Job Details
Summary This position is located in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA). The General Counsel, who is appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate, is the Department's chief legal advisor and principal legal advisor to the Secretary of DHS and, has final authority and responsibility for legal policy determinations within the Department and its components. Responsibilities The Deputy Chief Counsel for Enforcement and Incident Management is the senior legal advisor for TSA on matters dealing with civil and criminal enforcement, international law, intelligence and analysis, cybersecurity enforcement, and incident management, within the transportation sector. As the Deputy Chief Counsel for Enforcement and Incident Management the incumbent: Serves as the senior legal advisor for civil enforcement, criminal law, international law, cybersecurity enforcement, and legal policy matters that arise in the course of TSA's execution of its transportation security mission, including TSA's execution of its regulatory authority and matters involving the Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS). Serves as the first or second line supervisor for approximately 13 attorneys and professional or support staff at TSA headquarters in Springfield, VA in the provision of legal services to TSA and DHS leadership. Serves as the senior legal advisor for transportation incident management legal issues that arise out of TSA's primary role in managing the federal government's response to transportation security incidents that involve U.S. interests. The legal issues associated with this responsibility include advice on crisis management; the National Response Plan and associated executive branch policy; continuity of Operations and Continuity of Government; and national security law and policy. This advice must include expert knowledge of the interagency emergency decision making process at all levels of government. Provides accurate and timely legal advice and counsel to senior management officials in TSA and the Department of Homeland Security, including includes formal and informal presentations, both orally and in writing. Represents TSA Chief Counsel office in a variety of internal and external settings to meet this responsibility. Etablishes organizational performance metrics in accordance with TSA's mission, vision, goals, and strategic objectives. Oversees the day-to-day operations of areas within his/her responsibility, assuring conformance with TSA's strategic plan. Participates as an executive member of the TSA Chief Counsel office leadership team, and is responsible for leading a professional staff and for achieving results in assuring that expert legal counsel and advice is provided to senior officials and to operating elements of TSA. Promotes an equal opportunity environment by fostering fairness in selections, encouraging and recognizing achievements, ensuring fair treatment of minority group employees, and demonstrating sensitivity to the developmental needs of all employees including minority groups, women and the disabled. Provides management oversight and direction concerning personnel, policies and programs (e.g., human resources, budget, information technology, facilities, equipment, procurement); and ensures the efficient and effective acquisition, use, distribution and disposal of office resources in compliance with applicable policies, procedures, laws and directives. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications As a basic requirement for entry into the SES, applicants must provide evidence of progressively responsible executive leadership and supervisory experience that is indicative of senior executive level management capability and directly related to the skills and abilities outlined under Executive Core Qualifications and Technical Qualifications listed below. Typically, experience of this nature will have been gained at or above the GS-14/15 grade level in the federal service or its equivalent in the private sector. As such, your resume should demonstrate that you have the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully fulfill responsibilities inherent in most SES positions such as: Directing the work of an organizational unit; Ensuring the success of one or more specific major programs or projects; Monitoring progress toward strategic organizational goals, evaluating organizational performance and taking action to improve performance; Supervising the work of employees; and Exercising important policymaking, policy determining, or other executive functions. The application process to recruit for this position is the TRADITIONAL-BASED method. The applicant must address each Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) and Mandatory Technical Qualifications (MTQs) separately. EXECUTIVE CORE QUALIFICATIONS (ECQs): Unless you are currently serving under a Career Senior Executive Service (SES) appointment, eligible for reinstatement into the SES, or a SES Candidate Development Program (CDP) graduate, you must address the ECQs. Your narrative must address each ECQ separately and demonstrate the underlying competencies in the narrative. Examples should be clear, concise, and emphasize your level of responsibilities; the scope and complexity of the programs, activities, or services you managed; program accomplishments; policy initiatives undertaken; level of contacts; the sensitivity and criticality of the issues you addressed; and the results of your actions. You should use action oriented leadership words to describe your experience and accomplishments and quantify your experience wherever possible to demonstrate your accomplishments (e.g., number of employees supervised; size of budget managed; amount of money saved, etc.). Applicants should use the Challenge, Context, Action and Results (CCAR) model below when responding to each ECQ: CHALLENGE: Describe a specific problem or goal. CONTEXT: Describe individuals and groups you worked with, and/or the environment in which you worked, to address a particular challenge (e.g., clients, members of Congress, shrinking budget, low morale). ACTION: Describe the specific actions you took to address a challenge. RESULT: Describe specific examples of measures/outcomes that had impact on the organization. These accomplishments demonstrate the quality and effectiveness of your leadership skills. Your narrative response should not exceed 10 pages, be typed in 12 PT font with one-inch margins. It is recommended that you include 2 recent (not older than 10 years) examples per ECQ and draft your ECQs in a PDF document before uploading into the system to ensure these guidelines are met. Information that exceeds these guidelines will not be reviewed. Detailed information on each ECQ, the underlying and fundamental competencies, sample narratives and a tips sheet for writing effective ECQs are available in the "Guide To Senior Executive Service Qualifications" Senior Executive Service Executive Core Qualifications and Senior Executive Service Qualifications & Fundamental-Competencies. ECQ 1 - LEADING CHANGE. This core qualification involves the ability to bring about strategic change, both within and outside the organization, to meet organizational goals. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to establish an organizational vision and to implement it in a continuously changing environment. Leadership Competencies: Creativity & Innovation, External Awareness, Flexibility, Resilience, Strategic Thinking, Vision. ECQ 2 - LEADING PEOPLE. This core qualification involves the ability to lead people toward meeting the organization's vision, mission, and goals. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to provide an inclusive workplace that fosters the development of others, facilitates cooperation and teamwork, and supports constructive resolution of conflicts. Leadership Competencies: Conflict Management, Leveraging Diversity, Developing Others, Team Building. ECQ 3 - RESULTS DRIVEN. This core qualification involves the ability to meet organizational goals and customer expectations. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to make decisions that produce high-quality results by applying technical knowledge, analyzing problems, and calculating risks. Leadership Competencies: Accountability, Customer Service, Decisiveness, Entrepreneurship, Problem Solving, Technical Credibility. ECQ 4 - BUSINESS ACUMEN. This core qualification involves the ability to manage human, financial, and information resources strategically. Leadership Competencies: Financial Management, Human Capital Management, Technology Management. ECQ 5 - BUILDING COALITIONS. This core qualification involves the ability to build coalitions internally and with other Federal agencies, State and local governments, nonprofit and private sector organizations, foreign governments, or international organizations to achieve common goals. Leadership Competencies: Partnering, Political Savvy, Influencing/Negotiating. NOTE: Those applicants currently serving under a career Senior Executive Service appointment, who are eligible for reinstatement into the Senior Executive Service, or who have successfully completed a Senior Executive Service Candidate Development Program approved by OPM, need not submit a narrative statement covering each of the Executive Core Qualifications. However, those applicants must address the following Mandatory Technical Competencies. TECHNICAL QUALIFICATION (TQ)s: In addition to the Executive Core Qualifications, all candidates must show evidence of the following TQs below in order to meet basic qualifications for this position. Please label and include your name on each page. Please give examples and explain how often you used your skills, the complexity of the knowledge possessed, the level of people you interacted with, the sensitivity of the issues you handled managing a large public or private sector organization that administers complex, rules-based benefits or services, etc. It is recommended that you draft your TQ(s) in a word document and then upload into the system. TQ 1. Demonstrated knowledge, skills and experience in interpreting law and providing legal advice to senior officials within and outside the federal government or in the private sector on some or all of the following areas: transportation security-related laws, regulations and policies, including civil and criminal enforcement, threat assessment vetting, international law, operational legal matters pertaining to emergency incident management. TQ 2. Demonstrated management ability involving both legal and administrative matters in an agency, law firm, or other organization. Candidates should demonstrate the ability to work with legal and other professionals to evaluate and develop policies, procedures, and objectives for an organization and to communicate effectively orally and in writing in advising senior management officials to ensure the successful delivery of legal services nationwide, TQ 3. Knowledge of and demonstrated experience in national security, homeland security or transportation security. DO NOT COMBINE THE TQ AND ECQ STATEMENTS. Failure to meet the basic qualification requirement and address all Mandatory Technical and Executive Core Qualification factors will result in your application being disqualified. Veteran's Preference does not apply to the Senior Executive Service. Education You must possess a professional law degree (e.g., J.D., LL.B.) acquired through graduation from a School of Law accredited by the American Bar Association, and be an active member in good standing of the Bar of a state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or a territory of the United States. You must submit documentation supporting that you meet this qualification when applying to this job opportunity announcement. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications; applicant's resumes and supporting documentation should only reflect education received from schools accredited by such institutions. Applicants can verify accreditation at the following Website:d.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency (a U.S. private organization's interpretation that such education has been deemed at least equivalent to conventional U.S. education programs) with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For more information regarding evaluation of foreign education for federal employment, please visit the U.S. Department of Education webpage. Additional Information Permanent Change of Duty Station (PCS) Expenses will not be paid. Background Investigation: To ensure the accomplishment of its mission, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) requires each and every employee to be reliable and trustworthy. To meet those standards, all selected applicants must undergo and successfully complete a background investigation for Top Secret/ Sensitive Compartment Information clearance as a condition of placement in this Special Sensitive position. This review includes financial issues such as delinquency in the payment of debts, child support and/or tax obligations, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs. Any offers of employment made pursuant to this announcement will be consistent with all applicable authorities, including Presidential Memoranda, Executive Orders, interpretive U. S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and U. S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) guidance, and Office of Management and Budget plans and policies concerning hiring. These authorities are subject to change. Pursuant to Executive Order 12654 and DHS policy, DHS is committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace and, therefore, conducts random and other drug testing of its employees in order to ensure a safe and healthy work environment. Headquarters personnel in safety- or security-sensitive positions are subject to random drug testing and all applicants tentatively selected for employment at DHS Headquarters are subject to drug testing resulting in a negative test result. If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment, and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application, prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment, dismissal after beginning work, fine, or imprisonment. DHS uses e-Verify, an Internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities.