IT Specialist (Data Management) Job in Washington, DC

Vacancy No. 25A-BY-312650-MPA-NMAI Department Smithsonian Institution
Salary $101,401.00 to $131,826.00 Grade 12 to 12
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 7/9/2025 Close Date 7/23/2025
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Status Candidates
Locations:
Washington, DC


Summary

The Smithsonian Institution is the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex, with 21 museums and the National Zoo. This position is located in the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI), Applications Office, IT and Management, Digital Strategies and Engagement (DSE). The NMAI is committed to advancing knowledge and understanding of the Native cultures of the Western Hemisphere, past, present and future, through partnership with Native people and others.

This job is open to

Clarification from the agency

Current Smithsonian Institution Internal Employees/Agency Employees Only may apply including current Smithsonian Institution employees with Federal career/career-conditional status or eligibility. More than one selection may be made from this announcement.

Duties

The Information Technology Specialist (Data Management) is responsible for a broad range of functions involved in planning, development, implementation and administration of (IT) systems for the acquisition, storage and retrieval of data in support of the business needs of customer organizations. 

In this position, you will:

  • Provide technical expertise for complex data management issues and problems that impact NMAI programs and operations.

  • Serve as a technical resource for data management issues related to NMAI systems and information.

  • Participate in planning, developing, implementing, and administering of data management policies, programs, and systems to support the needs and requirements for data acquisition, storage, and retrieval.

  • Participate in programs, task forces, and project teams to accomplish IT data management planning, development, implementation, and administration activities

  • Prepare and present information and briefings on data management issues, problems, and projects to management officials and program staff.

  • Use appropriate techniques and methods to coordinate and accomplish IT programs and projects, including identifying issues and approaches, determining resource requirements, collaborating with other program/project staff, ensuring outcomes are consistent with objectives and requirements, and keeping management officials informed of progress, milestones, issues and problems, and accomplishments.

  • Serve as an advisor who provides technical and administrative guidance on privacy and disclosure issues.

  • Serve as liaison to internal and external customers to clarify and resolve complex data privacy matters.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

  • Requires career/career-conditional status or eligibility.
  • Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered with Selective Service.

Conditions of Employment

Qualification requirements, including one year time-in-grade at the next lower grade level for promotion candidates, must be met within 30 days of the job announcement closing date. See the 'Required Documents' section for additional information.

For information on qualification requirements, see Qualification Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions viewable on OPM Website.

Qualifications

GS-12 Experience: You qualify for this position if you have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-11 level in the Federal Service or comparable pay band system.  For this position Specialized experience is defined as knowledge in managing complex data management issues and problems that impact programs and operations with subject matter expertise in digital asset management and collections information systems.

In addition to meeting the Specialized Experience for all positions individuals must have IT-related experience demonstrating each of the four competencies listed below:

    • Attention to Detail:  Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.
    • Customer Service: Anticipates and meets the needs of both internal and external business partners and customers (any individuals who use or receive the services or products that your work unity produces including the general public, individuals who work in the agency, other agencies, or organizations outside the Government).  Provides information or assistance. Delivers high-quality products and services; is committed to continuous improvement.  Effectively manages customer relationships.
    • Oral Communication:  Makes clear and convincing oral presentations to individuals and groups. Listens effectively; clarifies information, as needed.  Speaks and writes in a clear, concise, organized, and convincing manner that is appropriate to the audience.  Facilitates an open exchange of ideas to ensure all group input is considered.  Handles technical, sensitive, or controversial topics with agility involving executives/managers as appropriate.
    • Problem Solving: Identifies and analyzes problems, weighs relevance and accuracy of information, generates, and evaluates alternative solutions, and makes sound recommendations.

Part-time and/or unpaid experience related to this position will be considered to determine the total number of years and months of experience. Be sure to note the number of paid or unpaid hours worked each week. 

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. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

In an effort to streamline our hiring process, SI employees whose current position of record is in the same job series 2210 and who are in a Federal competitive as this advertised position, are not required to submit a transcript with your application package. However, if selected, you will be required to provide a copy of your transcript before your start date in the position.

Additional information

  • This position is included in the bargaining unit.  

Recruitment Incentive: Recruitment incentive(s) may be authorized for this position.  However, approval for incentives are contingent upon various availability. If authorized, certain incentives will require the incumbent to sign a service agreement to remain in the Federal government for a certain time period.

Note: This statement does not imply nor guarantee an incentive will be offered and paid.

Selections may be made for vacancies across the Smithsonian Institution (SI). By applying to this position, you agree to allow your application and other personal information to be shared with one or more SI hiring officials for employment consideration for same/similar positions within the location(s) identified in this announcement.

Benefits

The Smithsonian offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes, in part, vacation and sick leave, holidays, health/life insurance, accident insurance, and excellent retirement program options.

Please see Benefits at https://www.si.edu/OHR/benefits for a complete description.

Flexible Spending Accounts - https://www.fsafeds.com/
Health Insurance - http://www.opm.gov/insure/health/index.asp
Leave - http://www.opm.gov/oca/leave/index.asp
Life Insurance - http://www.opm.gov/insure/life/index.asp
Long Term Care Insurance - http://www.ltcfeds.com
Retirement Program - https://www.opm.gov/retirement-services/

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

Your application will be evaluated first for the basic qualifications described above. The applications that meet the basic qualifications will be evaluated further against the following criteria:

  

  1. Knowledge of, and skill in applying database management principles and methods, IT security methods, data administration and data standardization methods, and project management methods sufficient to perform a wide range of assignments; provide advice and guidance on complex IT data management issues; and install, configure, and maintain database management systems software applications.

  2. Knowledge of the principles, methods, and tools for developing, scheduling, coordinating, and managing projects, costs, and resources. This includes but is not limited to monitoring and inspecting costs related to contractor work and performance.

  3. Knowledge of IT infrastructure, systems, hardware, and software applications sufficient to function as a technical resource on IT data management development and administration and to participate in the planning, development, implementation, and administration of data management systems, applications, and databases.

  4. Proficient oral and written communication skills to prepare and present information and briefings on data management issues, problems, and projects to management officials and program staff. Recognizes or uses correct English grammar, punctuation, and spelling; communicates information (for example, facts, ideas, or messages) in a succinct and organized manner; produces written information, which may include technical material, that is appropriate for the intended audience.

  5. Knowledge of the laws, regulations, and SI policies and guidelines governing privacy protections to provide technical and administrative guidance on privacy and disclosure issues, clarify and resolve complex data privacy matters, develop supplemental procedural guidance designed to ensure privacy protections are included in the NMAI’s business processes, and to provide training.

Important Note:

Your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses to the occupational questionnaire or other assessment tool for consistency. If a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your resume, you will be assigned a rating commensurate to your described experience. Your resume should provide detailed information regarding how your education and experience relate to this position, including the major duties and qualifications criteria listed.


You may preview questions for this vacancy.

Required Documents

Your application package should include the following documents:

  • Resume - Your resume can be uploaded and attached to your application or created using the USA Jobs on-line resume builder. Ensure your resume contains the job title (including the occupational series and grade if it is Federal), job-related qualifications, starting and ending dates (month and year), hours worked per week, and salary for each employment period. It is your responsibility to ensure all information is submitted. Failure to include this information may result in disqualification for the position.

    For assistance with creating a resume, please click here.

  • Current and former employees MUST submit a copy of their Standard Form (SF)-50, “Notice of Personnel Action,” that indicates proof of status and time-in-grade eligibility. The SF-50 must include your position title, series, grade, step, salary, type of service (competitive or excepted in block 34), and tenure (1 or 2 in block 24). Please provide a SF-50 that shows the length of time you have been in your current/highest grade level.  Examples of appropriate SF50s include: Appointments, Reassignments, Within-grade/range increases or Promotion actions.  NOTE: Pay adjustments and award SF-50s do not include the length of time in your current position, therefore, they are NOT acceptable SF-50’s on their own. You may need to provide more than one SF-50. 

    Time-in-Grade Requirements: Under competitive merit promotion procedures, any individual who is currently holding, or who has held within the previous 52 weeks, a General Schedule position under a non-temporary appointment in the competitive or excepted service, must meet "time-in-grade" requirements (have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade of the grade for which you are applying).

  • Unofficial school transcripts, if the position has an education requirement or if you are using education to qualify. If selected for the position, you must provide an official transcript before appointment.
  • Proof of U.S. accreditation for foreign study, if applicable.

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

Click on the "Apply Online" button on the upper right side of the page.
Please Note:

  • You must apply for this position online through the 'Apply Online' button and submit required supplemental documents (if they are relevant to you).
  • You may submit required documents by uploading them online during the application process.
  • The complete application package, including any required documents, is due in the Smithsonian Office of Human Resources on the closing date of the announcement by 11:59 PM Eastern Time.
  • If you are unable to apply online, paper applications may be accepted with prior approval of the Contact Person listed below.

Agency contact information

Baaba Yanney
Phone
202-633-6342
TDD
202-633-6409
Email
yanneyb@si.edu
Address
SMITHSONIAN
Office of Human Resources
Washington, District of Columbia 20013-7012
United States

Next steps

At the end of the application process you will be able to create and save a PDF file that contains your responses to the assessment questions. You may save this file as initial receipt of your application. After the job announcement closes, you will receive an email from the Smithsonian with confirmation of receipt.

The Smithsonian receives many applications for each job. Each application is reviewed carefully which may take a few weeks. We will send you an e-mail to update you as we go through phases of the application review process. You may also check your application status by logging into www.usajobs.gov and selecting the tab "My USAJOBS;" e-mailing vacancy.info@si.edu; or by contacting the Office of Human Resources Representative listed.

Additional Information:

  • Tips on applying for Smithsonian jobs are available at https://www.si.edu/OHR/howtoapply.
  • The Smithsonian does not pay relocation expenses.
  • The Smithsonian Institution is an equal opportunity employer. Additional information can be found on our website at (www.si.edu/oeesd).


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


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