the number promotion opportunities by team, please see the GAO-wide Notice published and distributed (via email) earlier this month.
If you have an approved Flexible Work Agreement (FWA) and you are selected for promotion, you must complete and submit a new flexible work application for approval. Your new flexible work arrangement will be reviewed and decided based on Agency policy governing these arrangements. Additionally, you may have a 90-day waiting period to submit an arrangement changing your ODS to a different locality area.
BARGAINING UNIT STATUS: This position is not included in the bargaining unit.
If you would like to apply for Specialist, Analyst, and/or National Security Analyst promotion opportunities you must submit a separate application directly to the appropriate announcement for each Specialist, Analyst, and/or National Security Analyst position for which you wish to be considered.
This position is a critical sensitive high-risk position with possible upgrade to a Secret or Top-Secret clearance depending on the type of engagement the employee will be assigned to within the mission teams.
REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION: GAO provides reasonable accommodations to applicants and employees with disabilities. To request accommodation, please email ReasonableAccommodations@gao.gov.
The U.S. Government Accountability Office's policy is to provide equal employment opportunity for all regardless of race, religion, color, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age, disability, genetic information, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
How you will be evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
If you meet the qualification requirements stated above, a panel of team managers will assess your qualifications along with those of other candidates who are deemed eligible for the position. The rating panel (BQ panel) will establish a ranked list of candidates from which the panel chair, in consultation with the panel, identifies those candidates who are best-qualified. Complete the online questionnaire and follow all instructions carefully, as incomplete answers, errors, or omissions may affect your consideration. Your application will be invalid if you fail to include a narrative reply to any vacancy question(s) that requires further explanation, or your reply is see resume. You must provide narrative answers in the space provided.
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
Band III
You must submit your resume and application (completed vacancy questions) online through USASTAFFING. HCO will provide all performance appraisal ratings data at the Band IIB or equivalent level to the panel for the period between 10/15/22 to 10/14/24.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below.
A complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration.
- To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application.
- Follow the prompts to select your résumé and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
- After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.
- You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application.
To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account (https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/.
If you are unable to apply online, please contact William Washington at washingtonw@gao.gov or 4046791881 by 4 p.m. on the closing date of the announcement.
For technical issue with USAJOBS: Please refer to the USAJOBS help page.
Government Accountability Office
Human Capital Office
441 G Street NW
Washington, DC 20548
US
Next steps
3/26/25: BQ results to applicants. Employees who are deemed best qualified may apply for promotion opportunities in other teams during Phase 2. The Phase 2 announcements will be posted on GAO's intranet through the "Annual Promotion Opportunities" link.
3/27/25 - 4/17/25: Managing Directors may conduct interviews on BQ applicants resulting from Phase 1 (if desired).
4/11/25 - 4/17/25: Managing Directors may conduct interviews of Phase 2 BQ applicants (if desired).
5/05/25 - 5/06/25: Managing Directors make promotion offers.
5/18/25: Effective date of promotions.
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
Band III
You must submit your resume and application (completed vacancy questions) online through USASTAFFING. HCO will provide all performance appraisal ratings data at the Band IIB or equivalent level to the panel for the period between 10/15/22 to 10/14/24.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below.
A complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration.
- To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application.
- Follow the prompts to select your résumé and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
- After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.
- You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application.
To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account (https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/.
If you are unable to apply online, please contact William Washington at washingtonw@gao.gov or 4046791881 by 4 p.m. on the closing date of the announcement.
For technical issue with USAJOBS: Please refer to the USAJOBS help page.
Government Accountability Office
Human Capital Office
441 G Street NW
Washington, DC 20548
US
Next steps
3/26/25: BQ results to applicants. Employees who are deemed best qualified may apply for promotion opportunities in other teams during Phase 2. The Phase 2 announcements will be posted on GAO's intranet through the "Annual Promotion Opportunities" link.
3/27/25 - 4/17/25: Managing Directors may conduct interviews on BQ applicants resulting from Phase 1 (if desired).
4/11/25 - 4/17/25: Managing Directors may conduct interviews of Phase 2 BQ applicants (if desired).
5/05/25 - 5/06/25: Managing Directors make promotion offers.
5/18/25: Effective date of promotions.
Fair and transparent
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
