Summary This position is within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Weather Service (NWS), National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP), with 1 vacancy in Norman, OK. This position is also announced under vacancy #NWS NCEP-24-12391934-DE, which is open to all U.S. Citizens or Nationals. You must apply to both announcements if you want to be considered for both. Responsibilities As an IT Specialist, you will perform the following duties: Serves as a key member, advisor, and IT technical expert to the Center management team to align organizational strategic goals with technological capabilities to ensure continuous improvement in organizational resiliency and mission delivery. Develops short- and long-range plans, including new approaches to problems, systems requirements, and resource needs. Develops guidance, memoranda, procedures, and policy. Uses judgment and discretion in determining intent, and in interpreting and revising existing policy and regulatory guidance for use by others within or outside the organization. Represents organization and leadership on technical committees. Provides oversight of the daily work efforts of both Federal and contract IT staff. Participates in facets of the personnel management process for the center including assisting management in the general oversight of team members, providing input into performance metrics and feedback, and participating in the recruitment of center staff. Designs and implements the system architecture. Ensures modern IT capabilities and standards based infrastructure are employed to reduce costs, increase mission resiliency, and mitigate risks of extended outages. Develops and executes plans for procurement of IT equipment, supplies, and maintenance. Provides support for the Center's 24/7 operational environment. Leads in managing and monitors all Center servers and workstation operating systems, and network infrastructure to include routing, switching, and firewall hardware and software, while providing design, oversight, and execution and analysis of feasibility study results to determine appropriate courses of action that can ensure a fully functional operation. Serves as the critical SME in all phases of projects, from advising on specification requirements and limitations to helping project managers define the problem or need. Assesses, tracks, mitigates, and regularly briefs center senior management concerning current and future technical risk associated with all center server and workstation operating systems and network infrastructure. Provides technical leadership for administration of the IT systems as the chief system administrator. Leads system administration, monitoring and configuration of Microsoft Windows and Red Hat Enterprise Linux servers and workstations to include installation of operating systems; patch management; standardizing baseline configurations; and monthly scanning and reporting to validate IT security compliance. Directly relied upon to implement cloud-based infrastructure solutions: They are responsible for designing and deploying cloud infrastructure that meets the organization's needs and aligns with their strategic objectives. Requirements Conditions of Employment Key Requirements: Must be a U.S. Citizen. Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by background investigation. Selectee may be subject to serving a one-year probationary period. More requirements are listed under Qualification and Other Information. Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (www.sss.gov). Payment of relocation expenses may be authorized. This position is NOT in the bargaining unit. A background investigation will be required for this position. Continued employment will be subject to the applicant's successful completion of a background security investigation and favorable adjudication. Failure to successfully meet these requirements will be grounds for termination. Throughout the recruitment and hiring process we will be communicating with you via email; therefore, it is imperative that the email address you provide when applying for this vacancy remains active. Should your email address change, please notify the point of contact identified in the vacancy announcement as soon as possible so that we can update our system. If you are a Federal employee applying for a promotion (under merit promotion procedures) you must meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of the announcement. Qualifications Qualification requirements in the vacancy announcements are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook, which contains federal qualification standards. This handbook is available on the Office of Personnel Management's website located at: https://www.opm.gov/policy. SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and responsibility to the next lower grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular competencies/knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. This experience need not have been in the federal government. 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. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. To qualify at the GS-14: SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must possess one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to the (GS-13) in the Federal service. Specialized experience MUST include all of the following: Advising on IT strategies to execute organizational mission and goals; Validating an organization's compliance with IT security standards; and Identifying and solving issues regarding Information Technology. AND 1. Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail. 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. 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. 4. Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations. Education There is no positive education requirement for this position. Additional Information CTAP and ICTAP candidates will be eligible if it is determined that they have exceeded the minimum qualifications for the position by attaining at least a rating of 85 out of 100. Information about CTAP and ICTAP eligibility is on the Office of Personnel Management's Career Transition Resources website at: Employee Guide Career Transition CTAP applicants MUST submit the following documents: A copy of your specific RIF notice; notice of proposed removal for failure to relocate; a Certificate of Expected Separation (CES); or certification that you are in a surplus organization or occupation (this could be a position abolishment letter, a notice eligibility for discontinued service retirement, or similar notice). A copy of your SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action", noting current position, grade level, and duty location; A copy of your latest performance appraisal including your rating; and Any documentation from your agency that shows your current promotion potential. ICTAP applicants MUST submit the following documents: A copy of your RIF separation notice; notice of proposed removal for failure to relocate; notice of disability annuity termination; certification from your former agency that it cannot place you after your recovery from a compensable injury; or certification from the National Guard Bureau or Military Department that you are eligible for disability retirement; A copy of your SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action" documenting your RIF separation, noting your positions, grade level, and duty location, and/or Agency certification of inability to place you through RPL, etc; A copy of your latest performance appraisal including your rating; and Any documentation from your agency that shows your current promotion potential. Non-Competitive Reinstatement to a Higher Grade/Band than Previously Held MUST submit the following documents: 1. SF-50, "Notification of Personnel Action: you must provide the most current Notification of Personnel Action (Form SF-50) that verifies career/career-conditional status, title, series, and highest grade level held on a permanent basis for your previous position. (do not submit an Award SF-50) AND, the SF-50 that verifies your separation date; AND. 2. Performance Appraisal - most recent performance appraisal showing the official rating of record, signed by a supervisor, or statement why the performance appraisal is unavailable. Do not submit a performance plan that does not include this information. NOAA participates in e-Verify. E-Verify is an Internet based system operated by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in partnership with the Social Security Administration (SSA) that enables participating employers to electronically verify the employment eligibility of their newly hired employees. The Department of the Commerce (DOC) places a high value on diversity of experience and cultural perspectives and encourages applications from all interested eligible candidates. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) are fundamental principles that guide the Department and allow us to successfully achieve our mission. THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.