Duties

As Commissioner, you work directly with the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO and the rest of our executive team at our beautiful Alexandria, Virginia, headquarters. You'll be at the exciting forefront of the patents life cycle and you'll develop strategies in support of our agency's mission to unleash American innovation!

This role is the ideal next career step for you if:

• You're inspired to be a catalyst for inclusive innovation, economic prosperity, U.S. competitiveness, national security, and world problem-solving
• You possess a deep level of experience and understanding in the practice and application of patent law, policy, and procedure
• You're a thoughtful, inclusive, creative leader who can inspire action in others
• You're an effective collaborator who communicates with a broad range of internal and external organizations and stakeholder groups
• You're a coalition-builder who can work on multiple levels with a wide variety of constituencies to implement programs and processes, and facilitate change
• You have a proven track record of commitment to the principles of diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility
• You want to play a key role in reshaping our patent prosecution practices, technology and training to better support our incredible patent prosecutors and increase the robustness and reliability of U.S. patents
• You want to engage on the international front and across U.S. stakeholders and communities to expand access to our innovation ecosystem and to promote strong intellectual property protection across the globe

Once hired, you will have the potential to make a tremendous positive impact by:

• Helping lead the USPTO in building our strategic plan and goals furthering the objectives outlined by the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO concerning the Patents community and stakeholders around the world
• Driving a stronger and more robust patent system that works as a catalyst to drive our country forward

This is a five-year appointment with the option for an additional 5-year extension.

If you can see yourself in this role and are excited by our mission, we look forward to receiving your application!

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• Applicants will only be accepted from United States Citizens and Nationals.
• Required to pass a background investigation and fingerprint check.
• Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (www.sss.gov).

Qualifications

Experience must demonstrate that the candidate possesses the necessary attributes to be successful in advancing the duties, which includes the following leadership core qualifications:

Leading Change - This core qualification involves the ability to bring about strategic change, both within and outside the organization, to meet organizational goals.

Leading People - This core qualification involves the ability to lead people toward meeting the organization's vision, mission, and goals.

Results Driven - This core qualification involves the ability to meet organizational goals and customer expectations.

Business Acumen - This core qualification involves the ability to manage human, financial and information resources strategically.

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.

Education

The educational requirement for this position is a scientific or technical degree or equivalent level of experience.

Additional information

If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System. If you are exempt from registration under Selective Service Law, you must provide appropriate proof of exemption. Please visit the Selective Service System website for more information.

This is a Non Bargaining Unit position.

Except as prohibited by law, all applicants tentatively selected for positions needing a Top Secret Clearance will be required to submit to a urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment and, if appointed, the incumbent will be subjected to random drug testing procedures.

Background Investigation - If selected for this position, you may be required to complete a Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306), which includes a fingerprint and credit check, to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background investigation.

The USPTO participates in E-Verify. For more information on E-Verify, please visit the Department of Homeland Security Website .

All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choice.

Relocation Expenses may be authorized and may be paid.

All application materials become the property of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

USPTO Job Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should request accommodation(s) from the USPTO at http://www.uspto.gov/accommodation .

The United States Patent and Trademark Office is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factors. If you believe that you have been discriminated against and would like to file an EEO complaint, you must do so within 45 days of the date of the alleged discriminatory act. Claims of employment discrimination must be submitted to the attention of the USPTO's Office of Equal Employment Opportunity & Diversity via email ( oeeod@uspto.gov ) or phone (571-272-8292).