Chief Information Security Officer

About the role

Department of the Interior structures its Senior Executive Service (SES) positions into categories to determine the minimum pay for each position. This is a category 4 position. The minimum pay for this position is $162,740.

Pay is set based on consideration of the selectee's current salary and other factors. Veterans preference does not apply to the SES.

What you will do

• The position is located in the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) at the Department of the Interior (Department) and reports to the Chief Information Officer.
• The incumbent carries out the following specific responsibilities: Set enterprise security strategy.
• Define company-wide security policy, standards, and risk tolerance, working closely with the CIO and system owners.
• Run the risk management program.
• Stand up and mature a structured, framework-based approach to identifying, assessing, and treating risk across all systems.
• Own the enterprise risk register and drive remediation plans to closure.
• Own system security assessment and approval.
• Decide which systems are cleared to go live and stay live, backed by continuous monitoring rather than point-in-time checkpoints.
• Drive the Zero Trust roadmap.
• Move the organization toward least-privilege access, strong identity and access management, and phishing-resistant multifactor authentication.
• Lead threat detection and incident response.
• Own the security operations center (SOC), endpoint detection and response (EDR), enterprise logging maturity, and the incident response process - including meeting mandatory external breach-reporting deadlines.
• Govern core security hygiene.
• Vulnerability and patch management, penetration testing, secure configuration baselines, and encryption of data at rest and in transit.
• Lead third-party/vendor and software supply-chain security, including software bill of materials (SBOM) practices, and enforce security requirements for cloud service providers.
• Protect operational technology.
• Oversee security for industrial control systems and SCADA environments - a first-order concern given the physical infrastructure (dams, hydropower generation) this organization operates.
• Deliver security metrics and regular reporting to leadership and external oversight bodies, and support independent annual security audits and audit responses.
• Build the security workforce and budget.
• Own the cyber talent strategy, role-based and security-awareness training, and lead security budget and investment planning with the CIO and finance leadership.
• Be the principal cybersecurity advisor and spokesperson to senior leadership, oversight bodies, and external government and partner organizations.
• Shape the organization's position on emerging security policy and technologies - including critical-infrastructure protection and AI-enabled systems - and ensure the organization meets or exceeds recognized industry and regulatory security standards.
• Hold the organization accountable for following the security program, and ensure major incidents are escalated and reported on time.
• Engage the broader community.
• Collaborate with peer CISOs, cross-industry and interagency security councils, and working groups on emerging issues in cybersecurity, AI security, and privacy.
• Lead the security organization the operationally, coordinating closely with infrastructure and business system operational entities, privacy, records, and data governance functions to ensure high performing and reliable platforms and systems, and keep privacy and security governance integrated Partner on AI security.
• Work with the Chief AI Officer and AI teams to manage AI-related security risk, secure AI model development, and use AI to strengthen security operations.
• Own workforce planning, headcount, and organizational structure for all security staff, including remote and hybrid employees.
• If your resume does not include these basic qualifications, you will not be determined qualified for this position.
• We recommend that your resume includes examples that are clear, concise, and emphasize their level of responsibilities, the scope and complexity of the programs, activities, or services managed; program accomplishments; policy initiatives undertaken; level of contacts; the sensitivity and criticality of the issues addressed; and the results of actions taken.

Education

There is no educational requirement for this position.

How you will be evaluated

A panel of SES members will evaluate your two-page resume and determine the degree to which you possess each of the listed qualifications. If the selectee does not have Qualifications Review Board (QRB) certification by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), he/she will be required to undergo an ECQ based structured interview with OPM.

Documents you must provide

• Please upload the following documents: 1.
• REQUIRED: Your resume - it must contain information sufficient to make a valid determination that you fully meet the specialized experience requirements as stated in this vacancy announcement.
• Insufficient information will result in a not qualified rating.
• It is recommended that you include the following information: Full name, mailing address, and day and evening telephone numbers Educational information, including the name, city and state of colleges or universities you attended, as well as the type and year of any degrees received Information about your paid and nonpaid work experience related to this position including: Job title (include series and grade if Federal job) Duties and accomplishments Employer's name and address Supervisor's name and phone number Starting and ending dates of employment (month and year) Salary Indicate if we may contact your current supervisor Information about honors, awards, and special accomplishments 2.
• REQUIRED: (Only if applicable): Proof of your degree, which would be outlined in the basic education requirement section if applicable.
• Proof will consist of unofficial transcripts, which must be attached to this application for consideration to determine basic eligibility.
• REQUIRED: If you are a current Federal employee, a copy of a recent SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action, that indicates Federal status, grade, tenure, and type of service.
• Please redact your social security number and date of birth.
• REQUIRED: A copy of your most recent annual performance appraisal (i.e., within the last 18 months form the closing date of this vacancy announcement, from either the Federal or private sector).
• Please remove your social security number and date of birth from any documentation you provide.
• If you are unable to provide your most recent annual performance appraisal, please provide a written justification explaining why you could provide the request documentation.
• Failure to provide the most recent annual performance appraisal or written justification explaining why you did not provide the requested documentation you will be disqualified for further consideration because your application will be incomplete.
• REMINDER: ALL DOCUMENTS MUST BE RECEIVED BY 11:59pm ET ON THE CLOSING DATE OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT All of the documentation listed above is required to be attached to your application, if it is applicable to your candidacy.
• Failure to attach any of the documentation listed above which proves your candidacy for this position will result in disqualification/non-consideration for this position.To begin, click the Apply Online button near the bottom (or right) of this screen and follow the prompts to register, answer a few questions, and submit all required documents.
• To return to your saved application, log in to your USAJOBS account at *** and click on "My Applications".
• Click on the position title, and then select Apply Online to continue.
• Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

What to expect next

The Department of the Interior will conduct a qualifications evaluation of applicants who supply all of the required material. Qualified applicants will be rated and ranked by an executive-level rating panel. Best-qualified candidates will be referred to the selecting official and executive-level interview panel for further consideration and possible interview.

You will be notified of the outcome after the completion of the selection process.

Additional information

Individuals selected for Senior Executive Service positions may be subject to reassignment across geographical, organizational, and functional lines. The Department of the Interior structures its SES positions into categories to determine the minimum pay for each position. Pay is set based on consideration of the selectee's current salary and other factors.

Effective January 1, 2010, OPM must authorize any employment offers we make to current or former (within the last 5 years) political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Non-career SES employees in the executive branch. lf you are currently or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Non-career SES employee in the executive branch, you must disclose that to the Human Resources Office.

If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document that you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application. Click the following link for more information, ***