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IT SPECIALIST (PLCYPLN)

Department of Defense
Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency
DCSA

Summary

Ready to drive innovation in national security? Join the DCSA as an IT Product Owner & Scrum Master. Champion agile teams building mission-critical software, modernize legacy platforms into AWS cloud solutions, and turn complex mission needs into powerful technical capabilities. Make a direct impact safeguarding our nation's trusted workforce and critical technologies. For more information visit www.dcsa.mil

Overview

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Accepting applications
This job will close when we have received 100 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Location
7 vacancies in the following locations:
Work site options
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
Yes—You may qualify for reimbursement of relocation expenses in accordance with agency policy.
Salary
$105,262 - $160,933 per year

Minimum and maximum salary encompasses the 2026 target local market pay for DCIPS STEM/CYBER work roles.

Pay scale & grade
GG 11 - 12
Promotion potential
13
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time
Travel Required
25% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Appointment type
Permanent
Occupations and job series
Supervisory status
No
Federal service type
This job is in the Excepted Service
Represented by a union
No
Drug test
Yes
Security clearance
Sensitive Compartmented Information
Position sensitivity and risk
Special-Sensitive (SS)/High Risk
Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.
Background check type
Financial disclosure required
No
Some jobs require financial disclosure to identify conflicts of interests.
Announcement number
DCSA-27-13082388-P
Control number
887837500

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

This announcement is open to: All U.S. Citizens; Retained Grade Preference (RGP) eligibles, and Military Reserve and National Guard Technician eligibles may also apply.

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Duties

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This position may be filled at either GG-11 or GG-12 grade level, please indicate the grade for which you want to be considered. Incumbent may be advanced non-competitively to the established target grade upon meeting developmental benchmarks, performance requirements, and other requirements, as applicable established for the career program or specifically for the incumbent.


As a IT SPECIALIST (PLCYPLN) you will be responsible for the following duties:

GG-11

  • Designs software utilizing the software life cycle process, develops, deploys, updates, maintains, and tests software using methodologies and tools, designs to leverage software reusability and establishes and utilizes software engineering metrics.
  • Prioritizes projects /tasks for contractors and facilitates project initiations and approval processes, change management and deployment activities.
  • Oversees development activities of contractors and establishes and enforces DoD policy and standards and security principles to ensure quality and integrity of delivered products according to scope, cost and schedule.
  • Oversees complex inter-agency migration(s) of application initiatives having agency and enterprise impact.
  • Provides technology roadmaps for consistent implementation and migration of legacy applications to new technology tools and cloud solutions.
  • Maintains relationship with business partners and is a liaison between cross functional IT teams and customers to understand and meet their expectations.
GG-12
  • Leads CI/CD pipeline optimization to automate deployments and enforce reusability. Evaluates performance against engineering metrics to cut technical debt and ensure scalable system architecture across the Acquisition and Technology portfolio.
  • Serves as Government PO and Scrum Master, translating agency needs into backlogs and sprints. Exercises independent authority over sprint release readiness, change control, and deployment schedules to meet critical NBIS delivery milestones.
  • Applies FAR guidelines to monitor contractors and enforce acceptance criteria. Enforces rigorous DoW information security, information assurance policies, and national regulations to conduct risk audits and safeguard system integrity.
  • Coordinates cross-boundary data and system integration across DCSA and DoW. Resolves complex technical incompatibilities and negotiates formal interface agreements to maintain operational readiness during enterprise-wide transitions.
  • Conducts AWS cloud and serverless tradeoff analyses to optimize performance, cost, and security. Establishes multi-year modernization roadmaps to decommission legacy tools and accelerate scalable, enterprise cloud capability adoption.
  • Represents the Acquisition & Technology portfolio as technical authority with senior leaders and industry. Defends controversial technical approaches, negotiates conflicting priorities, and achieves consensus on high-impact enterprise solutions.
The Office Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security established a Targeted Local Market Supplement (TLMS) for certain Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, and Cyber positions within the Defense Civilian Intelligence Personnel System. Eligibility for the TLMS is based on cyber work roles within certain occupational series and on the work performed. This vacancy is designated as a STEM and/or Cyber position and pay for the incumbent will be based on the STEM and Cyber Pay Table.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Must be a US citizen
  • Selective Service Requirement: Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service. For more information http://www.sss.gov
  • Resume and supporting documents received by 11:59PM EST will be considered
  • This is a Drug Testing designated position
  • Position is a (DCIPS) position in the Excepted Service under U.S.C. 1601
  • Work Schedule: Full Time
  • Overtime: Occasionally
  • Tour of Duty: Flexible
  • PCS (Permanent Change of Station): Not Authorized
  • Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA): Exempt
  • Financial Disclosure: Not Required
  • Telework Eligibility: Supervisors may approve situational telework on a case-by-case, temporary basis for limited situations.
  • If selected, the incumbent must obtain and maintain appropriate security clearance as indicated in job announcement.
  • In accordance with DoDD 8140.01/DoDI 8140.02, the position compliance requirement details are outlined in the Defense Cyber Workforce Annex.
  • Any Information Technology/Security certifications /education specified in the DCWF Annex as defined by DoD 8570.01-M/DoD 8140-M within six months of appointment date.
  • The incumbent must sign a Statement of Understanding regarding the certification requirements and maintaining the appropriate certification is a condition of employment.
  • This position requires Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) Practitioner certification in Program Management and is expected to meet all related certification requirements per the Department of Defense Instruction 5000.66.
  • However, applicants that do not meet this requirement are eligible to be hired but must obtain a Program Management Practitioner certification within 5 years (60 months) after the first day of starting in the position.

Qualifications

The experience described in your resume will be evaluated and screened from the Office of Personnel Management's (OPMs) basic qualifications requirements. See: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/competency-based-policy/general-schedule/2200/2210-competency-based-policy/competency-based-qualification-standard/ for OPM qualification standards, competencies and specialized experience needed to perform the duties of the position as described in the MAJOR DUTIES and QUALIFICATIONS sections of this announcement by 10/19/2026

Applicant must have directly applicable experience that demonstrates the possession of the knowledge, skills, abilities and competencies necessary for immediate success in the position. Qualifying experience may have been acquired in any public or private sector job, but will clearly demonstrate past experience in the application of the particular competencies/knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to successfully perform the duties of the position.

For the GG-11

You must have specialized experience sufficient to demonstrate that you have acquired all the competencies necessary to perform at a level equivalent in difficulty, responsibility, and complexity to the next lower grade GS/GG-09 in the Federal service and are prepared to take on greater responsibility.
Generally, this would include one year or more of such specialized experience.

Specialized experience for this position includes:

  1. Utilizing Information Technology planning, policy and information assurance standards to plan, implement and communicate standard technical ideas, programs and processes effectively to customers, technical personnel, management and senior leadership.
  2. Applying project management principles, processes, procedures, planning and activity development using Agile Methodologies and the SCRUM process.
  3. Architecting and designing within the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Elastic Cloud Compute environment, including network design and supporting migration legacy applications.
  4. Utilizing lifecycle management concepts to plan, develop, implement, operate and maintain Information Technology systems including supporting Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) pipelines and deployment automation.
  5. Conductingtradeoff analysis between different deployment techniques for cloud-based projects, including skill with server-less service deployment.
For the GG-12

You must have specialized experience sufficient to demonstrate that you have acquired all the competencies necessary to perform at a level equivalent in difficulty, responsibility, and complexity to the next lower grade GS/GG-11 in the Federal service and are prepared to take on greater responsibility.
Generally, this would include one year or more of such specialized experience.

Specialized experience for this position includes:
  1. Utilizing Information Technology planning, policy and information assurance standards to plan, implement and communicate complex technical ideas, programs and processes effectively to customers, technical personnel, management and senior leadership.
  2. Conducting system audits using principles, methods, and techniques of Information Technology assessments, planning, management, monitoring and evaluation so that baseline assessments, contingency planning and disaster recovery are accomplished.
  3. Managing complex projects /tasks for contractors and facilitates project initiations and approval processes, change management and deployment activities while coordinating with diverse stakeholder groups.
  4. Applying Agile methodologies to manage product backlog and convert user requirements into technical specifications while driving complex project planning, processes, and activity development as a Scrum Master and Product Owner.
  5. Implementing technology roadmaps and migration of legacy applications to new technology tools and cloud solutions (e.g., AWS) while coordinating complex, multi-agency migrations with enterprise-level impact.
Specifically you will be evaluated on the following competencies:
  1. Requirements Analysis- Knowledge of the principles and methods to identify, analyze, specify, design, and manage functional and infrastructure requirements; includes translating functional requirements into technical requirements used for logical design or presenting alternative technologies or approaches.
  2. Project Management- Knowledge of the principles, methods, or tools for developing, scheduling, coordinating, and managing projects and resources, including monitoring and inspecting costs, work, and contractor performance.
  3. Information Technology Policy and Planning- Develop and promulgate Information Technology strategy, policy, guidance, and plans. Monitor to ensure consistency and compliance.
  4. Information Technology Life Cycle Management- Plan, develop and/or manage processes across the information systems/services life cycle to ensure Information Technology capabilities meet current and future organizational and enterprise missions.
  5. Software Engineering- Knowledge of software engineering design and development methodologies, paradigms, and tools; the software life cycle; software reusability; and software reliability metrics.
In addition to meeting qualifications, your application package must reflect the applicable experience to meet the Individual Occupational Requirements for the 2210, series as listed below:
  1. Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.
  2. Customer Service - Works with clients and customers (that is, any individuals who use or receive the services or products that your work unit produces, including the general public, individuals who work in the agency, other agencies, or organizations outside the Government) to assess their needs, provide information or assistance, resolve their problems, or satisfy their expectations; knows about available products and services; is committed to providing quality products and services.
  3. Oral 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 oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately.
  4. Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.

Education

If substituting education for experience at the GG-11 level, you must possess a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher graduate education leading to such a degree, OR LL.M., if related.

If substituting or combining education for experience, transcripts MUST be provided. Failure to provide transcripts will result in you being rated ineligible for this position.

Superior Academic Achievement does not apply to DCIPS positions.

Foreign Education: For further information, click on the following link:
https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/

Additional information

VETERANS PREFERENCE/CURRENT OR FORMER FEDERAL
In accordance with DoD Instruction 1400.25, Volume 2005, veterans preference is not required to be applied when considering candidates with prior Federal competitive or excepted service who have completed a probationary or trial period and have not been separated for cause. Therefore, veterans preference will not be applied to applicants with current federal service, or former federal civilian service meeting the above criteria.

Re-employed Annuitant: This position does not meet criteria for re-employed annuitant. The DoD criteria for hiring Re-employed Annuitants can be found at: https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/140025/1400.25-V300.pdf

Applicants selected from this announcement may be required to serve a two-year trial period.

If selected, Federal employees currently serving in the competitive service must acknowledge that they will voluntarily leave the competitive service by accepting an offer of employment for a DCIPS excepted service positions.

If selected, non-DCIPS candidates must acknowledge in writing that the position they have been selected for is in the excepted service and covered by DCIPS.

All Defense Intelligence positions under the Defense Civilian Intelligence Personnel System (DCIPS) are in the excepted service by specific statue, 10 U.S.C. 1601. This position is in the excepted service and does not confer competitive status.

For more information on the DCIPS occupational structure click here.

For more information about career advancement in DCIPS click here.

ACQUISITION POSITION: This position requires a Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) Practitioner certification in Program Management. Certification prior to hiring is not essential but must be accomplished within 5 years (60 months) after entry into this position. For information regarding the DAWIA Back to Basics please visit: Home (dau.edu) or Back to Basics - Helpful Resources (dau.edu)

  • DAWIA (Back to Basics) Certification: NON-CAP: Position requires DoD Acquisition Practitioner certification in Program Management within required timeframes. Selectee must also achieve 80 hours of Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) every 2-years. Click here for more details and Resources.
This position is subject to an initial drug screening, and random testing thereafter. A negative drug test result must be received by HR within 30 calendar days after the EOD (i.e., start date). The selectee's inability successfully pass; or refusal to conduct the test may result in: 1) the tentative or FJO being withdrawn during the recruitment process; or 2) subsequently being removed from Federal service for failure to meet a condition of employment.
You may be required to sign a "Drug Test Statement of Understanding" if you are selected for this position.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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 based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire.

EXCEPTED SERVICE PILOT REVIEW: Once the application process is complete, a review of your application will be made to ensure you meet the qualification requirements listed on this announcement. All applicants who meet the basic qualification requirements will be forwarded to the Selecting Official for consideration.

You should list any relevant performance appraisals and incentive awards in your resume as that information may be taken into consideration during the selection process. If selected, you may be required to provide supporting documentation.

Top ranked candidates will be referred to the selecting official for further review and consideration.

A review of your resume and supporting documentation will be made and compared against your responses to the Assessment Questionnaire to determine if you are qualified for this job. If your resume is incomplete or does not support the responses provided in the Assessment Questionnaire, or if you fail to submit all required documentation, you will be rated 'ineligible', 'not qualified'.

Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

All eligibility and qualifications requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency

Our Mission
Through vetting, industry engagement, education, and counterintelligence and insider threat support, secure the trustworthiness of the United States Government's workforce, the integrity of its cleared contractor support, and the uncompromised nature of its technologies, services, and supply chains.

Our Vision
DCSA's elite security experts illuminate national security risks to empower faster, smarter decision-making that protects American innovation and resilience to enable mission success.

DCSA Strategic Execution Plan
The Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency stands at the intersection of government-wide trusted workforce, national security, and industrial base protection. Guided by the Secretary of War's National Defense Strategy, Deputy Secretary's Warfighting Acquisition Transformation efforts, and Trusted Workforce 2.0, our mission is to deliver data-driven, threat-informed, and customer-trusted security services at scale.

The FY2026 - 2028 DCSA Strategic Execution Plan defines six strategic priorities for the agency:
  1. Deliver NBIS
  2. Deploy NI2 to Modernize Industrial Security
  3. Modernize and Sustain Trusted Workforce Determinations
  4. Rebuild the Workforce Compact
  5. Operate as a Customer-Centric Business
  6. Drive Audit-Ready Integration and Agency Efficiency with AI

Agency contact information

DCSA Servicing Team
Phone
614-693-4444
Email
DHRS-DDCSA@dla.mil
Address
Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency
27130 Telegraph Road
Quantico, VA 22134
US

Visit our careers page

Learn more about what it's like to work at Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency, what the agency does, and about the types of careers this agency offers.

http://www.dcsa.mil

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