Duties

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) serves as a national catalyst for the organization and distribution of biological, hydrological, geological, and geographical information and addresses the specific needs of the Department of the Interior and its land and resource managers. The USGS is the Nation's largest water, earth, biological science and civilian mapping agency, working in cooperation with more than 2,000 organizations across the country with numerous international communities to provide reliable, impartial, scientific information to resource managers, planners, and other customers and partners.

The National Geospatial Technical Operations Center (NGTOC) is the primary operational component within the National Geospatial Program (NGP), the largest program within the U.S. Geological Survey in terms of appropriated funding, with an annual appropriated budget of approximately $70 million. The NGTOC provides world-class geospatial technical expertise and customer service for the USGS and the Nation through fulfilling its responsibilities within the NGP. It is responsible for the acquisition, assessment, and integration of geospatial data in support of The National Map , oversight of Geospatial Data Products and Services Contracts, quality assurance and quality control of products and data produced via contract or by other entities outside of the NGTOC, providing government furnished materials to support contract production, development of national standards and data models to support The National Map , and providing technical assistance to USGS Geospatial Liaisons and state, local and private sector partners.

The Systems Developer position is a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) applications/database software programmer/developer in Systems Development Branch within the NGTOC Innovation Office. The Systems Development Branch provides geospatial development technical skills, processes, and techniques used in achieving the goals of the National Geospatial Program (NGP). Systems Development resources assesses and document local and enterprise-level geospatial requirements and develops applications and systems to meet these requirements.

As an Information Technology Specialist (Applications Software) within the National Geospatial Technical Operations Center, some of your specific duties will include:

• Serves as a software programmer providing development support by coding solutions for Geographic Information Systems and application used for data processing and product generation for The National Map
• Employs state-of-the-art software engineering principles and system design techniques to the generation of software systems.
• Serves as a team member that provides technical direction involving the creation and application of new methods and techniques for GIS software development in support of The National Map products, applications, and services.
• Serves as an information technology specialist responsible for conducting evaluation of software development techniques related to NGP Program areas Published Maps Products and Services, Hydrography, Elevation, and/or Enterprise Information Sciences.
• Prepares and presents progress or project reports, professional papers and/or presentations, other scientific and technical documents and/or presentations, and demonstrations.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

Key Requirements :

Applicants must be U.S. Citizens.

Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by background investigation.

Selectee may be subject to serving a one-year probationary period.

More requirements are listed under Qualifications and Other Information.

Are There Any Special Requirements For This Position?

• If selected you may be asked to provide information regarding your COVID-19 vaccination status for the purposes of implementing workplace safety protocols, such as those related to masking, physical distancing, testing, travel, and quarantine.
• Because this position requires travel for official business, the selectee will be required to apply for a charge card within 30 calendar days of appointment. Individuals who have delinquent account balances from a previous Government charge card will be required to satisfy their existing obligation before a new card can be issued.
• A background investigation will be required for this position. Continued employment will be subject to the applicant's successful completion of a background security investigation and favorable adjudication. Failure to successfully meet these requirements will be grounds for termination.
• Throughout the recruitment and hiring process we will be communicating with you via email; therefore, it is imperative that the email address you provide when applying for this vacancy remains active. Should your email address change, please notify the point of contact identified in the vacancy announcement as soon as possible so that we can update our system.

Qualifications

Basic Requirement: Individuals must have IT-related experience demonstrating each of the four competencies listed below.

Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.

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.

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.

Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.

GS-12:
One year of appropriate specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-11 level in the Federal service that demonstrates senior level experience in software development and system engineering.

• Advanced programming experience of web and desktop applications using .NET (C#, Visual Basic), Python, Javascript; Enterprise databases such as PostgreSQL.
• Experience with Amazon Web Services (AWS) or other cloud technologies.
• Ability to use Source control (GIT).
• Working knowledge of DevOps practices, unit testing, Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) and automation practices, remote system configuration and applications deployment practices.
• Experience as Lead Developer with ability to work/collaborate in a team environment and provide technical direction to other programmers on software development projects

You must also have experience in one of the following groups:

• Vector and raster geospatial data formats and geospatial databases; GIS development environments including ESRI ArcGIS (Desktop, Server, Pro) and open source GIS software solutions (GDAL, PDAL, etc); OR
• AWS or other cloud technologies;
  HTML/CSS, XML, YAML, JSON; building web services and APIs; knowledge of Python, Shell scripting, NodeJS, client side Javascript (Angular, JQuery, Dojo Library, etc); modern web technologies (React, Redux, GraphQL, JWT, etc); Apache web server, nginx; microservices, Docker, containers; web-based viewer technologies (OpenLayers, Leaflet, etc); OR
• Database development and design using PostGreSQL and/or Oracle; constructing complex SQL queries; building web services and APIs; web-based viewer technologies (OpenLayers, Leaflet, or Geoserver)

You must meet all qualification and eligibility requirements for the position by the closing date of the announcement.

Education

• 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.
• Education completed in colleges or universities outside the United States may be used to meet the above requirements. You must provide acceptable documentation that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. For more information on how foreign education is evaluated, visit: https://www.usgs.gov/about/organization/science-support/human-capital/how-foreign-education-evaluated-federal-jobs .

Additional information

Other Information :

• Applicants who include vulgar, offensive, or inappropriate language or information in their application package will be ineligible for further consideration for this position.
• Identification of promotion potential in this announcement does not constitute a commitment or an obligation on the part of management to promote the employee selected at some future date. Promotion will depend upon administrative approval and the continuing need for and performance of higher-level duties.
• Under Executive Order 11935, only United States citizens and nationals (residents of American Samoa and Swains Island) may compete for civil service jobs. Agencies are permitted to hire non-citizens only in very limited circumstances where there are no qualified citizens available for the position.
• USGS employees are subject to Title 43, USC Section 31(a) and may not: (a) have any personal, private, direct or indirect interest in lands or mineral wealth of lands under survey; (b) have any substantial personal, private, direct or indirect interests in any private mining or mineral enterprise doing business with the United States; or (c) execute surveys or examinations for private parties or corporations.
• The application contains information subject to the Privacy Act (P.L. 93-579, 5 USC 552a). The information is used to determine qualifications for employment, and is authorized under Title 5, USC, Section 3302 and 3361.
• DOI uses E-Verify to confirm the employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, please visit www.dhs.gov/E-Verify .
• The Department of the Interior (DOI) places a high value on diversity of experience and cultural perspectives and encourages applications from all interested eligible candidates. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) are fundamental principles that guide the Department and allow us to successfully achieve our mission.
• THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.

Agency Benefits :

• USGS has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework in accordance with the DOI Telework policy and with supervisor approval. The official worksite for the selectee is the duty station identified in this vacancy announcement. The selectee will typically report to this duty location on a regular and recurring weekly basis.
• For additional information on our internal telework policy, please reference the Department of the Interior Telework Handbook at: https://www.doi.gov/telework/policies .
• Working for the U.S. Geological Survey offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes paid vacation, sick leave , and holidays ; health, life, dental, vision, and long term care insurance, flexible spending accounts , and participation in the Federal Employees Retirement System .