INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SPECIALIST NH-2210-03 - DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY

Experience requirements are described in the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions, Professional and Scientific Positions. Due to the use of 120-day rosters, this period of experience may be completed within 120 days of the closing date of this announcement.

In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, to qualify for this position you must also meet the qualification requirements listed in the Individual Occupational Requirements for Information Technology Specialists SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must have IT-related experience demonstrating each of the following four competencies: Attention to Detail, Customer Service, Oral Communication, Problem Solving AND have, or within 120 days of the closing date of this announcement will have, at least 1 year (52 weeks) of specialized experience which is equivalent to Federal experience at the next lower grade (GS-11), level, pay band (NH-02), or equivalent (pay schedule, pay band, etc).

Specialized experience is described as: Demonstrating proven expertise directing the Risk Management Framework (RMF) lifecycle within DoD cloud environments, securing DevSecOps pipelines and emerging AI/ML architectures, and orchestrating enterprise SIEM, threat hunting, and incident response operations. NOTE: Due to the use of 120-day rosters, this period of experience may be completed within 120 days of the closing date of this announcement.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas: Duty 1: Responsible for the design, development, installation, test, implementation, modification, documentation and follow-up maintenance of systems software for the Kessel Run Experimental Lab (KREL). Performs in-depth analysis.

This involves determining a need or responding to a stated need, identifying and evaluating available system software (if any) or guiding the writing of the software and monitoring other systems software programmers or contractor personnel in performance of test, implementation, modification, documentation and follow-up maintenance. Serves as technical expert performing analysis of automated and manual systems to accomplish design and programming assignment.

Projects typically involve analyses of large, complex systems. Applies information systems security principles and methods to all functions. Performs consultation and research to determine common and unique requirements, to establish standardized terms and data elements for uniform identification by all users and to select and/or develop a system design to meet established standards. Duty 2: Serves as expert planner, analyst and advisor for data management.

Serves as technical advisor to management, responsible for evaluating and providing recommendations of new database technologies and architectures and/or developing and administrating data standards, policies, and procedures. Diagnoses and resolves complex data management problems and issues. Duty 3: Participates as an expert on software, hardware, communications and new technology.

Performs feasibility studies which involve evaluating proposals regarding modification or replacement of current software or hardware and development or acquisition of new technology. Analyzes information obtained by contact with senior management, functional analysts, users and through independent research. Explores design alternatives applying an understanding of network systems and data communications. Duty 4: As an IT expert, provides consultation and instruction.

Advises functional area users on database and file accessing techniques, search strategies, processing and space utilization efficiencies, database security procedures, backup and program recovery techniques. Provides formal and informal training to ensure users understand the relationships of the system and are able to operate it without undue interruption. Prepares user manuals or instructions for assigned applications. Duty 5: Judiciously manages the acquisition, development and implementation of new technology.

• Manages all aspects of new or modified information systems, subsystems or equipment items to meet cost, schedule, performance and supportability criteria.
• Conducts mid- and long-range planning to ensure that program requirements receive consideration throughout the planning and programming cycle.
• Uses automated schedule and activity network development support tools, prepares Statements of Work (SOW) and performs technical contract management.

Provides cost, schedule and performance management support to include development of program strategy, inputs SOW and other planning and programming documents. Reviews and evaluates contract proposals. Reviews contract deliverables and identifies potential problems, issues and concerns along with recommendations to the Configuration Management (CM) Manager. Assesses all pertinent issues found during the review and evaluation of contract proposals.

Desired: 7+ years of dedicated experience in Information Assurance, Cybersecurity, or Systems Engineering within a DoD environment. PART-TIME OR UNPAID EXPERIENCE: Credit will be given for appropriate unpaid and or part-time work. You must clearly identify the duties and responsibilities in each position held and the total number of hours per week.

VOLUNTEER WORK EXPERIENCE: Refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service Programs (i.e., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student and social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge and skills that can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment.

You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Serve as the principal advisor to the CISO, directing the overall cybersecurity program lifecycle, managing schedules, and translating complex technical risks into strategic mission objectives for senior leadership. Manage the Risk Management Framework (RMF) lifecycle and eMASS security authorization packages to ensure strict compliance with DoD, Air Force, and federal regulations across government cloud environments.

Partner with software development teams to integrate automated vulnerability scanning and security controls into CI/CD pipelines, driving continuous Authorization to Operate (ATO) initiatives. Lead threat hunting operations and security incident investigations, while supervising the optimization of enterprise SIEM solutions to ensure rapid response and total network visibility.

Design and enforce secure architectures for AI/ML workloads, mitigating adversarial artificial intelligence risks and ensuring secure Machine Learning Operations (MLOps) practices. Coordinate closely with technical support teams, ISSOs, and intelligence personnel to enforce DoD patch management protocols and system security configurations across both cloud and tactical environments.