Summary
Office of the Chief External Affairs Officer (OCEAO) responsible for all aspects of communications and messaging, media relations, branding, and marketing, as well as congressional engagement. The Office of External Affairs works across the agency to share CISA's story with the U.S. Congress, stakeholders, media, and, most importantly, the American people.
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Duties
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Typical work assignments include, but are not limited to:
- Developing and executing communication strategies to ensure the effective implementation of organizational program and activities.
- Writing and editing speeches, press releases, and other materials to support internal and external stakeholder's initiatives.
- Implementing communication activities and messaging consistently across an organization.
- Maintaining up-to-date knowledge of important issues including but not limited to, CISA agency priorities, emerging requirements, leadership directives, Administration, Department, and Federal partner guidance and needs.
- Ensures plans, programs and communications activities to complex issues are consistently implemented and meet customers' expectations and agency requirements.
- Keeps abreast of new policies, procedures, regulations, directives, and recommends the framework for Division-wide policies, programs, and systems to improve the efficiency and economy of functions and operations.
- Conducting research on particular issues, and briefs senior executives on findings of significance related to stakeholder perspectives and concerns, outreach strategies and communication initiatives and proposals.
- Conceptualizing, developing and implementing cross-cutting external affairs initiatives intended to strengthen operations and partnerships.
- Serving as a point-of-contact and as an authoritative representative for the development, explanation and/or resolution of strategic external affairs issues of the highest interest to CISA leadership, CISA division leadership, CISA lines of business leadership and other senior executives.
- Ensuring plans, programs and communications activities are consistently implemented and that timely and appropriate corrective actions are taken to meet and exceed customer and partner expectations.
Military Spouses & U.S. Foreign Service Spouses Only: This position is remote work and telework eligible consistent with the Agency's telework and remote work program policy. Applicants who live within the local commuting area (i.e., a 50-mile or less radius from Glebe Road, Arlington VA (not driving distance)) are eligible for 100% telework in accordance with agency policy.
Requirements
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Conditions of employment
- You must be a U.S. citizen.
- Selective Service - Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service see http://www.sss.gov/
- All Federal employees are required to participate in Direct Deposit/Electronic Funds Transfer for salary payments.
- DHS uses e-Verify, an Internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities.
- You must be able to obtain and maintain a security clearance suitable for Federal employment as determined by a background investigation. This may include a credit check, a review of financial issues, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs.
- Current Federal employees must meet time-in-grade requirements.
- One-year probationary period may be required.
- This position may be designated as essential personnel. Essential personnel must be able to serve during continuity of operation events without regard to declarations of liberal leave or government closures due to weather, protests, and acts of terrorism or lack of funding. Failure to report for or remain in this position may result in disciplinary or adverse action in accordance with applicable laws, rules, and regulations (5 U.S.C. 7501-7533 and 5 CFR Part 752, as applicable).
- This position has been identified as a drug testing designated position (TDP) for purposes of the CISA's Drug-Free Workplace Program. All applicants tentatively selected for this position will be required to submit to a drug test to screen for illicit/illegal drug use prior to receiving a final offer of employment. A final offer of employment is contingent upon a negative drug test result. After appointment, you may be subject to periodic random drug testing.
Qualifications
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NOT copy and paste the duties, specialized experience, or occupational assessment questionnaire from this announcement into your resume as that will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position. Your resume must describe your work and experience, in your own words.
To be considered minimally qualified for this position, you must demonstrate that you have the required experience for the respective grade level in which you are applying.
You qualify at the GS-14 grade level, if you have:
EXPERIENCE: At least one (1) year of specialized experience at the GS-13 grade level (or equivalent) performing
all the following duties:
- Interpreting, developing, or analyzing policy, programs, and concepts of operations of standard procedures directly impacting stakeholder critical infrastructure security mission;
- Communicating, both written and orally, with Division Directors, Managers, and Senior Level headquarters staff regarding areas of strategic external affairs;
- Managing and developing outreach strategies, workgroups, task forces, committees, and subcommittees at the headquarters and regional levels; AND
- Providing analysis on strategic long and short-range plans of stakeholder initiatives of engagement programs.
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.
Time-in-Grade Requirements: Under competitive merit promotion procedures, any individual who is currently holding, or who has held within the previous 52 weeks, a General Schedule (GS) position under a non-temporary appointment in the competitive or excepted service, must meet "time-in-grade" requirements (have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade of the grade for which you are applying).
NOTE: Current or former GS federal civilian employees, within the previous 52 weeks, applying for a position under the Veterans Employment Opportunities Act (VEOA) must meet time-in-grade requirements.
Time After Competitive Appointment: By the closing date specified in this job announcement, current Federal civilian employees must wait at least 90 days after their latest non-temporary appointment from a competitive service referral certificate before promotion, transfer, reinstatement, reassignment, or detail.
All qualification requirements, including Time-in-Grade, must be met by the closing date of this announcement. Qualification AND Time-in-Grade claims will be subject to verification.
Education
No Educational Substitution: There is no substitution of education for experience at this grade level. You must meet the qualifications listed in the "Requirements" section of this announcement.
Additional information
- Other incentives may be authorized.
- If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment, and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application, prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment, dismissal after beginning work, fine, or imprisonment.
- Additional vacancies may be filled with this announcement.
- A one-year probationary period may be required during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. We may consider your performance and conduct, the needs and interests of the agency, whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government, and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.
- Military Spouses & U.S. Foreign Service Spouses Only: The actual salary will be adjusted based on the grade, step, and locality for the selectee's geographic location. The remote worker's locality pay is based on the location of the employee's residence. General Schedule (GS) locality pay tables may be found at Salaries & Wages.
Reasonable Accommodation Requests: This agency provides reasonable accommodation to otherwise qualified applicants and employees with a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, unless to do so would create an undue hardship to the agency (29 CFR 1614.203 (2017)). If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process, contact the CISA Office of Privacy, Access, Civil Liberties, and Transparency (PACT) by sending an email to CISA_ReasonableAccommodation@cisa.dhs.gov with the subject line, "Reasonable Accommodation Request @ CISA." In the email itself, you
must include your name, vacancy announcement number(s), and state your intent to seek a reasonable accommodation. Decisions on requests for Reasonable Accommodations are made on a case-by-case basis. For more information or inquiries, please contact the CISA Reasonable Accommodation Program at CISA_ReasonableAccommodation@cisa.dhs.gov.
Current or Former Political Appointees: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.
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Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.
Benefits
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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.