Sr. Management and Program Analyst (System Engineer)

About the role

This position is located in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), Education Service (EDU), Technical Reporting, Initiatives, Automation and Development (TRIAD) Division. This announcement is being limited to the first 75 applications received.

The announcement will close either on the published closing date at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) or on the day when the number of applications reaches 75 at 11:59 p.m. (EST), whichever comes first.

What you will do

• This position serves as the Senior Management and Program Analyst to the Chief of Internal Requirements & Operations (INTRO) Team.
• Specific duties include: The incumbent is responsible for coordination of program initiatives, projects and policy activities relating to the INTRO team, the systems within the portfolio and subsequent testing management required for those applications.
• The Chief will rely heavily on judgment and recommendations made by this individual.
• The incumbent represents the Chief in meetings, tasks, working groups and in other areas.
• Serves as senior with decision making authority on efforts such as releases, to include Business Requirements Document (BRD) creation, Test Plan creation, develops and reviews test cases, as well as takes lead for the production triage calls covering test actions, completion percentage, defect statuses, impediments and next steps.
• Serves as reviewer of requirements and acceptance criteria developed during elicitation sessions for each Program Increment (PI) as well as working with INTRO Chief and AD on assigning Minimum Viable Product (MVP) status based upon being essential to the release.
• Responsible for leading pre and post Release activities, such as creating or collaborating on System Advisories for the field, Release Scope and Release Field Notes documents, Business concurrence on release application readiness meetings, planning and coordination amongst EDU leadership, RPO's, OIT and contractual developer support to ensure a successful release and subsequent rollout into Production.
• Serves as lead for Change Management to include the DGIB Intake team, requirements review, change request (CR) reviews and approvals, prioritization, and release scope review.
• Creates custom queries and dashboards in Jira for tracking requirements and CRs.
• Serves as a consultant to the Assistant Director and Chief on the more complex and difficult issues associated with IT Operations, releases, policies, and programs as they relate to administrative operations, as well as the delivery of Education benefits and services to Veterans.
• Responsibilities also include coordinating activities with VA and other VBA offices and managing the day-to-day administrative activities for the Assistant Director and Chief.
• The incumbent analyzes multifunctional programs, functions, and organizations on a region-wide or equivalent scope to determine whether the management systems in current use efficiently accomplish objectives sought and whether they provide controls necessary for sound management.
• Various analytical techniques are used, many of a complex nature.
• The incumbent analyzes and evaluates, on a quantitative or qualitative basis, the effectiveness of programs or operations in meeting established goals and objectives.
• In addition, evaluates region-wide programs against short- and long-range objectives manages, directs, or assists in managing or directing, one or more programs to deliver or support delivery of services and benefits to veterans, their dependents, or beneficiaries.
• This individual directs administrative activities within the product/service line to support the organization's business goals and objectives.
• Promotion Potential: Position is at the full performance level.
• Work Schedule: Full-time, Monday through Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Compressed/Flexible: Available Telework: This position is eligible for situational (ad hoc) telework only.
• The selectee is required to report to the official duty station each scheduled workday.
• Telework may be approved only on a case-by-case basis with supervisory approval.
• Routine or recurring telework is not authorized for this position.
• Virtual: This is a virtual position.
• Current EDU Staff with an out-based duty location will continue to report to their current approved duty location upon selection.
• Position Description/PD#: Sr. Management and Program Analyst (System Engineer); PD389860 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized .
• Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required This is not a bargaining unit position.

Requirements

• As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period 1 year during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest.
• In determining if your 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.
• Additional Conditions of Employment are as follows: You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 You may be required to serve a probationary or trial period Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.
• Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements I-9 Acceptable Documents.
• Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.

Education

There is no education substitution for this grade level.

How you will be evaluated

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC.

WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position.

You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics): Accountability Attention to Detail Customer Service Decision Making Flexibility Influencing/Negotiating Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Reading Comprehension Reasoning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork Software Testing and Evaluation - Knowledge of the principles, methods, and tools for analyzing and developing software test and evaluation procedures.

Communication - Ability to establish and maintain effective communication (oral and written) with persons both at all organizational levels and with officials of other departments and agencies on policy, technical and administrative matters.

Knowledge of Strategic goals and Analyzation - Extensive knowledge and understanding of the strategic goals of the Department's programs in order to analyze existing regulations, policies and procedures; originate or revise regulations, policies, and procedures; perform program evaluations; and provide expert advice in the solution of complex problems.

Skill in Program and organizational Analysis - Skill in program and organizational analysis principles, methods, and interpersonal relations practices. The ability to apply those skills in the development of new approaches for planning, integration, and evaluation of the Department's programs.

Systems Engineering - Knowledge of the practice of integrating multiple disciplines into a team as part of a structured development process throughout a system's life cycle. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration.

Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. To preview the application questionnaire, click the following link:*** The USA Hire Assessments includes a cut score based on the minimum level of required proficiency in these critical general competencies.

You must meet or exceed the cut score to be considered.

You will not be considered for the position if you score below the cut score or fail to complete the assessment. Narrative responses are not required at this time.

If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully.

Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

Documents you must provide

• To apply for this position, you must provide a complete application package to include the documents detailed below.
• Failure to submit the required documents may result in your application being considered incomplete and you being deemed ineligible.
• It is your responsibility to ensure your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) is complete, accurate, and submitted by the closing date.
• We will not request additional documentation or accept late or missing documents after the announcement has closed.
• Resume, limited to 2-pages, detailing specialized experience and competencies as they relate to this position.
• For each position in your resume, you must specify the start and end dates (month/year) and a description of duties.
• If the position was Federal, you must also indicate the grade level.
• Resumes containing a general summary of all positions held, not specifying start/end dates, and/or not including Federal grade level(s) are insufficient to determine basic qualifications.
• Your most recent NON-AWARD SF-50.
• The SF-50 must indicate proof of status and should identify your position title, series, grade, step, salary, tenure, and type of service (Competitive or Excepted).
• Your SF-50 reflecting when you entered your highest grade (e.g., Promotion, Appointment, etc.) in order to verify time-in-grade requirements.
• Additional Documents accepted: Most recent Performance Appraisal (VA Form 0750) Award SF-50s CTAP documentation - RIF notice, SF-50 showing VA employee, and performance appraisal.
• Please make sure you have included other documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), documentation to support Veterans Preference claims, or ICTAP/CTAP documentation (for displaced Federal employees).
• You will not be contacted for additional information.
• SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action (if applicable for Time in Grade and/or Eligibility): Most recent SF-50 if you are a current or former Federal employee An SF-50 showing your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials.
• If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement.
• In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade Award 50's do not provide sufficient information and will not be accepted for the purpose of verifying time-in-grade.
• Examples of appropriate SF-50's include: Within grade increases at the highest grade held; or Promotions with an effective date more than one year old; or SF-50's at the highest grade held with an effective date more than one year old.
• Resumes must be legible so they can be reviewed for eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement.
• Your resume must be 5MB or less.
• We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages.
• We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX).
• We do not accept PDF portfolio files.
• We recommend using a sans-serif font size like, if available.
• Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans.
• Make your page margins 0.5 inches.
• Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume.
• The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started.

What to expect next

You may update your application documents and some questions related to your personal information at any time during the announcement open period.

However, you will not be able to make changes to questions related to assessing the minimum qualifications and competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics) mentioned in the "How You Will Be Evaluated" section above. To make an allowed update to your application, return to your USAJOBS account (***).

There you will find a record of your application, the application status, and an option to Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email.

After we receive application packages (including all required documents) and the vacancy announcement closes, we will review applications to ensure qualification and eligibility requirements are met. After the review is complete, a referral certificate(s) is issued and applicants will be notified of their status by email.

Referred applicants will be notified as such and may be contacted directly by the hiring office for an interview. All referred applicants receive a final notification once a selection decision has been made. Referred applicants may be contacted at any time during the hiring process.

Please check all forms of communication (including email, voicemail, and spam folders), based on the contact information provided with your application, regularly to ensure you don't miss any updates.

Failure to respond to communications may result in you being disqualified from consideration.

You will receive a final notification of results once a decision has been made. You may check the status of your application at any time by logging into your USA Jobs account and clicking on Applications. Information regarding your application status can be found in the USAJobs Help Center.

Additional information

VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.

The Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies.

To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting your current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified (have a final rating of 85 or more) for this vacancy.

Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at *** Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion.

The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position. It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer (TJO).

Please visit the Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP), *** Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application.

Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis.

If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision.

You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement.

To determine if you need a RA, please review: Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.

(***) For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.