Duties
APPLICATION LIMIT: This vacancy announcement is limited to the first 200 applications received and will close at 11:59PM Eastern Time on the day that we receive the 200th application, or at 11:59PM Eastern Time on the listed closing date, whichever occurs first.
We encourage you to read this entire vacancy announcement prior to submitting your application.
As an IT Program Manager, GS-2210-15, you will be responsible for:
• Working with cross-functional agile development teams and directly with users to transform the way FSA uses technology to improve service delivery including Artificial Intelligent (AI) and AI-enabling technologies. They will solve challenging design problems that will impact the lives of students, their families, and the people who serve them. The position requires bringing leadership skills and experience in user-centered design, information architecture, visual design, and user research to bear within a collaborative, mission-focused environment. The position will also provide agility to the whole product organization through centralized design tools, design systems, and design services that enhance speed and quality of design execution.
• Identifying, prioritizing and implementating customer experience strategies and processes with a focus on continuous improvement to maximize entire end-to-end experiences. Leading processes to develop a unified, multi-year strategic experience roadmap to align business goals and user needs across all channels (e.g. web, mobile, phone, chat, data interfaces) to create a consistent IT customer experience. Leading the process to identify, create, track, and improve key customer experience metrics to improve user experiences with systems and processes. Guiding the identification of what customer insights are required to improve our customer’s experience including key and prospective customer segments. Collaborating with FSA leadership and program leads to develop cohesive user experience and design goals.
• Leading the user experience design and research discipline and serves as the voice for users by advocating for and teaching about best practices for user-centered design and user research across FSA. Helps build, mentor and inspire design teams across the agency while effectively navigating complex enterprise organizations and processes. Enforces a user-centered process and ensures that UX design (research, information architecture, visual design) is a key component of development, iteration, and delivery of products and that proper UX and design methods are used. Understands the opportunities and limitations of modern web and mobile technologies such as HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and LLM-based chatbots such as ChatGPT, as well as how the technologies of each can be used to further enhance a users’ overall experience.
• Working with communications and engagement offices across FSA and Ed to support and coordinate field research and usability testing by facilitating access to users. Working closely with business stakeholders, product managers, product designers, web analytics, and marketing to identify gaps in the overall UX research strategy and collaboratively implement enhancements. Educating business owners, product managers, technology leads, and others about research principles, best practices, and how to integrate UX research data and processes into everyday activities.
• Establishing, guiding and prioritizing an agency-wide research program to make data-driven recommendations for design change based on research findings and to ensure that resources are being directed towards solutions that maximize impact for FSA. Identifiing and mitigating safety and security considerations for the use of AI and machine learning (bias, dual use, data privacy, civil rights, civil liberties, etc.) to ensure responsible use at FSA.
Requirements
Conditions of Employment
- Relocation will not be paid.
- You may be subject to serve a one-year probationary period.
- Males 18 and over must be registered with the Selective Service.
- Must be a US Citizen
- Must complete a Background Investigation and Fingerprint check.
You must meet all qualification requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this vacancy announcement.
Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (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. We will consider all qualifying experience, including any volunteer experience.
Qualifications
Basic Experience Requirements:
You must possess IT related experience (paid or unpaid experience and/or completion of specific, intensive training (e.g., IT certification), as appropriate) demonstrating each of the four competencies listed below.
1. Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.
2. Customer Service - Works with clients and customers (i.e., any individuals who use or receive the services or products that your work unit produces, including the general public, individuals who work in the agency, other agencies, or organizations outside the Government) to assess their needs, provide information or assistance, resolve their problems, or satisfy their expectations; knows about available products and services; is committed to providing quality products and services.
3. Oral Communication - Expresses information (e.g., ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information (e.g., technical, sensitive, controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately.
4. Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.
Minimum Qualification Requirements
You may meet the minimum qualifications for the GS-15, if you possess the specialize experience, education, or a combination of the two.
Specialized Experience for the GS-15
One year of experience in either federal or non-federal service that is equivalent to at least a GS-14 performing two (2) out of three (3) of the following duties or work assignments:
1. Experience leading or serving in a senior role of a multi-disciplinary project involving the design, development, and implementation of a new system or a major enhancement to an existing IT system.
2. Experience serving as a design lead, overseeing adoption of new functionalities or technologies for users.
3. Experience communicating technical concepts to non-technical audiences and translating business requirements into technical user stories.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)
1. Skill in applying product design practices such as user-centered design, user research, interaction design, information architecture, visual design, and accessibility to deliver high-quality software products.
2. Knowledge of agile software development methodologies that ensure iterative and value-driven delivery of software products.
3. Ability to clearly articulate where new design activities should be injected into existing product development.
4. Knowledge of leading, organizing and facilitating user research initiatives that create understanding and empathy around user needs, stated and unstated.
5. Ability to utilize strong analytical and design capabilities in synthesizing user research to share findings and address user needs.
Education
This job does not have an education qualification requirement.
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.
As an ED employee, you will also benefit from our family-friendly work environment. As part of our commitment to maintain a work life balance, we offer excused leave for Parent/Teacher Conferences (3 hours); excused leave for annual health screenings (4 hours); and matching leave for community volunteer service. Other flexibilities that may be available to you include alternative work schedules. You may be eligible to receive a recruitment incentive for this position. To receive this incentive payment, you will be required to sign a service agreement obligating you to remain with the U.S. Department of Education for a specified period as agreed upon. You may be eligible to receive a relocation incentive for this position. To receive this incentive payment, you will be required to sign a service agreement obligating you to remain with the U.S. Department of Education for a specified period as agreed upon. You may be eligible to participate in the Student Loan Repayment Program as a recruitment incentive for this position. To receive student loan repayments, you will be required to sign a service agreement obligating you to remain with the U.S. Department of Education for a specified period as agreed upon.
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.
We will review your application and documentation submitted to ensure you meet the basic qualification requirements. We will refer the best qualified candidates to the Selecting Official of the job for further review and consideration. You will be evaluated to determine if you meet qualifications required, and on the extent to which your application shows that you possess the knowledge, skills and abilities associated with this position as defined below. Please be sure to give examples in your resume and explain how often you used these skills, the complexity of the knowledge you possessed, the level of people you interacted with, and the complexity and sensitivity of the issues you handled.
CTAP/ICTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified (or above), based on an evaluation of their applications; possessing the knowledge, skills, and abilities which clearly exceed the minimum qualification requirements for the position.
You may preview questions for this vacancy.
How to Apply
Step 1: Create a USAJOBS account (if you do not already have one) at www.usajobs.gov.
Step 2: Create a resume using the USAJOBS resume builder or upload a resume into your USAJOBS account. Ensure that your resume demonstrates your education, experience, training, and accomplishments as it relates to the qualifications for this position and substantiates your responses to the occupational questionnaire.
Step 3: Upload any required documents into your USAJOBS account (must be less than 3MB and in one of the following document formats: GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, PDF, or Word (DOC or DOCX)).
Step 4: Click "Apply Online" and follow the prompts to complete the occupational questionnaire and attach any required documents. Verify that uploaded documents from USAJOBS transfer into the agency's hiring system. You will have the opportunity to upload any additional required documents in the agency's hiring system. Click “Finish” to submit your application.
NOTE: You may update your application or required documents at any time while the announcement is open by logging into your USAJOBS account, clicking on "Application Status," clicking on the position title, clicking "Update Application,” and following the prompts.
In order to receive consideration for this position, you must submit your complete application, including all required documents, by 11:59 PM Eastern Time on the closing date of the vacancy announcement. If the vacancy announcement has an application limit, we recommend that you submit your complete application at the time of initial application. We will not accept any required documentation after the closing date of the vacancy announcement.
If you have any questions regarding submitting your application, please contact the HR Specialist listed under the Agency Contact Information.
Next steps
As an applicant, you may check your application status through your USAJOBS account at any time. We will also notify you via email of your application status at three key stages in the recruitment process.
1. Once the vacancy announcement closes, we will inform you that your application has been received.
2. After we review your submitted resume and supporting documentation, we will inform you if you are eligible and qualified, if your application was referred to a subject matter expert or panel of subject matter experts for further evaluation, and if you were amongst the most highly qualified candidates referred to the selecting official.
3. Finally, we will inform you of your final disposition for this announcement (e.g., if/when a selection is made, if/when the announcement is cancelled).