Summary About the Position: The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) is transitioning to the Department of War Education Activity (DoWEA) This position is located at HQ, Financial & Business OPS Dir, Information Technology Division, Global Operations Branch, CSS Team 1 Benning Section. The position may be eligible for situational telework as determined by the agency policy. This is a Direct Hire Solicitation. Responsibilities Analyze incident request trends and patterns in order find opportunities to improve services. Analyze, document, and plan for additions, upgrade, or configuration to ensure proper application software and web services. Analyze hardware and software problems for on-the-spot repair/replacement or referral for other repairs. Remove, reinstall or reconfigure desktop software or web services in order to correct issues. Monitor helpdesk system for newly submitted tickets, documents, and update existing tickets until complete resolution. Test new software deployment packages and Operating System images and provide feedback or solutions. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications Who May Apply: U.S. Citizens In order to qualify, you must meet the education and/or experience requirements described below. 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). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Basic Requirement for Information Technology Specialist (Customer Support): GS-11: Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience which includes providing advanced technical support to end-users or other technicians; interacting with lower-tiered support personnel to facilitate complex problem recognition or management; and logging corrective actions taken and escalating more complex problems to senior level technicians. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the second lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-09).OR Education: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree from an accredited or pre-accredited institution in computer science, engineering, information science, information systems management, mathematics, operations research, statistics, or technology management; or, three full years of graduate education from an accredited or pre-accredited institution that provided a minimum of 24 semester hours in one or more of the fields identified above and required the development or adaptation of applications, systems, or networks.This position has an individual occupational requirement and/or allows for substitution of education for experience at the GS-09 and GS-11 grade level. GS-12: Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience which includes providing immediate response and resolution to information technology tickets; analyzing information technology helpdesk tickets for escalation; and diagnosing hardware or software problems. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the next lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-11) Some federal jobs allow you to substitute your education for the required experience in order to qualify. For this job, you must meet the qualification requirement using experience alone--no substitution of education for experience is permitted at the GS-12 grade level. The specialized experience must include, or be supplemented by, information technology related experience (paid or unpaid experience and/or completion of specific, intensive training, as appropriate) which demonstrates each of the four competencies, as defined: (1) Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail. Examples of IT-related experience demonstrating this competency include:GS-09/11: completing work independently that rarely requires editing or review by others.GS-12: completing thorough and accurate work independently, even in the most difficult or stressful situations; occasionally reviewing work completed by others. (2) 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. Examples of IT-related experience demonstrating this competency include:GS-09/11: resolving simple and routine problems, questions, or complaints and providing support and guidance to customers on non-routine issues; serving as a primary resource for customers, requesting assistance with complex issues when necessary; and participating in meetings and providing advice to customers in own area of expertise.GS-12: resolving routine and non-routine problems, questions, or complaints; developing and maintaining strong, mutually supportive working relationships with customers; conducting evaluation of support to determine quality of services and customer satisfaction, and recommending procedural changes based on customer need or changes in policy and/or regulation. (3) 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. Examples of IT-related experience demonstrating this competency include:GS-09/11: expressing facts and ideas in a clear, concise, convincing, and organized manner; clearly conveying moderately complex ideas, concepts, and information to customers; exhibiting active listening by demonstrating understanding of audience comments and/or questions.GS-12: convincingly conveying complex information to customers; presenting thoughts that are well-organized and demonstrating confidence in the facts and ideas; adjusting style when working with individuals with different levels of understanding; using various methods to explain and convey information. (4) Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations. Examples of IT-related experience demonstrating this competency include:GS-09/11: identifying and solving problems by gathering and applying information from a variety of materials or sources that provide several alternatives; recognizing and taking action to address non-routine problems; soliciting feedback from multiple stakeholders to understand an issue or problem and accurately assess its root causes and potential solutions; seeking supervisory review where appropriate.GS-12: solving complex or sensitive problems by developing and proposing strategic alternatives; identifying possible conflicts and shared benefits; helping team anticipate problems and identifying and evaluating potential sources of information; providing feedback and coaching to others to help solve problems; engaging appropriate stakeholders when developing solutions in order to understand and incorporate multiple perspectives and needs; evaluating the effectiveness of decisions and adjusting future decisions as appropriate You will be evaluated on the basis of your level of competency in the following areas: Education FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html Additional Information Selection is subject to restrictions resulting from Department of Defense referral system for displaced employees. Salary includes applicable locality pay or Local Market Supplement. Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement. Be advised that effective Jan. 1 2018, under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, most civilian employee relocation allowances became taxable. The Relocation Income Tax Allowance (RITA) reimburses eligible employees for the additional Federal, State, and local income taxes incurred as a result of receiving taxable travel income. RITA does not apply to new government employees or employees returning from an overseas assignment for the purpose of separation from Government service. For more information, visit https://www.dfas.mil/civilianemployees/civrelo/Civilian-Moving-Expenses-Tax-Deduction.html. Management may select at any of the grade levels announced. This recruitment provides promotion opportunity to the target grade of the position without further competition when selectee is eligible and recommended by management. Duties described reflect the full performance GS-12 level. If not selected at the full performance level, duties will be performed in a developmental capacity under close supervision. Applicants with a disability who need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process should notify David Walton ra@dodea.edu This position is not covered by a bargaining unit. If you have retired from federal service and you are interested in employment as a reemployed annuitant, see the information in the Reemployed Annuitant information sheet.
