IT Specialist (Policy and Planning)
What you'd do
This position is located in Department of Veteran Affairs (VA), Office of Information and Technology (OIT) Division where the incumbent serves as an IT Specialist specializing in providing technical oversight and engineering services in regard to network engineering related issues ultimately affecting the plans, goals and effectiveness of VA nationwide.
Major duties
Major duties include but not limited to: Provide engineering services and technical oversight to critical, national initiatives related to enterprise network solutions and associated issues and contributions to VA mission of providing complex services by shaping the underlying information technology (IT) architecture. Serve as a senior engineer and technical authority in regard to all network technologies including, but not limited to, Local Area & Wide Area Network (LAN/WAN), Integrated telephony convergence, wireless LAN (WLAN), internet protocol telephony (VOiP), video teleconferencing, network security, management and monitoring. Identifies and recommends changes to existing enterprise IT LAN/WAN solutions. Initiate and provide technical oversight to engineering studies and analyses (including modeling and simulation efforts) concerning the introduction of new networking technologies, products and topologies and to find solutions to critical problems in design of solutions that have national impact. Lead collaborative efforts with other organizational entities to enable an end-to-end engineering approach for optimal LAN/WAN solutions. Provide mastery technical oversight of Reliability, Maintainability and Availability (RMA) analyses of integrated networks. Perform other duties as assigned. This position encompasses the following NCWF codes: 651, 752 Promotion Potential: This position is at full performance level Work Schedule: Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm, Tour of duty may be subject to change based on organizational needs Compressed/Flexible: Compressed/flexible schedule available at the manager's discretion Travel - Up to 25% travel may be required, as needed, for this position. Financial Disclosure: Not required Designated Drug Testing Position: Not applicable Telework: Adhoc telework may be authorized at management discretion. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: IT Specialist (Policy and Planning)/PD02562A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Physical Demands: The work may require some physical effort, such as standing, walking, bending or sitting. The work often requires long hours to meet project deadlines and to devise corrective action and solutions to unexpected technical and/or management crises resulting in sometimes highly stressful work situations. The work requires almost constant use of a video display terminal. Working Conditions: Work is performed in an office setting.
What you need to qualify
To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 07/28/2026. Applicants must have IT-related experience demonstrating each of the four competencies listed below at a proficiency level equivalent to the next lower grade level in federal service You must meet both the Basic Requirement and the Specialized Experience to qualify for this series as described below. Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail. 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. 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. Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations. AND Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-13 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Experience automating network configuration and management tasks using programming and scripting languages (such as Python and at least one additional high level language). Experience designing and maintaining Infrastructure-as-Code solutions for network devices (such as routers switches, firewalls, load balancers, and cloud-based resources). Experience integrating automation pipelines with Cl/CD tools to support validation and deployment of network changes in accordance with security and compliance standards. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.
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