Chief Technology Officer

The Chief Technology Officer (CTO) provides senior executive technical leadership and strategic advisement to the Chief Information Officer (CIO) to establish rigorous standards and guide the design, selection, and architecture of DC3 enterprise systems. The incumbent leads the development of the agency's IT Strategic Plan and oversees the evolution of its enterprise architecture, guiding the deployment of scalable, cloud-native models across secure platforms to support complex governance and executive decision-making. Operating as the premier technical authority, the CTO directs the research, development, and operational integration of advanced AI/ML algorithms, Large Language Model (LLM) ecosystems, and data science methodologies to process petabyte-scale datasets and extract actionable cyber intelligence. Additionally, the incumbent drives the technological evolution of digital and multimedia forensics operations, pioneering novel exploitation techniques for emerging technologies and advanced malware while maintaining strict evidentiary integrity. By bridging the gap between innovative cyber capabilities and tactical operations, the CTO collaborates across the Department of War (DoW), the Intelligence Community, and international partners to transition state-of-the-art capabilities to operational elements. Finally, the incumbent represents the agency at the highest levels, chairing joint committees, advocating for research and development resources, and ensuring technical execution aligns with critical national security mission objectives.

Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship Required
• If authorized, PCS will be paid IAW JTR and AF Regulations. If receiving an authorized PCS, you may be subject to completing/signing a CONUS agreement. More information on PCS requirements, may be found at: https://afciviliancareers.com/regulatory/
• Males must be registered for Selective Service, see www.sss.gov
• Position is designated as a Testing Designated Position (TDP). Position requires the incumbent sign a Drug Testing letter and pass urinalysis testing prior to appointment.
• Must have or be able to obtain a TOP SECRET/SCI Security clearance
• Must file an Executive Personnel Financial Disclosure Report
• PROBATIONARY PERIOD. An individual's initial SL career appointment becomes final only after the individual successfully completes a 1-year probationary period.
• Active Duty Military Members must indicate retirement eligibility
• Recruitment/Relocation Incentive may be offered
• Disclosure of Political Appointments
• EXECUTIVE PERSONNEL FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE REPORT (Standard Form 278). Selected candidate must file this report in accordance with the Ethics in Government Act of 1978.
• Veterans' preference is applicable to Air Force Senior Level (SL) positions.
• Within the Department of War (DoW), the appointment of retired military members within 180 days immediately following retirement date to a civilian position is subject to the provisions of 5 United States Code 3326.

Qualifications

QUALIFICATIONS: Eligibility will be based upon a clear showing the applicant has training, education and experience of the scope and quality sufficient to effectively carry-out the duties of the position. Candidates must exemplify the corporate perspective, leadership vision, broad experience and character needed in the Civilian Senior Executive Service corps not only to satisfy the immediate vacancy, but future vacancies which will occur in a variety of organizations, functions and locations.

Basic Requirement: You must have IT-related experience demonstrating each of the five competencies listed below:

1. Information Management - Identifies a need for and knows where or how to gather information; organizes and maintains information or information management systems.
2. Decision Making - Makes sound, well-informed, and objective decisions; perceives the impact and implications of decisions; commits to action, even in uncertain situations, to accomplish organizational goals; causes change.
3. Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.
4. Reasoning - Identifies rules, principles, or relationships that explain facts, data, or other information; analyzes information and makes correct inferences or draws accurate conclusions.
5. Technical Competence - Uses knowledge that is acquired through formal training or on-the-job experience to perform one's job; works with, understands, and evaluates technical information related to the job; advises others on technical issues.

AND

TECHNICAL QUALIFICATIONS: Applicants must reflect superior technical qualifications demonstrated through leadership and management in the following:

TQ1: Demonstrated executive-level technical experience leading enterprise IT strategy, cloud architecture, and the operational integration of advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) solutions. This includes proven expertise in designing scalable architectures (e.g., cloud platforms, containers, microservices) and overseeing the deployment of Large Language Model (LLM) ecosystems and Natural Language Processing (NLP) frameworks to process petabyte-scale datasets. Experience must demonstrate the ability to align complex technology architectures with strategic mission goals, establish rigorous enterprise standards, and ensure AI/ML systems are secure, reliable, and compliant with organizational governance to extract actionable cyber intelligence.

TQ2: Demonstrated expert-level experience pioneering digital forensics methodologies and driving technological innovation to support multi-domain cyber operations (Law Enforcement, Counterintelligence, and critical infrastructure protection). This includes experience anticipating adversarial threat shifts (e.g., APT malware, IoT exploitation) and translating highly complex operational capability gaps into deployable technical specifications. Experience must demonstrate the ability to serve as a senior technical authority who successfully fosters strategic interoperability and champions technical initiatives across interagency, defense, academic, and private sector partnerships.

A separate narrative statement is not required--this information should be embedded within the resume.

The ideal candidate would possess the following:
- Proven expertise architecting, deploying, and scaling advanced AI/ML models (including LLM ecosystems, NLP, and vector databases) over petabyte-scale datasets.
- Extensive experience pioneering novel technical techniques, leading the development of innovative tools or concepts for emerging technologies (IoT, cloud infrastructure, and APT malware), and driving R&D projects.
- Demonstrated ability to operate credibly at both highly strategic and deeply technical levels, with a track record of building coalitions across the Department of War (DoW), the Intelligence Community, National Laboratories, and private-sector tech executives.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Applications will be evaluated against the foregoing qualification requirements. Failure to meet any one of the mandatory technical or senior professional qualification standards will eliminate a candidate from further consideration. A screening panel will evaluate the candidates for this position composed of senior executives selected for organizational and/or functional backgrounds relevant to this position. The panel members will individually review each of the applications in terms of the qualifications criteria contained in this announcement.

The qualifications stated are the minimum requirements of the position to be Qualified, a rating schedule will be applied by a screening panel to determine which candidates are considered to be Best Qualified. Then, they will meet to discuss each application, and reach a consensus decision as to the best qualified, qualified or not qualified candidates. The panel will interview all of the best-qualified candidates based upon consistently applied criteria. The panel will then make a recommendation of those best-qualified candidates who should be referred to the selecting official, in priority order. Final selection of a candidate is contingent upon USecAF approval.

To receive full consideration, each applicant must submit the (MANDATORY) documents in the format as designated. Packages that do not include all of the required documents or meet format requirements will not be forwarded for consideration.

**************ALL DOCUMENTS MUST BE UPLOADED IN PDF FORMAT*******************

The Qualifications Documents must be formatted using Times New Roman, size 12 font, with 1-inch margins. Do not use borders, provide photos, or list a Social Security Number on any of the Qualifications Documents. DO NOT COMBINE DOCUMENTS.

A. (Mandatory) Resume in the preferred (Limit 2 pages). Upload in PDF format. PLEASE DO NOT USE USAJOBS RESUME BUILDER.

B. (Optional) Most recent completed Performance Appraisal (current and/or former federal employees) or Performance Report (OPR or EPR). For applicants in the private sector, please provide a copy of your equivalent Evaluation Report.

C. Most recent Notification of Personnel Action, SF-50, noting your current position, grade level and salary level and a SF-50 reflecting the highest grade held if different from your recent SF-50 (applies only to current or former civilian government employee).

D. College transcript(s) (copy is acceptable) which demonstrates the acceptable combinations of education and experience as noted by OPM.

E. (Mandatory) Military Retired - a copy of your DD214 and/or Retirement orders; Active Duty - Are you an active duty service member with a statement of service showing that you expect to be honorably discharged or released from the armed forces under honorable conditions no later than 120 days after submitting your application? PLEASE NOTE: you will be ineligible for consideration if your statement of service is not submitted with your application or it shows an expected discharge or release date greater than 120 days from the date of the submission of the certification. Documents are required.

DO NOT SUBMIT ANY ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Extraneous materials such as copies of position descriptions, award certificates and transmittal letters will not be forwarded for review.

Next steps