Director, U.S. Wildland Fire Service Job

Vacancy No. OS-25-JEW-001-SES Department Office of the Secretary of the Interior
Salary $191,900.00 to $225,700.00 Grade 00 to 00
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 9/29/2025 Close Date 10/13/2025
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Washington, DCBoise, ID


Summary

Once established, the U.S. Wildland Fire Service will lead and coordinate wildland fire management across the Department of the Interior, ensuring unified action with bureaus, federal and state agencies, tribes, and stakeholders to protect lives, property, and natural resources.

Duties

The Director, U.S. Wildland Fire Service, will be located in the Office of the Secretary of Interior at the Department of the Interior and will report to the Secretary of the Interior.

Once established, the U.S. Wildland Fire Service (USWFS) will manage and provide the wildland fire protection within the Department of the Interior. The USWFS has full program authority and coordinates the Department's wildland fire management program in its entirety and ensures coordination within the Department, the Bureaus it serves, and with other federal and non-federal agencies, particularly the USDA Forest Service, state foresters, tribes, the National Association of Counties, and a variety of stakeholder groups representing volunteer fire fighters, environmental interests, industry and others.

Responsibilities include:

1. Will lead and exercise programmatic authority over all wildland fire management activities across the Department of the Interior (DOI), including workforce development, technology investments, communications, and administrative support, ensuring alignment with departmental mission, priorities, and policies.

2. Will provide executive coordination and oversight of structural fire management programs, ensuring effective integration and collaboration with the National Park Service, Bureau of Reclamation, and other stakeholders to meet DOI structural fire needs.

3. Will represent the Department on wildland fire issues before Congress, OMB, and the Executive Office of the President, including legislative review, testimony preparation, and participation in hearings, while ensuring compliance with evolving federal mandates.

4. Will oversee all aspects of the Wildland Fire Management Account, including budget development, prioritization, and execution, in coordination with DOI bureaus, the USDA Forest Service, and other federal partners.

5. Will serve as the Department's lead for Emergency Support Function 4 (Firefighting) under the National Response Framework, while also managing international fire program activities and providing executive support for interagency aviation policy and operations.


Requirements

Conditions of Employment

  • U.S. Citizenship
  • Subject to a background/suitability investigation/determination.
  • Public Financial Disclosure (OGE-278 filing within 30 days is required)
  • This position requires pre and post-employment drug screening.
  • Males must meet Selective Service Registration Act requirements. To verify registration visit SSS.gov.
  • Selections are subject to Department approval. Initial appointments to the SES must have ECQs certified by an Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualifications Review Board before the appointment.
  • Required to serve a one-year Senior Executive Service probationary period.
  • Individuals selected for an SES position are subject to reassignment.
  • Agencies must request OPM approval to appoint current or former (within 5 years) Executive Branch political appointees to permanent competitive service, non-political excepted service, or career SES position.
  • You must be able to obtain/maintain a Tier 5 background investigation. This position sensitivity is Critical Sensitive.

Qualifications


We are seeking an individual with extensive leadership and technical experience in wildland fire management, interagency coordination and strategic policy development, along with a proven ability to lead large, complex programs across federal, state, tribal and local stakeholders. Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution. Candidates will not be hired based on their race, sex, color, religion, or national origin.


To meet the minimum qualifications, you must submit a two-page resume (max) that shows you possess the five Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) and two Technical Qualifications (TQs). To be considered, only the first two pages of your resume will be reviewed to determine your eligibility/qualifications.

Technical Qualifications (TQs) are designed to assess an applicant's experience relevant to the specific position requirements. Your resume should clearly demonstrate your experience and accomplishments related to the two TQs below:

TQ 1. Describe your executive-level experience in managing comprehensive wildland fire programs for a large, geographically dispersed organization, including but not limited to hazardous fuels management, preparedness, suppression operations, and workforce safety.


TQ 2. Discuss your executive-level ability to collaboratively lead across federal, state, Tribal, local and other partners in the implementation of national wildland fire priorities, with expert knowledge of the laws, regulations, policies, budgetary processes, and programs that government wildland fire management.

Your two-page resume should also show that you possess the Executive Core Qualifications listed below: By statute, the Office of Personnel Management prescribes Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) for the appointment of career SES members. The ECQs were designed to assess executive experience and not technical expertise.

ECQ 1 - Commitment to the Rule of Law and the Principles of the American Founding: Demonstrated knowledge of the American system of government, commitment to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law, and commitment to serve the American people.

Competencies: Knowledge of the American System of Government, Commitment to the Rule of Law, Civic-Mindedness


ECQ 2 - Driving Efficiency: Demonstrated ability to strategically and efficiently manage resources, budget effectively, cut wasteful spending, and pursue efficiency through process and technological upgrades.

Competencies: Fiscal Responsibility, Managing Resources, Leveraging Technology.


ECQ 3 - Merit and Competence: Demonstrated knowledge, ability, and technical competence to effectively and reliably produce work that is of exceptional quality.

Competencies: Technical Skill, Problem Solving, Agility and Resilience.


ECQ 4 - Leading People: Demonstrated ability to lead and inspire a group toward meeting the organization's vision, mission, and goals, and to drive a high-performance, high accountability culture. This includes, when necessary, the ability to lead people through change and to hold individuals accountable.

Competencies: Accountability, Developing Others, Executive Judgement.


ECQ 5 - Achieving Results: Demonstrated ability to achieve both individual and organizational results, and to align results to stated goals from superiors.

Competencies: Operational Mindset, Innovation, Strategic Thinking.

Qualifications will be evaluated based on how clearly and concisely you emphasize your level of responsibilities, the scope and complexity of your programs; services managed; program accomplishments; policy initiatives undertaken; level of contacts; the sensitivity and criticality of the issues addressed; and the results of your actions taken. Typically experience will have been gained at the GS-15 or equivalent in the private sector or non-governmental organizations.

Already SES Certified? If you are currently serving under a career Senior Executive Service appointment, are eligible for reinstatement into the Senior Executive Service, or have completed a Senior Executive Service Candidate Development Program (SES CDP) approved by OPM, you only need to submit a two-page resume and personnel action showing you have held a career SES position. SES CDP graduates must submit a two-page resume and a copy of their CDP program certification with their package.

Education

There is no positive education requirement for this position.

Additional information

  • SES does not have Veteran's Preference and time in grade restrictions. Competitive status is not required.
  • Individuals selected for Senior Executive Service positions may be subject to reassignment across geographical, organizational, and functional lines.
  • The Department of the Interior structures its SES positions into categories to determine the minimum pay for each position. Pay is set based on consideration of the selectee's current salary and other factors.
  • Effective January 1, 2010, OPM must authorize any employment offers we make to current or former (within the last 5 years) political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Non-career SES employees in the executive branch. lf you are currently or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Non-career SES employee in the executive branch, you must disclose that to the Human Resources Office.
  • If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document that you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application. Click the following link for more information, https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=Alternate_Application_Information.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

A panel of SES members will evaluate your two-page resume and determine the degree to which you possess each of the listed qualifications.

Required Documents

Please upload the following documents:

  • Resume (not to exceed two pages). Resume must be in PDF format.
    • We highly recommend that you DO NOT use the USAJOBS Resume Builder to create your resume.
  • If current or former Federal employee, submit SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action (or equivalent ); please do not send an SF-50 for an award.
  • Strongly Recommended: Performance Evaluation (not more than 2 years old)
  • If you are already SES Certified but have NOT held a career SES position, please upload your OPM QRB SES certification.

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

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. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

How to Apply

You must submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section. To receive consideration, the complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date. WE DO NOT ACCEPT HARD-COPY OR E-MAIL APPLICATION PACKAGES.

  1. Select Apply. If you are not logged in, you will be prompted to log in or create an account.
    1. Prompted to Start the Application Process by selecting "Start Application."
    2. Click here for USAJobs Help with "How to create an application
  2. Add your two-page resume. Resume must be in PDF Format.
  3. Select the documents you want to be included in this application.
  4. Review the package to acknowledge that your documents were reviewed.
  5. After reading and certifying the application is true and submitted in good faith, select "Continue to Agency Site."
  6. Follow onscreen prompts and instructions to complete your application.
  7. Add the supporting documents by indexing your documents with the dropdown.
    • Upload any missing required documents or optional documents.
  8. Review and Submit Application.
  9. While logged in, you can check the status of your application by selecting "+" next to the job title for this position.
  10. You can review or revise your application at any point during the open period of the announcement. To update an application, you should log into your USAJOBS account and select "+" next to the job title for this position. Select "Update Application" for this job. Note: When you click Update Application, you will be prompted to re-select your documents from USAJOBS. Documents submitted with the first application will no longer be associated with the applicant record. So you must select all documents you want to use in the re-application.

Agency contact information

Jamal Wilson
Address
Office of the Secretary
45600 Woodland Road
Sterling, VA 20166
US

Next steps

The Department of the Interior will conduct a qualifications evaluation of applicants who supply all of the required material. Qualified applicants will be rated and ranked by an executive-level rating panel. Best-qualified candidates will be referred to the selecting official and executive-level interview panel for further consideration and possible interview. You will be notified of the outcome after the completion of the selection process.


Note: We cannot accept applications on behalf of Federal Agencies. Application instructions are listed within the Job Description.


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