EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT SPECIALIST

Summary

This position is in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Homeland Security (OHS), Emergency Programs Division (EPD). EPD operates and maintains the USDA Operations Center where information is collected and processed. This facility serves as the focal point for the receipt and processing of emergency notifications and information about other events impacting or affecting USDA operations and/or programs. USDA Employees: Please refer to the Next Steps section.

Duties

• •Collects and analyzes performance data and provides quarterly reporting.
• •Provides administrative support to Emergency Programs Division including time/attendance and purchase card usage.
• •Serves as the Division’s main point of contact on procedures and processes related to emergency events.
• •Serves as the Division specialist for developing and maintaining procedures for Multiagency Coordination Group activities.
• •Develops supporting data and materials for various forums, including publications, briefings, conferences, interdepartmental/agency meeting, etc.
• •Supports functioning of and information dissemination to and from the USDA Operations Center from multiple operating locations.
• •Contributes significantly to the development of department-level strategic plans and guidelines.
• •Recommends updates to emergency procedures and maintains awareness of new planning approaches and their potential use in an emergency environment.
• •Investigates technological advances for new approaches in spatial analysis and display technology for application to problems.
• •Provides operational support of the Department’s continuity of operations facility planning, development, equipping, and preparedness.
• •Establishes near-final concepts for significant emergency plans supporting USDA agencies and offices.
• •Plans and conducts drills and exercises for the USDA Operations Center in coordination with the Senior Watch Officer.
• •Duties described above are at the full performance GS-12 level, duties at the GS-09 and GS-11 levels will be developmental.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including time-in-grade restrictions, specialized experience and/or education, as defined below. Time in grade: Current federal employees applying for a promotion opportunity must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirement of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled. Minimum Qualifications: Applicants must meet the Specialized Experience and/or Education requirements as shown below. If qualifying based on experience, your application or resume must clearly show that you possess the specialized experience requirements. Specialized experience is defined as experience that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled and has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. GS-09: Qualifying experience for GS-09 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-07 which included experience applying analytical data and evaluation methods to determine program compliance with emergency preparedness and management rules and regulations. OR Master's degree or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree or LL.B. or J.D. if related. OR A combination of education and experience as described above. NOTE: Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for the GS-09 grade level. GS-11: Qualifying experience for GS-11 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-09 which included experience assisting with the creation of emergency management plans or products (i.e., emergency response plans, response guidance documents, response procedural plans, response transition documents, etc.); and, applying analytical data and evaluation methods to determine program compliance with emergency preparedness and management rules and regulations. OR Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or LL.M. if related. OR A combination of education and experience as described above. NOTE: Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for the GS-11 grade level. GS-12: Qualifying experience for GS-12 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-11 which included experience creating emergency management plans or products (i.e., emergency response plans, response guidance documents, response procedural plans, response transition documents, etc.); applying analytical data and evaluation methods to determine program compliance with emergency preparedness and management rules and regulations; and, participating in the planning of emergency management drills and exercises. 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 and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. In the event of an emergency, USDA's Office of Homeland Security (OHS) employees may be subject to 24 hour on-call availability. This service may require irregular work hours, work at locations other than the official duty station, and may include duties other than those specified in the employee's official position description. Travel requirements in support of emergency operations may be extensive in nature (weeks to months), with little advance notice, and may require employees to relocate to emergency sites that require functioning under intense physical and mental stress.

Education

Education may be substituted for specialized experience at the GS-09 and GS-11 levels as described above. Education may not be substituted for specialized experience at the GS-12 level.