Duties

*NOTE: This is a TERM appointment (not-to-exceed 2 years). Term appointments are non-status, nonpermanent appointments of limited duration (more than 1 year but not more than 4). Term appointments may be extended without further competition (up to the 4-year maximum). The appointment to a Term position does not confer eligibility for promotion or reassignment to other positions or the ability to be non-competitively converted to permanent employment.*

This position is primarily aligned to the following NICE Cybersecurity Workforce Framework work roles:

• 451- System Administrator

For more information about these work roles, where they fit within the larger Cyber Workforce, and how they can support your unique career journey, please visit the Cyber Career Pathways tool on the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Careers and Studies website: https://niccs.us-cert.gov/workforce-development/cyber-career-pathways

This is a non-bargaining unit position.

This job announcement will remain open for at least 5 business days.

The initial application review cut-off for this job announcement is 50 applications. The first 50 applications received will be considered first. Applications received after the initial cut-off number (50 applications) may not receive consideration unless otherwise requested by management.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Compressed/Flexible Schedule: Not Available
Telework: Not applicable, this is a remote position
Duty Location Status: Will work remotely from home.
Position Description Title/PD#: IT Specialist/ PD02636A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required
Physical Demands: The work is predominantly sedentary and does not require and special physical effort. Some work may require walking and standing in conjunction with travel and attendance at meetings and conferences away from the work site. Employee may carry light items such as meeting materials and a portable computer and may be required to drive a motor vehicle to meetings. The work often requires long hours to meet project deadlines and to devise corrective action and solutions to unexpected technical and/or management crises resulting in sometimes highly stressful work situations. The work requires almost constant use of an on-line collaboration tools and applications.

Major Duties:

• Provides technical guidance for OIT staff to resolve complex and controversial systems, software, and interrelated broad programmatic, architectural, or user issues.
• Leads work on high-visibility assignments that have a critical impact on VA's ability to analyze, develop, and implement IT policy and programs.
• Evaluates IT program needs and determines where changes to existing guidelines are required and develops and/or recommends changes necessary to optimize the delivery of identity management and PKI services.
• Keeps VA management and leadership appraised of projects progression and details concerning technical releases, decisions, and mandates.
• Identifies and evaluates future emerging technologies to guarantee optimal use and interoperability of leading-edge technology across the VA.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this job.
• Selectees are subject to a background/suitability investigation.
• Designated and/or random drug testing may be required
• Selectees may be required to serve a probationary period.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• A complete application package, i.e., Resume, Transcripts, etc., as required by the job announcement.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.
• Participation in the Seasonal Influenza Prevention Program for VHA Health Care Personnel (HCP) is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs HCP.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Pre-employment physical evaluation may be required.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 01/26/2023.

You may qualify based on your experience as described below.

Experience - Experience must be IT related; the experience may be demonstrated by paid or unpaid experience and/or completion of specific, intensive training (for example, IT certification), as appropriate.

For all positions individuals must have IT-related experience demonstrating each of the four competencies listed below. The employing agency is responsible for identifying the specific level of proficiency required for each competency at each grade level based on the requirements of the position being filled.

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.

AND

Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-13 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is defined as analyzing, evaluating, and implementing operational activities and policy changes for an IT enterprise service to develop plans, policies, methodologies, and architecture solutions for IT performance metrics and framework. Maintains and sets up systems, or specific components of a system, while adhering to organizational security policies and procedures. Evaluates the impact of changes to the IT services through feasibility studies, identifying solutions, and presenting recommendations to management.

Such experience is typically gained in the IT field or through the performance of work where the primary concern is IT.

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; religions; 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.

Per Office of Personnel Management General Schedule Qualification Policies , federal employees are assumed to have gained experience by performing duties and responsibilities appropriate for their official series and grade level as described in their position description. Experience that would not normally be part of the employee's position is creditable when documented by satisfactory evidence (e.g., a memorandum from the manager, human resources director, or official documentation such as SF-52, SF-50 documenting an official detail/assignments, or other comparable documentation). The documentation must indicate whether the employee performed the duties full time or, if part-time, the percentage of times the employee performed the additional duties.

To receive credit for experience in your resume that is not within the official series and grade level of your position, you must provide official documentation of such experience as indicated above.

Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit OPM's web site at http://www.opm.gov/qualifications/standards/indexes/alph-ndx.asp .

Education

There is no education substitute or requirement for the GS-14 level.

Additional information

COVID-19 Pandemic Expanded Telework Program - Due to COVID-19, VA is currently in an expanded telework posture. If selected, you may be expected to temporarily telework, even if your home is located outside the local commuting area. Once employees are permitted to return to the office, you will be expected to report to the duty station listed on this announcement. Management officials will provide information about returning to the official, pre-pandemic worksite, when applicable. At that time, you may be eligible to request to continue to telework depending upon the terms of your organization's telework policy and the duties of the position.VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be well-qualified, applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors if applicable, and must be proficient in most of the requirements of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website which can be found at https://www.opm.gov/ .

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application .