Digital Imaging Specialist

About the role

The Smithsonian Institution is the world's largest museum, education, and research complex, with 21 museums and the National Zoo. This position is located in The National Museum of African Art (NMAfA), Under Secretary for Museums and Culture, Smithsonian Institution (SI).

What you will do

• The Digital Imaging Specialist leads the integration of digital imaging operations within digital collections workflows.
• This position applies advanced professional expertise in cultural heritage imaging, workflow analysis, metadata coordination, quality assurance, digital asset lifecycle management, and enterprise systems integration.
• The specialist develops and implements sustainable, scalable workflows that enhance operational consistency, improve efficiency, support access and preservation objectives, and strengthen the long-term stewardship of digital collections.
• In this position, you will: Serve as the Museum lead technical specialist for planning, coordinating, implementing, and evaluating digital imaging activities in support of collections, archives, and public access.
• Provide specialized professional digital imaging services for museum and archival collections that require individualized technical approaches based on format, condition, preservation needs, intended use, and institutional standards.
• Analyze, develop, document, implement, and improve digital imaging processes that support efficient digital collections workflows throughout the Museum.
• Serve as the Museum lead point of contact for digital imaging workflows, technical documentation, digital asset lifecycle management, and related operational issues affecting collections stewardship.
• Develop and deliver technical guidance, training, and user-oriented documentation supporting consistent implementation of digital imaging and digital collections workflows throughout the Museum.

Requirements

• Conditions of Employment Qualification requirements, including one year time-in-grade at the next lower grade level for promotion candidates, must be met within 30 days of the job announcement closing date.
• See the 'Required Documents' section for additional information.
• For information on qualification requirements, see Qualification Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions viewable on OPM Website.

How you will be evaluated

Your application will be evaluated first for the basic qualifications described above.

The applications that meet the basic qualifications will be evaluated further against the following criteria: Knowledge of the theories, methods, and standard practices governing digital photography, digital asset management and preservation, and workflow analysis as applied within a museum environment.

Knowledge of museum collections management systems, enterprise digital asset management platforms, archival information systems, and associated digital imaging technologies and techniques that improve digital imaging and digital collections workflows supporting Museum operations.

Knowledge to evaluate operational requirements, develop practical workflow solutions, interpret professional standards, and integrate digital imaging activities with Museum and Smithsonian systems.

Knowledge of museum operational functions and collaborative practices sufficient to work effectively with curatorial, archival, registration, conservation, collections management, information technology, and administrative stakeholders in developing and implementing integrated digital collections workflows.

Knowledge of professional standards governing cultural heritage imaging, sufficient to evaluate image quality, establish technical requirements, and ensure compliance with institutional and professional imaging standards.

Important Note: Your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses to the occupational questionnaire or other assessment tool for consistency. If a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your resume, you will be assigned a rating commensurate to your described experience.

Your resume should provide detailed information regarding how your education and experience relate to this position, including the major duties and qualifications criteria listed. You may preview questions for this vacancy.

Documents you must provide

• Resume - Your resume can be uploaded and attached to your application or created using the USA Jobs on-line resume builder.
• Ensure your resume contains the job title (including the occupational series and grade if it is Federal), job-related qualifications, starting and ending dates (month and year), and hours worked per week, for each employment period.
• It is your responsibility to ensure all information is submitted.
• Failure to include this information may result in disqualification for the position.
• For assistance with creating a resume, please click USAJOBS Help Center - How do I write a resume for a federal job?
• Current and former employees MUST submit a copy of their Standard Form (SF)-50, “Notice of Personnel Action,” that indicates proof of status and time-in-grade eligibility.
• SI Trust employees are ineligible for Merit Promotion consideration unless you submit a Standard Form (SF) - 50, "Notice of Personnel Action", that indicates proof you previously held a 'status' position and proof of time-in-grade.
• The SF-50 must include your position title, series, grade, step, salary, type of service (competitive or excepted in block 34), and tenure (1 or 2 in block 24).
• Please provide a SF-50 that shows the length of time you have been in your current/highest grade level.
• Examples of appropriate SF50s include: Appointments, Reassignments, Within-grade/range increases or Promotion actions.
• NOTE: Pay adjustments and award SF-50s do not include the length of time in your current position, therefore, they are NOT acceptable SF-50's on their own.
• You may need to provide more than one SF-50.
• Failure to provide the appropriate SF-50(s) may prevent you from receiving consideration for this position.
• Unofficial school transcripts, if the position has an education requirement or if you are using education to qualify.
• If selected for the position, you must provide an official transcript before appointment.
• Proof of U.S. accreditation for foreign study, if applicable.

Benefits

The Smithsonian offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes, in part, vacation and sick leave, holidays, health/life insurance, accident insurance, and excellent retirement program options. Please see Benefits at *** for a complete description.

Flexible Spending Accounts - *** Health Insurance - *** Leave - *** Life Insurance - *** Long Term Care Insurance - *** Retirement Program - ***

What to expect next

At the end of the application process you will be able to create and save a PDF file that contains your responses to the assessment questions. You may save this file as initial receipt of your application. After the job announcement closes, you will receive an email from the Smithsonian with confirmation of receipt.

The Smithsonian receives many applications for each job. Each application is reviewed carefully which may take a few weeks. We will send you an e-mail to update you as we go through phases of the application review process.

You may also check your application status by logging into *** and selecting the tab "My USAJOBS;" e-mailing ***; or by contacting the Office of Human Resources Representative listed. Additional Information: Tips on applying for Smithsonian jobs are available at *** The Smithsonian does not pay relocation expenses.

The Smithsonian Institution is an equal opportunity employer. Additional information can be found on our website at (***).

Additional information

This position is included in the bargaining unit. Recruitment Incentive: Recruitment incentive(s) may be authorized for this position. However, approval for incentives are contingent upon various availability.

If authorized, certain incentives will require the incumbent to sign a service agreement to remain in the Federal government for a certain time period. Note: This statement does not imply nor guarantee an incentive will be offered and paid. Selections may be made for vacancies across the Smithsonian Institution (SI).

By applying to this position, you agree to allow your application and other personal information to be shared with one or more SI hiring officials for employment consideration for same/similar positions within the location(s) identified in this announcement.