Information Technology Specialist
What you'd do
WHAT IS INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY? A description of the business units can be found at: https://www.jobs.irs.gov/about/who/business-divisions Position(s) are to be filled in following area(s): IT - REVIEW THE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION BELOW FOR FURTHER DETAILS
Major duties
The following are the duties of this position at the full working level. If this vacancy includes more than one grade and you are selected at a lower grade level, you will have the opportunity to learn to perform these duties and receive training to help you grow in this position. Leading the implementation of security programs designed to anticipate, assess, and minimize systemvulnerabilities, coordinating the implementation of security programs across platforms (Tier I, II andIII) and establishing vulnerability reporting criteria. Reviewing proposed new systems, networks, and software designs for potential security risks, recommending mitigation or countermeasures, and resolving integration issues related to the implementation of new systems within the existing infrastructure. Assessing new systems design methodologies to improve software quality, accurately representing customer requirements, effectively measuring software development risk, presenting recommendations for adoption of new methodologies to senior management officials, and leading implementation. Investigating, evaluating and selecting tools and methods for improving productivity and software quality throughout the life cycle, assessing the feasibility of adopting new software design technologies within the current systems environment, and developing best practices guides for use by other applications software specialists. Providing authoritative advice to other specialists in areas such as disaster recovery, capacity planning, applications development, hardware strategy, and operating systems security, and developing and implementing agency guidelines.
What you need to qualify
Federal experience is not required. Experience may have been gained in the public sector, private sector or through Volunteer Service. One year of experience refers to full-time work; part-timework is considered on a prorated basis. To ensure full credit for your work experience, please indicate dates of employment by month/day/year, and indicate number of hours worked per week, on your resume. You must meet the following requirements by the closing date of this announcement.. QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS: To qualify for this position, you must meet the qualification requirements outlined below: Minimum requirements for Grade 12 and UP (GS or Equivalent) Applicants must have Information Technology related experience demonstrating each of the following nine competencies: 1) Attention to Detail, 2) Customer Service, 3) Decision Making, 4) Information Management, 5) Interpersonal Skills, 6) Oral Communication, 7) Problem Solving, 8)Team Work and 9) Technical Competence. Specialized Experience GS-14 Level: You must have one year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-13 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position includes: Leading or coordinating IT projects, application-related efforts, operational initiatives, or system-related activities that affect multiple users, teams, programs, or business processes. Applying IT principles, concepts, methods, and practices to evaluate requirements; resolve technical issues; guide system, application, or code testing and configuration decisions; and ensure technical documentation and federal cybersecurity, privacy, or regulatory requirements are addressed. Engaging customers, stakeholders, users, product or business owners, and technical teams to define business or technical requirements, communicate technical impacts, and guide delivery of secure, reliable, scalable IT solutions. Evaluating system, service, or application performance, availability, reliability, security controls, usability, and operational effectiveness; identifying risks, issues, defects, or gaps; and leading corrective actions or improvement efforts. Analyzing competing technical approaches and providing authoritative recommendations to management, stakeholders, or IT specialists on the selection, design, configuration, implementation, or improvement of IT solutions with organizational impact. Led the planning, implementation, modernization, and maintenance of enterprise IBM mainframe environments, ensuring high availability, reliability, performance, and compliance with organizational and operational requirements. Directed system upgrades, hardware refreshes, and infrastructure improvements to support mission-critical business operations and continuity of service. Analyzed, diagnosed, and resolved complex issues involving IBM z/OS hardware, operating systems, and supporting infrastructure. Provided expert technical guidance and recommendations to senior leadership, systems programmers, engineers, and technical staff on system performance, operational readiness, risk mitigation, and strategic technology initiatives. Served as an IBM z/OS Systems Programmer responsible for the installation, configuration, and integration of mainframe hardware and storage peripherals. Performed equipment planning, rack layout design, cabling coordination, power requirements analysis, and implementation activities to support enterprise computing operations. Managed and maintained Input/Output Definition Files (IODFs) using Hardware Configuration Definition (HCD) and Hardware Configuration Manager (HCM), ensuring accurate hardware configuration, resource allocation, and system integrity across production and non-production environments. Administered and configured Hardware Configuration Manager (HCM), Server Time Protocol (STP), cryptographic hardware, and Integrated Cryptographic Service Facility (ICSF) components to support secure, synchronized, and compliant enterprise mainframe operations. Implemented and maintained Coupling Facilities and related Parallel Sysplex infrastructure, supporting high availability, workload balancing, data sharing, and enterprise resiliency. Planned, installed, configured, tested, and supported IBM mainframe software products and system-level components. Collaborated with cross-functional technical teams, project stakeholders, and vendor service personnel to plan, coordinate, and execute hardware and software installations, system upgrades, maintenance activities, and problem resolution efforts. Fostered productive working relationships to ensure timely project completion and operational excellence. AND You must also meet the following requirement(s): PERFORMANCE RATING: Current federal employees must have at least a fully successful or equivalent performance rating to receive consideration. TIME AFTER COMPETITIVE APPOINTMENT (TACA): By the closing date (or if this is an open continuous announcement, by the cut-off date) specified in this job announcement, current civilian employees must have completed at least 90 days of federal civilian service since their latest non-temporary appointment from a competitive referral certificate, known as time after competitive appointment. For this requirement, a competitive appointment is one where you applied to and were appointed from an announcement open to "All US Citizens" TIME IN GRADE (TIG): Federal employees must meet time-in-grade requirements. For positions above the GS-05, applicants must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements to be considered eligible. One year (52 weeks) at the next lower grade level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the grade you are applying for. For positions at the GS-05, you cannot advance to the GS-05 if you have held a GS-02 in the past 52 weeks. There is no TIG restriction for GS-02, 03, or 04 positions. MINIMUM AGE REQUIREMENT: Minimum age for federal employment is 18 years old, or at least 16 years old and have: Graduated from high school or been awarded a certificate equivalent to graduating from high school; or Completed a formal vocational training program; or Received a statement from school authorities agreeing with your preference for employment rather than continuing your education. For more information on qualifications please refer to OPM's Qualifications Standards.
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