Job summary

This position is part of the Warfare Centers Personnel Demonstration Project. The ND-5 pay band encompasses positions equivalent to GS-14 and GS-15. You will serve as the Chief Engineer (CHENG) in the Combat Systems Safety Branch (Code B72) within the Electromagnetic & Sensor Systems Department, Systems Safety Engineering Division of the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division.

Major duties

You will serve as a recognized expert in systems safety engineering and provide technical advice to top level Navy management and technical personnel, other agencies, and private organizations. You will serve on Navy, interagency, and technical society panels and committees of national or international scope. You will serve as a consultant to other technical experts in the field and provide advice on issues on which experts disagree. You will apply technical subject matter expertise in systems safety toward training, advising, and mentoring system safety practitioners in the application of systems safety. You will ensure that work within the branch is executed in a manner consistent with developed processes, methodologies, and technical standards and that technical rigor is applied consistently across the branch. You will work collaboratively with other branch CHENGs and the B70 Division Technical Staff to develop, mature, and/or refine technical safety processes and methodologies. You will conduct technical reviews of safety program artifacts and provide technical direction to a team of scientists, engineers, and other system safety professionals. You will lead collaboration with technical authorities (e.g., System Design Managers, System Integration Managers, Technical Warrant Holders, etc.) to provide system safety engineering expertise relevant to B70 processes, methodologies, and analyses. You will lead Branch technical review and safety input to DoD, Navy, Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), and NSWC Dahlgren policy and guidance documents. You will provide senior-level technical expertise and guidance to support various Safety Review Boards. You will assist the Branch Head and Branch Deputy Portfolio Director in monitoring the technical health of all projects and portfolios.

Qualification

This is an interdisciplinary position and may be filled by a General Engineer (0801-series), a General Physical Scientist (1301-series), an Operations Research Analyst (1515-series), a Mathematician (1520-series), or a Computer Scientist (1550-series) depending upon the qualifications of the candidate. Applicants in positions with occupational series other than those listed (0801, 1301, 1515, 1520 and 1550) may apply; however, you must apply directly to the series listed in this vacancy that is most applicable to your qualifications. In addition to the Basic Requirements for this position, your resume must also demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the ND-4 pay band (GS-12 and GS-13 equivalency) in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private or public sector. Specialized experience must demonstrate the following: As a professional engineer or scientist applying a wide range of systems safety engineering principles to serve as a technical safety expert for naval platforms, weapon systems, or combat systems. Examples of qualifying experience may include (1) expertise in leading systems safety engineering activities such as integrated product teams, documentation reviews, design reviews, test events, technical briefs, technical data package development, and flag level safety reviews; (2) expertise in leading and advising on data gathering, testing, analyses and problem-solving techniques necessary to execute system safety engineering on documentation, hardware, software, environmental effects, and firmware. Additional qualification information can be found from the following Office of Personnel Management website: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=List-by-Occupational-Series Individual Occupational Requirements (IOR): All Professional Engineering Positions, 08XX General Physical Science Series, 1301 Operations Research Series, 1515 Mathematics Series, 1520 Computer Science Series, 1550 Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., professional, philanthropic, religious, spiritual, community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment.

Education

Applicants must meet at least one of the following positive education qualifications requirements of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualifications Standards Manual: Professional Engineering Series (08XX) - Degree: A professional engineering degree from an ABET-accredited college or university; OR a degree with curriculum in differential and integral calculus, with additional courses in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics; or electronics; OR Professional Engineering Series (08XX) - Substitution of Education/Experience: A combination of education and experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying professional engineering; and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following: (a) professional registration, (b) evidence of successfully passing the Engineer-in-Training (EIT) examination; (c) successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and in engineering that included the courses specified above; or (d) successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in engineering technology or in an appropriate professional field, e.g., physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a degree in engineering provided that it included at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. (Note to Applicants: Please see the Qualifications & Education sections of this announcement for a link to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Individual Occupational Requirements. OPM guidance indicates that there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience. This training plan or experience must be well documented and provided at time of application.); OR 1301-General Physical Science Series: A degree in physical science, engineering, or mathematics that included 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science such as mechanics, dynamics, properties of materials, and electronics; or education equivalent to one of the majors shown above that included at least 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science, plus appropriate experience or additional education; OR 1515-Operations Research Series: A degree in operations research; or a related degree that included at least 24 semester hours in a combination of operations research, mathematics, probability, statistics, mathematical logic, science, or subject-matter courses. At least 3 of these 24 semester hours must have been in calculus; OR 1520-Mathematics Series: A degree in mathematics; or a combination of education and experience - courses equivalent to a major in mathematics (including at least 24 semester hours in mathematics), plus appropriate experience or additional education. The total coursework described above must have included differential and integral calculus and, in addition, four advanced mathematics courses requiring calculus or equivalent mathematics courses as a prerequisite; OR 1550-Computer Science Series: A degree in computer science; or a degree with at least 30 semester hours in a combination of mathematics, statistics, and computer science. At least 15 of these 30 semester hours must have been in a combination of statistics and mathematics that included differential and integral calculus.

Evaluations

In order to qualify for this position, your resume must provide sufficient experience and/or education, knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the duties of the specific position for which you are being considered. Your resume is the key means we have for evaluating your skills, knowledge, and abilities as they relate to this position. Therefore, we encourage you to be clear and specific when describing your experience. When the application process is complete, we will review your resume to ensure you meet the hiring eligibility and qualification requirements listed in this announcement. You will be rated based on the information provided in your resume and responses to the Occupational Questionnaire, along with your supporting documentation to determine your ability to demonstrate the following competencies: ORAL COMMUNICATION PROBLEM SOLVING SAFETY ENGINEERING STRATEGIC THINKING SYSTEMS DESIGN AND INTEGRATION SYSTEMS ENGINEERING SYSTEMS TESTING AND EVALUATION You should list any relevant performance appraisals and incentive awards in your resume as that information may be taken into consideration during the selection process. If selected, you may be required to provide supporting documentation. If after reviewing your resume and supporting documentation, a determination is made that you inflated your qualifications and/or experience, your score may be adjusted to more accurately reflect your abilities or you may be found ineligible/not qualified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment. All eligibility and qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.