IT Specialist (Policy and Planning), GS-2210-13 FPL 13 (Term Appt NTE 2 Years) (DE)

Summary This position is in the U.S. Department of Education (ED), Federal Student Aid (FSA). As an IT Specialist (Policy & Planning), you will serve as the Information System Owner who is the first-line communications expert, determination, problem solutioning, and recommendations resolving IT systems, security, cybersecurity, and privacy issues. Learn more about this agency Duties APPLICATION LIMIT: This vacancy announcement is limited to the first 200 applications received and will close at 11:59PM Eastern Time on the day that we receive the 200th application, or at 11:59PM Eastern Time on the listed closing date, whichever occurs first.  We encourage you to read this entire vacancy announcement prior to submitting your application.As an IT Specialist (Policy & Planning), GS-2210-13, you will be responsible for:•    Leveraging a wide range of qualitative and quantitative methods to analyze FSA's technology portfolio and supporting legal framework and governance structure and provides expert advice and recommendations for innovations and improvements that maximize efficiency and minimize costs to the government. •    Serving as the Contracting Officer Representative (COR) to manage FSA's equities in one or more technology acquisitions, holding responsibility for a full array of contract administration duties, across the full acquisition lifecycle, and in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, directives, policies, and publications. •    Contributing to Agency goals for cost efficiency and proper payments by monitoring contract and contractor performance and, prior to invoice authorization/payment, ensuring customer requirements are met in agreement with contract terms and that invoices are accurate and otherwise acceptable, per applicable statute/regulations.•    Exhibiting responsibility for proactively evaluating technology contracts and related financial information against FSA technology and business/stakeholder needs and rendering expert analyses and recommendations for contract or program action(s) intended to increase efficiency, improve operations, or otherwise facilitate FSA in         meeting its strategic goals/objectives. Requirements Conditions of employment Relocation will not be paid. You may be subject to serve a 1-year trial period. Males 18 and over must be registered with the Selective Service. Must be a US Citizen Must complete a background investigation and fingerprint check. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a probationary period or trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: • your performance and conduct; • the needs and interests of the agency; • whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and • whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period OR trial period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. You must meet all qualification requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this vacancy announcement. 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. We will consider all qualifying experience, including any volunteer experience. Qualifications Selective Placement FactorYou must meet the following selective placement factor:This position requires the incumbent to hold a specific certifications at the time of hiring 1.  Federal Acquisition Certification for Contracting Officer's Representatives (FAC-COR), Level III from the Federal Acquisition Institute (FAI).   Minimum Qualification RequirementsYou may meet the minimum qualifications for the GS-13, if you possess the specialized experience.Specialized Experience for the GS-13One year of experience in either federal or non-federal service that is equivalent to at least a GS-12 performing two (2) out of three (3) of the following duties or work assignments: 1. Experience working independently to manage large and complex technology procurement for a federal agency, handling the entire procurement life cycle from planning to completion to help the agency meet its goals. 2. Experience serving as a technology acquisition program manager for national or enterprise-level federal technology programs, analyzing financial and operational data and procedures, and recommending improvements to technology management, acquisition programs, and implementation of new technologies or procedures. 3. Experience monitoring and analyzing complex federal technology program financial data and preparing budgetary and financial documentation, Capitol Planning and Investment Control reports (CPIC), life cycle cost estimates, and Office of Management and Budget (OMB)/Congressional justifications to support program planning and evaluation. Basic Experience RequirementsYou must possess IT related experience (paid or unpaid experience and/or completion of specific, intensive training (e.g., IT certification), as appropriate) demonstrating each of the four competencies listed below.1.    Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.2.    Customer Service - Works with clients and customers (i.e., 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.3.    Oral Communication - Expresses information (e.g., ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information (e.g., technical, sensitive, controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately.4.    Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)The quality of your experience will be measured by the extent to which you possess the following knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs). You do not need to provide separate narrative responses to these KSAs, as they will be measured by your responses to the occupational questionnaire (you may preview the occupational questionnaire by clicking the link at the end of the Evaluations section of this vacancy announcement).1.    Skill in leading and directing people, teams and programs / projects associated with IT application development; the development of mission-critical enterprise class applications, and enterprise-wide IT projects.2.    Ability to develop and assess complex security, design and architecture artifacts to determine system compliance and to provide recommendations for alternate courses of action, when required.3.    Ability to review and distill large amounts of complex information into executive level presentations to be consumed by various levels of leadership for decision making.4.    Skill in applying information systems security principles, methods and network operations and protocols, requirements analysis principles and methods, and IT security products and services. Education Education cannot be substituted for experience for this position and grade level. Additional information Veterans’ Career Counseling: If you are a veteran interested in receiving tips on preparing a Federal resume and/or how to prepare for an interview, you may email [email protected] to schedule a session with a career counselor (“Veterans Counseling Session” should be placed in the subject line of the email).Student Loan Default: If selected for this position, we will verify that you have not defaulted on any loan funded or guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Education. If you are found to be in default, we will contact you to make arrangements for repayment prior to making an official offer of employment.Suitability and Investigation: If selected for this position, you will be required to complete the Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306) to determine your suitability for federal employment and successfully complete a pre-appointment investigation/background check.Essential/Non-Essential: This position is considered essential for purposes of reporting to work during federal government closures.Financial Disclosure: This position does not require financial disclosure.Bargaining Unit:  This position is not included in the bargaining unit.Selections: Agencies have broad authority under law to hire from any appropriate source of eligibles and may fill a vacancy in the competitive service by any method authorized. We may make additional selections from this vacancy announcement within 90 days from the date the selection certificates are issued, should vacancies occur. We may also share selection certificates amongst program offices across the agency. 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. As an ED employee, you will also benefit from our family-friendly work environment. As part of our commitment to maintain a work life balance, we offer excused leave for Parent/Teacher Conferences (3 hours); excused leave for annual health screenings (4 hours); and matching leave for community volunteer service. Other flexibilities that may be available to you include alternative work schedules. You may be eligible to receive a recruitment incentive for this position. To receive this incentive payment, you will be required to sign a service agreement obligating you to remain with the U.S. Department of Education for a specified period as agreed upon. You may be eligible to receive a relocation incentive for this position. To receive this incentive payment, you will be required to sign a service agreement obligating you to remain with the U.S. Department of Education for a specified period as agreed upon. You may be eligible to participate in the Student Loan Repayment Program as a recruitment incentive for this position. To receive student loan repayments, you will be required to sign a service agreement obligating you to remain with the U.S. Department of Education for a specified period as agreed upon. 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.