Clarification from the agency

All qualified U.S. Citizens, Current and former members of the Senior Executive Service, and SES Candidate Development Program graduates.

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The incumbent of this position serves as the Deputy Director, Office of Railroad, Pipeline, and Hazardous Materials Investigations (RPH) at the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). As Deputy Director, the incumbent is responsible for supporting the RPH Director, to provide executive-level management and oversight of the Office, which investigates, analyzes, develops, and prepares detailed reports and proposed probable cause determinations of US railroad, pipeline and hazardous materials accidents, and makes related safety recommendations.Major duties include, but are not limited to:

• Plans, manages, directs, and evaluates the work of the Office of RPH. Provides direction to professional engineers, accident investigators, and other technical and support staff to assure high quality accident investigations.
• Manages the accident investigation process to ensure timely and appropriate response to report to the Board. Under delegated authority, initiates accident investigations to implement the NTSB Congressional mandate and NTSB priorities. Oversees accident report preparation. Ensures all factors of accidents have been identified, objectively examined, and documented. Determines probable cause(s) of each accident.
• Develops a strategic and annual operating plan for the implementation of short-term and long-term objectives for the Office.
• Coordinates programs with other Federal, state, and local government agencies, industry groups, and foreign governments, as appropriate. Initiates activities aimed at promoting the public image of the work of the NTSB. Meets with high-ranking officials to develop and negotiate the implementation of national and international goals and objectives, as appropriate.
• Establishes and maintains liaison with international and domestic industry, safety groups, labor organizations, associations, Congress, Federal regulators, etc. Represents the NTSB and serves as a member of the U.S. delegation at international meetings on accident investigation issues.
• Provides authoritative advice and expertise in the development of industry standards and regulations, technology, and new applications of existing technology. Provides Congressional testimony, as needed.

Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizen
• Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered for Selective Service
• Resume and supporting documents (see "How to Apply" section)
• Suitability and the ability to maintain a Secret security clearance is required
• Financial Interest in transportation enterprises will be evaluated on a case by case basis.
• Bargaining Unit Position: NO
• Direct Deposit is required
• Newly appointed SES members must serve a 1-year probationary period.
• Selectee will be required to complete and submit an Executive Personnel Financial Disclosure Report, OGE-278, prior to entering the position and annually thereafter.
• Ethics pre-clearance/financial disclosure statement is required.
• Veterans preference is not applicable to the Senior Executive Service
• This is a Career reserved position in the Senior Executive Service (SES)
• All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.
• The critical nature of the work of this position requires the incumbent to be available 24 hours per day, seven days a week.

Qualifications

You must upload your responses to the Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) and Mandatory Technical Qualifications (MTQs).

As a basic requirement for entry into the SES, applicants must provide evidence of progressively responsible executive leadership and supervisory experience that is indicative of senior executive level management capability and directly related to the skills and abilities outlined under Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) and Mandatory Technical Qualifications (MTQs) listed below.

Typically, experience of this nature will have been gained at or above the GS-15 grade level in the Federal service or its equivalent in the private sector. As such, your resume should demonstrate that you have the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully fulfill responsibilities inherent in most SES positions such as:

• Directing the work of an organizational unit;
• Ensuring the success of one or more specific major programs or projects;
• Monitoring progress toward strategic organizational goals, evaluating organizational performance and taking action to improve performance; and
• Supervising the work of employees.

Failure to meet the basic qualification requirement and address all Mandatory Technical and Executive Core Qualification factors will result in your application being disqualified.

EXECUTIVE CORE QUALIFICATIONS (ECQs): The ECQs were designed to assess executive experience and potential not technical expertise. They measure whether an individual has the broad executive skills needed to succeed in a variety of SES positions. All applicants must submit a written narrative to address the ECQs. Your narrative must address each of the 5 ECQ's separately and should contain two (2) examples per ECQ describing your experiences and accomplishments/results within the last ten (10) years. The narrative should be clear, concise, and emphasize your level of responsibilities, scope and complexity of programs managed, program accomplishments, policy initiatives undertaken and the results of your actions. Applicants should not enter "Refer to Resume" to explain your answer.

The ECQ narrative must not exceed 10 pages overall. Please Note: Current career SES Members, former career SES members with reinstatement eligibility, and SES candidate Development Program graduates who have been certified by Office of Personnel Management (OPM) DO NOT need to address the ECQs.

ECQ 1 - Leading Change: This core qualification involves 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. (Competencies: creativity and innovation, external awareness, flexibility, resilience, strategic thinking, vision)

ECQ 2 - Leading People: This core qualification involves the ability to lead people toward meeting the organizations vision, mission, and goals. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to provide an workplace that fosters the development of others, facilitates cooperation and teamwork, and supports constructive resolution of conflicts. (Competencies: conflict management, developing others, team building)

ECQ 3 - Results Driven: This core qualification involves 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. (Competencies: accountability, customer service, decisiveness, entrepreneurship, problem solving, technical credibility)

ECQ 4 - Business Acumen: This core qualification involves the ability to manage human, financial, and information resources strategically. (Competencies: financial management, human capital management, technology management)

ECQ 5 - Building Coalitions: This core qualification involves 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. (Competencies: partnering, political savvy, influencing/negotiating)

Fundamental Competencies: These competencies are the foundation for success in each of the Executive Core Qualifications: Interpersonal Skills, Oral Communication, Continual Learning, Written Communication, Integrity/Honesty, Public Service Motivation. The Fundamental Competencies are crosscutting; and should be addressed over the course of each ECQ narratives. It is not necessary for you to address the Fundamental Competencies directly as long as the narrative, in its totality, shows mastery of these competencies on the whole.

Applicants must utilize the Challenge-Context-Action-Result (CCAR) Model when writing Executive Core Qualifications (ECQ). Use two (2) examples of relevant experience within the past 10 years for each ECQ being sure your experience matches the ECQ criteria.

Challenge - Describe a specific problem or goal.
Context - Describe the individuals and groups you worked with, and/or the environment in which you worked, to address a particular challenge (e.g., clients, co-workers, members of Congress, shrinking budget, low morale).
Action - Discuss the specific actions you took to address a challenge.
Result - Give specific examples of measures/outcomes that had some impact on the organization. These accomplishments demonstrate the quality and effectiveness of your leadership skills.

Please refer to OPM's Guide to Senior Executive Service Qualifications to assist you in writing an effective SES application. In particular, please note to use the Challenge-Context-Action-Result Model when drafting ECQ narrative responses. The Guide is available on OPM's Website at: http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/senior-executive-service/reference-materials/guidetosesquals_2012.pdf.

MANDATORY TECHNICAL QUALIFICATIONS (MTQs): All applicants must submit written narrative response to the following MTQs. You must address each MTQ separately. Each MTQ narrative must not exceed two (2) pages. Please give examples and explain the complexity of the knowledge possessed and the sensitivity of the issue you handled. If you fail to do so, you will be rated as ineligible.

MTQ 1- Demonstrated leadership within an organization that directs safety operations, support, and innovation and/or policy or program development related to transportation safety concerning railroads, pipelines, or the transportation of hazardous materials.

MTQ 2- : Demonstrated experience and knowledge of principles, practices and technologies used in the transportation industry (e.g., engineering, operations, technologies and regulations related to railroad, pipeline, or other modes of transportation, including the transportation of hazardous materials) sufficient to provide oversight of safety investigations.

How you will be evaluated

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

You will be evaluated for this position based on how well you meet the qualifications outlined in "Qualifications" section of this vacancy announcement.

Your application will be evaluated by a rating and ranking panel on the quality and extent of your total accomplishments and experience. Highly qualified candidates may be interviewed, and a reference check conducted. The NTSB Executive Resources Board (ERB) will review results of the evaluation and make a written recommendation on the final selections to the appointing authority. Unless you have already been certified by the OPM Qualifications Review Board (QRB) in the past or received certification by an OPM approved Senior Executive Service Candidate Development Program, your ECQs must be certified by an OPM QRB before appointment may occur.

To view the applicant form, visit: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12691270