Deputy Director of Operations, USSF SOCOM

About the role

Do not email applications.

To submit your resume for this Direct Hire opportunity click here. For additional information on other USSF direct hire opportunities visit the Air Force Civilian Careers Space Force website and follow USSF on LinkedIn.

What you will do

• The United States Space Force (USSF) at MacDill AFB, FL is searching for a Deputy Director of Operations to support USSF SOCOM (NH-0301-04, GS 14/15 equivalent).
• Description: Step into the future of defense innovation as the Deputy Director of the Operations for United States Space Force Special Operations Command.
• In this high-impact leadership role, you will exercises delegated authority to make or recommend decisions concerning Directorate programs and activities.
• Resolves issues involving competing operational requirements, limited resources, compressed timelines, and coordination across multiple organizations.
• Represents the Director, as authorized, at command-level working groups, boards, planning teams, operational forums, and other engagements.
• Provides continuity of operations during the Director's absence and ensures timely execution of Directorate responsibilities., shaping the nation's space superiority.
• We're seeking a strategist, who thrives in high-stakes environments, navigating complex procurement landscapes with precision, agility, and integrity.
• If you're ready to lead from the front and make your mark on the celestial frontier -this is your mission Ideal Candidate: Serves as Deputy Director of the Operations Directorate and assists the Director in planning, organizing, directing, and evaluating the Directorate's operational activities.
• Provides senior-level civilian leadership and management oversight for assigned programs, projects, and operational initiatives supporting SPACEFOR-SOC missions.
• Develops and evaluates long-range and near-term plans, goals, objectives, policies, and procedures necessary to execute assigned missions.
• Translates command priorities and senior leader guidance into executable Directorate objectives, tasks, milestones, and measures of effectiveness.
• Identifies complex operational and organizational problems; analyzes alternatives; assesses mission, manpower, resource, readiness, and risk implications; and recommends courses of action to command leadership.
• Ensures Directorate activities remain synchronized with command priorities, Space Force guidance, joint requirements, and applicable special operations requirements.
• Key Skills and Abilities: 1 Expert, comprehensive knowledge of joint special operations (SOF) and space operations doctrines, with a proven ability to lead, synchronize, and execute current operations and crisis action response.
• Experience within a Combatant Command operations directorate (specifically USSOCOM J3 or a Theater Special Operations Command (TSOC) is highly preferred over singular domain expertise.
• 2 Mastery of military force generation, presentation, and readiness cycle management.
• Proven skill in tracking force readiness metrics, managing deployment/redeployment timelines, and translating high-level operational tasks into clear, tactical-level execution plans.
• 3 Demonstrated ability to design, coordinate, and execute complex joint-service exercises to validate operational concepts, evaluate training effectiveness, and integrate emerging space capabilities into the SOF Enterprise.
• Skill in managing formal lessons-learned and corrective action programs.
• 4 Exceptional capability to communicate high-risk operational concepts and brief senior general/flag officers and civilian executives.
• Skilled in drafting operational orders (OPORDs), formal staff packages, and representing command equities in joint, inter-agency, and coalition forums to resolve complex operational conflicts.
• Highly developed skill in preparing and presenting strategic operational plans, military estimates, theater risk assessments, and formal position papers to senior military, civilian, and international coalition leaders.
• Exceptional ability to anticipate complex operational risks in theater, assess and provide strategic direction for the resolution of mission-critical planning obstacles, and establish new strategic concepts and operational methodologies.
• Effective capability to communicate both orally and in writing.
• Skilled in drafting high-level documentation (briefings, staff packages) and maintaining productive working relationships across diverse command entities to resolve complex issues.

How you will be evaluated

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies as related to the series and grade of the position being filled.

Final qualifications determinations will be assessed based on OPM's General Schedule Qualifications Standards found here: Interviews: You will be contacted by e-mail and/or telephone if your application is identified as qualifying for a position being filled. An interview may be conducted.

If interviewed, you will be asked to address the same knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies used to initially qualify your application for the position.

Documents you must provide

• You must submit a resume that may NOT exceed two pages, and the font size should not be smaller than 10 pts.
• You will not be considered for this vacancy if your resume exceeds two pages or is illegible/unreadable.
• Do NOT include photographs, inappropriate material, inappropriate content, nor personal information such as age, gender, religion, social security number, etc., on your resume.
• If the resume you submit contains such information you will not be considered for this vacancy.
• Your resume must provide: Personal information - your full name, email and mailing addresses, phone number Education information - the name of the school and the dates you attended Work experience - paid and unpaid work with the following information: Job title Detailed duties and accomplishments Employer's name and address Supervisor's name and phone number Starting and ending dates (If actual dates are not known, provide your best-estimated timeframes.) Hours per week Salary, if applicable Other qualifications - skills, certifications/licenses, honors, awards, special accomplishments, and job-related training courses College Transcripts (if applicable): Please see the Education section of this announcement for detailed information about transcripts.

What to expect next

For additional information on other USSF direct hire opportunities visit the Air Force Civilian Careers Space Force website and follow USSF on LinkedIn.

Additional information

Employed Annuitants (Reemployed Annuitants): Applicants in receipt of an annuity based on civilian employment in the Federal Service are subject to the DoD Policy on The Employment of Annuitants. Click here for more information.

Disabled veteran leave is available to a Federal employee hired on/after 5 Nov 2016, who is a veteran with a service-connected disability rating of 30% or more. For more information, click here.