Clarification from the agency

This position is opened to the current employees of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts only. This position allows for situational, and recurring telework, but does not qualify for full-time or remote telework.

The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (AO) is seeking an IT Specialist (Network Services) to join its Security Infrastructure Branch (SIB). The IT Specialist (Network Services) works with and assists SIB and IT Security Office (ITSO) engineers and contractors, ensuring the security infrastructure is operational and maintained within approved security policies and guidance.

The incumbent manages projects and tasks, develops and coordinates work plans and schedules dependent upon resources, and works with program and project managers to assure the Judiciary security systems on the wide area network, internet gateway datacenters, court locations, connections to other Judiciary partners, and emergency network services are available, resilient, and secure.

The duties of this position include, but are not limited to:

1. Working with and assisting other staff in the daily operation, maintenance, management, and administration of security devices protecting the Judiciary wide area data communications network (DCN) and the public access courts electronic records network (PACER), to include next-gen firewalls, traditional firewalls, IPS/IDS devices, remote access devices, and proxies.
2. Working with and assisting support desks, circuits, courts, and AO program offices in troubleshooting connectivity issues related to security devices.
3. Closely coordinating with ITSO, Security Operations Division to manage and maintain device signatures and rules on NextGen Palo Alto Firewalls, DCN and PACER traditional firewalls, IPS/IDS devices, proxies, remote access devices, and other security devices in order to mitigate threats and potential threats to the Judiciary networks.
4. Performing cost analyses on network security equipment acquisitions, including hardware, operating systems, and software appliances.
5. Providing network-related briefings to all levels of staff across the Judiciary.
6. Developing proposed branch and division administrative controls, procedures, policies, and practices affecting the service and support to enterprise operations.
7. Maintaining electronic and paper filing systems within the section, branch, and division.
8. Producing manuals, guides, articles, and other materials.
9. Coordinating and providing administrative and logistical support for branch- or division-sponsored meetings and programs, including for orientation and other training programs.
10. Assisting upper management and the contracting officer's representative prepare acquisition packages and purchase orders, and reviewing invoices.
11. Establishing regular information-sharing mechanisms to encourage collaboration with stakeholders, customers, and staff across the Judiciary.

Conditions of employment

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT

1. All information is subject to verification. Applicants are advised that false answers or omissions of information on application materials or inability to meet the following conditions may be grounds for non-selection, withdrawal of an offer of employment, or dismissal after being employed.
2. Selection for this position is contingent upon completion of OF-306, Declaration of Federal Employment during the pre-employment process and proof of U.S. citizenship for competitive status positions or conversion to a competitive status position with the AO. If non-citizens are considered for hire into a temporary or any other position with non-competitive status or when it is confirmed by the AO Human Resources Office there are no qualified U.S. citizens for a competitive status position (unless prohibited by a law or statue), non-citizens must provide proof of authorization to work in the U.S. and proof of entitlement to receive compensation. Additional information on the employment of non-citizens can be found at USAJOBS Help Center | Employment of non-citizens/. For a list of documents that may be used to provide proof of citizenship or authorization to work in the United States, please refer to Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification.
3. All new AO employees will be required to complete an FBI fingerprint-based national criminal database and records check and pass a public trust suitability check.
4. New employees to the AO will be required to successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights/responsibilities, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/.
5. All new AO employees are required to identify a financial institution for direct deposit of pay before appointment.
6. You will be required to serve a trial period if selected for a first-time appointment to the Federal government, transferring from another Federal agency, or serving as a first-time supervisor. Failure to successfully complete the trial period may result in termination of employment.
7. If appointed to a temporary position, management may have the discretion of converting the position to permanent depending upon funding and staffing allocation.

Qualifications

Applicants must have demonstrated experience as listed below. This requirement is according to the AO Classification, Compensation, and Recruitment Systems which include interpretive guidance and reference to the OPM Operating Manual for Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions.

Specialized Experience: Applicants must have at least one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience which is in or directly related to the line of work of this position. Specialized experience is demonstrated experience managing and maintaining security devices (NextGen, Palo Alto Firewalls, Web Application Firewalls, IPS/IDS devices, and VPN) on both wide and local area networks.

Desired, but Not Required:

• Next-gen firewalls (Palo Alto preferred)
• Automation tools, scripting (Python preferred)
• Access Control Systems (Cisco ISE preferred)

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 resume and supporting documentation and compare this information to your responses on the occupational questionnaire to determine if you meet the minimum qualifications for this job. If you meet the minimum qualifications for this job, we will evaluate your application package, to assess the quality, depth, and complexity of your accomplishments, experience, and education as they relate to the requirements listed in this vacancy announcement.

You should be aware that your ratings are subject to evaluation and verification. If a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your resume and/or narrative responses, you will be assigned a rating commensurate to your described experience. Failure to submit the mandatory narrative responses will result in not receiving full consideration and/or rating credit. Deliberate attempts to falsify information may be grounds for not selecting you, withdrawing an offer of employment, or dismissal after being employed.

For this job announcement the following documents and/or information are required:

• Resume - Any written format you choose to describe your job-related qualifications.
• Citizenship - Include country of citizenship on resume.
• Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50) - All applicants outside of the AO must submit a copy of your latest SF-50 to verify current or former Federal employment status.
• Veterans Preference documentation - Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty (DD Form 214), if applicable Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference (SF-15) and an official statement, dated 1991 or later, from the Department of Veterans Affairs or from a branch of the Armed Forces, certifying to the veteran's present receipt of compensation.

Next steps