Program Specialist

Summary The ideal candidate for this position possesses demonstrated success in complex multi-stakeholder negotiations, leading complex, sensitive national resilience interagency deliberations, and translating policy to civil-military operational plans. NOTE: Current permanent Federal employees (to include permanent Federal employees) applying for a Term appointment will be appointed/converted into Term appointment with no statutory return rights back to a permanent position. Learn more about this agency Duties What will I do in this position if hired? In this position, you will be based in Brussels, Belgium, providing direct support to the U.S. North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Resilience Policy Director, and the Associate Administrator, Office of Policy and Program Analysis, and serve as a liaison for FEMA Headquarters to the Departments of Defense and State, National Security Council, US Mission to NATO, and US Mission to the European Union (EU). Typical assignments include: Representing the United States, in support of the U.S. Departments of State and Defense, as FEMA's Attaché to the U.S. Mission to NATO. Working through the U.S. Mission to integrate NATO resilience, civil-military planning, civil preparedness, crisis management, and related work into NATO resilience lines of effort. Providing civil emergency planning, civil-military planning, and resilience expertise to the U.S. Ambassador, Defense Advisor, and USNATO leadership teams. Interpreting and conveying U.S. Government policy and practices to influence NATO resilience committee frameworks and policies. Serving as a senior advisor, U.S. representative, and/or observer for seminars, exercises and other events as requested; coordinating with other U.S. Government entities as required. Developing strategic approaches to complex US NATO resilience policy; drafting and briefing policy positions on behalf of the US; preparing persuasive briefing materials for interagency and senior leadership. What else do I need to know? At FEMA, our mission is to help people before, during and after disasters, and every employee at FEMA has a role in emergency management. Every FEMA employee has regular and recurring emergency management responsibilities, though not every position requires routine deployment to disaster sites. All positions are subject to recall around the clock for emergency management operations, which may require irregular work hours, work at locations other than the official duty station, and may include duties other than those specified in the employee's official position description. Travel requirements in support of emergency operations may be extensive in nature (weeks to months), with little advance notice, and may require employees to relocate to emergency sites with physically austere and operationally challenging conditions. . Requirements Conditions of employment To ensure the accomplishment of our mission, DHS requires every employee to be reliable and trustworthy. To meet those standards, all selected applicants must undergo, successfully pass, and maintain a background investigation for Top Secret-Sensitive Compartmented Information as a condition of placement into this position. This may include a credit check after initial job qualifications are determined, a review of financial issues, such as delinquency in the payment of debts, child support and/or tax obligations, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs (please visit: Mythbuster on Federal Hiring Policies for additional information). For more information on background investigations for Federal jobs please visit OPM Investigations. Please ensure you meet the qualification requirements described below. Key Requirements: You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this position. You must successfully pass a background investigation. Selective Service registration required. Current federal employees must meet time-in-grade requirements. You must be able to obtain and maintain a Government credit card. You must be able to deploy with little or no advance notice to anywhere in the United States and its territories for an extended period of time. A medical examination is required. If selected, satisfactory completion of a medical examination for deployment is required before assignment to the position. Refusing medical examination will result in automatic disqualification and your name will be removed and no longer considered. If this position has been identified as a Testing Designated Position (TDP) because of its security, public health, and/or public safety sensitivity, you are subject to random drug testing under FEMA's Drug-Free Workplace Plan (DWP). Refusal to be tested will result in disciplinary action up to and including removal from federal service. Please review the Additional Information section for additional key requirements. Qualifications The qualification requirements listed below must be met by the closing date of this announcement. To qualify for this position at the GS-15 level, you must possess one full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-14 level in the Federal government, which has equipped you with the skills needed to successfully perform the duties of the position. Experience may be obtained in the federal government, a state or local government, or private sector, and must demonstrate the following: Handling (successfully) complex multi-stakeholder negotiations; AND Developing national policy positions through interagency coordination on sensitive, complex national resilience requirements; AND Serving as a senior expert on incident management; AND Translating policy and doctrine to civil-military operational plans. Please read the following important information to ensure we have everything we need to consider your application: Do not copy and paste the duties, specialized experience, or occupational assessment questionnaire from this announcement into your resume as that will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position. Your resume serves as the basis for experience related qualification determinations, and you must highlight your most relevant and significant work experience and education (if applicable), as it relates to this job opportunity. Please use your own words, be clear, and specific when describing your work history. We cannot make assumptions regarding your experience. Are you qualifying based on your work experience? Qualifications are based on your ability to demonstrate in your resume that you possess one year of the specialized experience for this announcement at a comparable scope and responsibility. To ensure all of the essential information is in your resume, we encourage you to use the USAJOBS online Resume Builder. If you choose to use your own resume, it must contain the following information organized by experience/position: (1) job title, (2) name of employer, (3) start and end dates of each period of employment (from MM/DD/YY to MM/DD/YY), (4) detailed description of duties performed, accomplishments, and related skills, and (5) hours worked per week (part-time employment will be prorated in crediting experience). Federal experience/positions must also include the occupational series, grade level, and dates in which you held each grade level. Are you a current or former FEMA Reservist/Disaster Assistance Employee (DAE)? To accurately credit your experience from intermittent positions and Reservist Deployments, you must list the dates (from MM/DD/YY to MM/DD/YY) of deployments that are relevant to your qualifying experience, along with the job title and specific duties you were responsible for during each deployment. Determining length of General or Specialized Experience is dependent on the above information. Failure to provide the above information in your resume may result in your application being found "not qualified. 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 provides valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. For additional information on crediting experience and/or education, please reference the OPM General Schedule Qualification Standards. Education No Educational Substitution: There is no educational substitution for this position, and you must meet the qualifications listed in the "requirements" section of this announcement. Additional information If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment, and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application, prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment, dismissal after beginning work, fine, or imprisonment. The Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act prohibits the Department of Homeland Security and its Components from requesting an applicant's criminal history record before that individual receives a conditional offer of employment. In accordance with 5 U.S. Code § 9202(c) and 5 C.F.R § 920.201 certain positions are exempt from the provisions of the Fair Chance to Compete Act. Applicants who believe they have been subjected to a violation of the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act, may submit a written complaint to [email protected]. DHS uses E-verify, an internet based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities. The Department of Homeland Security encourages persons with disabilities to apply, to include persons with intellectual, severe physical or psychiatric disabilities, as defined by 5 CFR § 213.3102(u), and/or Disabled Veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30 percent or more as defined by 5 CFR § 315.707. Veterans, Peace Corps/VISTA volunteers, and persons with disabilities possess a wealth of unique talents, experiences, and competencies that can be invaluable to the DHS mission. If you are a member of one of these groups, you may not have to compete with the public for federal jobs. To determine your eligibility for non-competitive appointment and to understand the required documentation, click on the links above or contact the Servicing Human Resources Office listed at the bottom of this announcement. A one-year probationary period is required for new Federal competitive service employees and new supervisors and managers. Applying to this announcement certifies that you give permission for DHS to share your application with others in DHS for similar positions. During the application process you will have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. This is a Non-Bargaining Unit position. Additional Information for Continental United States (CONUS): The availability of care at host nation medical facilities will vary by location. Applicants who have family members with special medical needs should ensure that prior to accepting a position overseas their family members' medical needs can be met. Host nation medical facilities may be the only care available. Candidates initially selected from the U.S. may be eligible for certain foreign area benefits. Individuals hired from the Continental United States (CONUS) and their family members (who are US citizens) are required to obtain Diplomatic Passports prior to departure to the overseas area. Expand Hide  additional information 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. Benefits A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits. DHS offers competitive salaries and an attractive benefits package, including health, dental, vision, life, and long-term care insurance; retirement plan; Thrift Savings Plan [similar to a 401(k)]; Flexible Spending Account; Employee Assistance Program; personal leave days; and paid federal holidays. Other benefits may include flexible work schedules; tuition reimbursement; transportation subsidies; uniform allowance; health and wellness programs; and fitness centers. DHS is committed to employee development and offers a variety of employee training and developmental opportunities. For more information, go to the DHS Careers website and select "Benefits." Disabled veteran leave will be available to any federal employee hired on or after November 5, 2016, who is a veteran with a service- connected disability rating of 30 percent or more. Review our benefits Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.