Duties

As an Information Technology Specialist (APPSW) at the GS-2210-9/11/12, some of your typical work assignments may include:

• Serves as the application software tester and ensures the development of comprehensive test plans and scripts using Agile methodologies.
• Implements unit/ system and functional/ user acceptance/ smoke/ end-to-end/ regression/ automation tests for verification of the functionality of the application following SDLC/Agile process.
• Reviews and evaluates software products and systems to ensure adherence to organization and customer quality standards.
• Troubleshoots and diagnoses testing failures to isolate the source of problems between equipment, system software, and application programs.
• Collaborates with system functional analysts to understand, confirm and ensure the business objectives for the test scripts.
• Builds scalable testing capabilities using automated testing tools and assess new automated testing tools.
• Creates and utilizes back-end structured query language (SQL) scripts for building queries used for data analysis and the building automated test scripts.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

• If selected, your work schedule will be full time intermittent. Depending upon the level of disaster activity, you may be placed in a non-pay status if there is insufficient work. However, the work of this position will likely require you to work full-time most of the year.
• The Term Appointment does not confer competitive status, or reinstatement rights, on the individual selected. You may be promoted or reassigned to another Term position within SBA's Office of Disaster assistance; however, you may not be appointed non-competitively to another Federal position. You will initially be given a Term Appointment exceeding one year. If all other conditions of employment are met, this appointment may be extended, in increments, up to a total of four (4) years.
• Mandatory Overtime: In order to respond quickly and efficiently to disaster survivors, substantial compensated overtime hours may be required (up to seven days a week and ten to fourteen hours a day)
• Additional selections may be made from this announcement if identical vacancies occur within 180 days from the closing date.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• U.S. citizenship is required.
• You must be able to obtain and maintain a Government travel credit card.
• Favorable background investigation and credit check are required.
• Credit Score must be at least 500.
• You may be required to complete a one-year trial period.

Qualifications

Generally, time in Non-Pay status is not creditable towards the specialized experience requirement listed below.
You must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
You may qualify based on experience, education or a combination of both.

Experience: To receive credit, you must indicate the month and year as well as the average hours worked per week for each employer. Average work hours must be stated on the resume to quantify each period of work experience or that experience will not be credited toward meeting the specialized experience requirement.
You must address the specific specialized experience required for each grade level of this position on your resume or application or you will be rated "Ineligible" for that grade level.

For all positions 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-09: To qualify you must have at least 1 full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the GS-07 level in the Federal service that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skill, and ability to perform successfully in this position. This experience may have been gained in a Non-Federal service position. In addition, this Specialized Experience must demonstrate the following:

• Ability to review business/system requirements and convert them into clearly written test scenarios/cases for test execution.
• Ability to create test data for various types of testing (System/ UAT/ Regression) needs while executing planned test cases.
• Ability to follow SDLC/Agile process.

GS-11: To qualify you must have at least 1 full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the GS-09 level in the Federal service that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skill, and ability to perform successfully in this position. This experience may have been gained in a Non-Federal service position. In addition, this Specialized Experience must demonstrate the following:

• Experience in reviewing business/System requirements and converting them into clearly written Test scenarios/cases for test execution.
• Experience in creating test data for various types of testing (System/UAT/regression) needs while executing planned test cases utilizing Agile testing practices.
• Experience using configuration/defect management tools, such as JIRA to enter and track defects.
• Ability to create and utilize back-end structured query language (SQL) scripts.

GS-12: To qualify you must have at least 1 full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the GS-11 level in the Federal service that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skill, and ability to perform successfully in this position. This experience may have been gained in a Non-Federal service position. In addition, this Specialized Experience must demonstrate the following:

• Knowledge of software testing principles, tools, methods, and techniques of automated test scripting and testing tools.
• Experience in creating test data for various types of testing (System / UAT / Regression) needs while executing planned test cases utilizing Agile testing practices.
• Experience in building scalable testing capabilities using automated testing tools.
• Experience using configuration / defect management tools, such as JIRA to enter and track defects.
• Ability to create and utilize back-end structured query language (SQL) scripts.

OR

Education

If qualifying based on education, you must submit transcripts by the closing date of this announcement or you will not be found eligible.

GS-09: Must have a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a related field.

GS-11: Must have a doctorate or equivalent graduate degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a related field.

GS-12: There is no education substitution at this grade level.

OR

A combination of experience and education as indicated above.

Qualification Standards: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=Group-Standards

Additional information

"As required by Executive Order 14043, Federal employees are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 regardless of the employee's duty location or work arrangement (e.g., telework, remote work, etc.), subject to such exceptions as required by law. If selected, you will be required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination by November 22, 2021 or before appointment or onboarding with the agency, if after November 22. SBA will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request of the agency a legally required exception from this requirement"

Due to COVID-19, the agency 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 within [5] days. At that time, you may be eligible to request to continue to telework one or more days a pay period depending upon the terms of the agency's telework policy.

If selected for this position, you will be eligible for benefits. The above link is provided for your reference to explore the major benefits offered to most Federal employees.

Reasonable Accommodation Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended and Americans with Disabilities Act 1990 as amended, that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a reasonable accommodation in your online application. Requests for Reasonable Accommodations for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for Reasonable Accommodation must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for Reasonable Accommodations are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a Reasonable Accommodation, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments here: https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=Reasonable_Accommodations_for_USA_Hire