Supervisory Statistician (General)/Supervisory Operations Research Analyst - Direct Hire Authority Job in Chicago, IL

Vacancy No. 240065DE-12639615-YA Department Railroad Retirement Board
Salary $136,414.00 to $177,341.00 Grade 14 to 14
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 12/13/2024 Close Date 12/27/2024
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Chicago, IL


Summary

This position is located in the Railroad Retirement Board's Bureau of the Actuary and Research. The incumbent participates in planning and providing technical direction of the statistical programs of the division, including studies of the operations of benefit provisions of the Railroad Retirement Act and the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act, and special computations for the Financial Interchange Program.

This announcement may be used to fill one or more vacancies.

Duties

As a Supervisory Statistician (General)/Supervisory Operations Research Analyst, you will:

  • Participate in planning, organizing, developing, and providing technical direction of the statistical programs of the division, including studies of the operations of benefit provisions of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA) and the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (RUIA), special computations for the Financial Interchange Program, and the employment trends with the railroad industry.
  • Recommend the commitment of division resources to various projects and studies.
  • Conduct important statistical and research studies, making complex cost computations, and making recommendations for technical amendments and corrective regulations.
  • Use various scientific methodologies, simulations, and models to analyze problems of interrelationships and complexities of data to conduct studies involving railroad employment, benefit implications, and Financial Interchange concerns.
  • Advise RRB officials on the statistical and financial implications of proposed legislation.
  • Manage and supervise the work activities of employees assigned to the division.
  • At the full performance level of the position (GS-15 grade level), you will serve as both the assistant chief of the Division of Benefit & Employment Analysis and the Railroad Retirement Board's Scientific Integrity Official.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

  • Must be a U.S. Citizen
  • Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered for Selective Service
  • Suitable for Federal employment, determined by a background investigation
  • May be required to successfully complete a probationary period

Qualifications

This is an interdisciplinary position and may be filled in either of the job series listed below.

Basic Education Requirements for Statistics Series 1530:

  1. Degree: that included 15 semester hours in statistics (or in mathematics and statistics, provided at least 6 semester hours were in statistics), and 9 additional semester hours in one or more of the following: physical or biological sciences, medicine, education, or engineering; or in the social sciences including demography, history, economics, social welfare, geography, international relations, social or cultural anthropology, health sociology, political science, public administration, psychology, etc. Credit toward meeting statistical course requirements should be given for courses in which 50 percent of the course content appears to be statistical methods, e.g., courses that included studies in research methods in psychology or economics such as tests and measurements or business cycles, or courses in methods of processing mass statistical data such as tabulating methods or electronic data processing.
OR
  1. Combination of education and experience -- courses as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. The experience should have included a full range of professional statistical work such as (a) sampling, (b) collecting, computing, and analyzing statistical data, and (c) applying statistical techniques such as measurement of central tendency, dispersion, skewness, sampling error, simple and multiple correlation, analysis of variance, and tests of significance.

Basic Education Requirements for Operations Research Series 1560:

Degree: in operations research; or at least 24 semester hours in a combination of operations research, mathematics, probability, statistics, mathematical logic, science, or subject-matter courses requiring substantial competence in college-level mathematics or statistics. At least 3 of the 24 semester hours must have been in calculus.

In addition to meeting the Basic Requirements listed above, applicants must meet the minimum qualifications as defined below.

One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-13 grade level in the Federal service.

Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience:
  • Conducting important statistical and research projects, special studies including on proposed legislation, and cost calculations using scientific methodologies, simulations, and models to deal with problems of interrelationships and complexities of data;
  • Knowledge of analytical and technical procedures and techniques in order to study and assess benefit trends to reach sound conclusions and make pertinent recommendations;
  • Developing and preparing high quality and comprehensive analytical reports; and
  • Managing personnel, including assigning and balancing work, identifying training needs, and evaluating performance.
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.

Only experience obtained by the closing date of this announcement will be considered.

Education

This position has a positive education requirement; therefore, you MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims. Please include a copy of your transcripts (unofficial or official) that demonstrate that you meet the education requirements listed above. All materials must be submitted by the closing date of the announcement. Please be advised that an official transcript will be required if you are selected for the position.

FOREIGN EDUCATION:
If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, click here.

Additional information

This is a non-bargaining unit position.

INTERAGENCY CAREER TRANSITION ASSISTANCE PLAN (ICTAP):

  • ICTAP provides eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority for competitive service vacancies. You must be determined to be well-qualified for the vacancy to be eligible for special selection priority. After submission of an acceptable application which meets ICTAP eligibility, you will be determined to be well-qualified for a vacancy if your rating places you in the best qualified category.
  • ICTAP eligibles must submit proof of eligibility for special selection priority, such as: a separation notice; an agency certification that you cannot be placed after injury compensation has been terminated; an OPM notification that your disability annuity has been terminated; or a Military Department or National Guard Bureau notification that you are retired under 5 U.S.C. 8337(h) or 8456. You must also submit a "Notice of Personnel Action" (SF-50) notating your current position, grade level, and duty location, and a copy of your most recent Performance Rating. Click here for more information on ICTAP.

If you are a male applicant who was born after 12/31/59 you are required to register under the Military Selective Service Act; the Defense Authorization Act of 1986 requires that you be registered or you are not eligible for appointment in this agency.

Applying online is highly encouraged. If applying online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement to be entered into the system prior to its closing.

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.

This position will be filled using direct hire procedures. You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above. Traditional rating and ranking of applications does not apply to this vacancy. Applications will be evaluated against the basic qualifications and specialized experience. Qualified candidates will be referred for consideration in accordance with the Office of Personnel Management direct hire guidelines. Veterans' preference does not apply to direct-hire recruitment procedures.

Qualified candidates will be rated by comparing each candidate's qualifications to the skills and experience pertinent to the position to be filled. Experience, education, training, awards, and performance will be considered. The following factors are of particular importance to the position to be filled, and applicants should provide specific detailed information in these areas as part of their application.

  • Ability or experience in managing, training, and supervising a subordinate staff, including ability to plan and organize work assignments to meet emergency or changing program requirements
  • Ability to communicate orally
  • Ability to communicate in writing to different levels of agency personnel and stakeholders.
  • Experience and/or knowledge of the Social Security Act (SSA) or similar Federal benefit program; the provision of unemployment and sickness benefits; and the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) tax provisions.
  • Skill in searching, sampling, analyzing and developing data for use in preparing technical reports, chart, graphs, and other documentation.
  • Knowledge of SAS, R, IBM Db2 Query Management Facility (QMF), Power BI, and other query languages.
  • Knowledge of spreadsheet software, specifically Microsoft Excel and Visual Basic.
  • Knowledge of analytical and technical procedures and techniques in order to study and assess benefit trends to reach sound conclusions and make pertinent recommendations.

Required Documents

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:

  • Resume showing work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment, and duties performed.
  • Transcripts: Copies of all college courses must be submitted. Original transcripts will be required if selected.
  • Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) documentation: If you are eligible under ICTAP, you must submit all required materials verifying your eligibility as listed in "Additional Information." These materials include:
    • Proof of eligibility: You must submit documentation such as a separation notice or other required material (see "Required Information" for other examples);
    • SF-50: You must submit a copy of a recent Notification of Personnel Action, SF-50 that shows career or career-conditional competitive service status (Blocks #24 and #34 must be completed); and
    • Performance Appraisal: You must submit your most recent performance appraisal, which must be rated at least fully successful or equivalent. (This is not required if you are eligible for ICTAP due to compensable injury or disability retirement.) The performance appraisal may also be used as part of the ranking process and/or to verify your responses to the questionnaire.

How to Apply

Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. The application process is as follows:

  1. To begin the application process, click the Apply Online button.
  2. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation.
  3. Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on the announcement closing date.
To update your application, including supporting documentation, at any time during the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account (https://usajobs.gov). There you will find a record of your application, the application status, and an option to Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed.

To verify the status of your application both during and after the announcement open period, log into your USAJOBS account at https://www.usajobs.gov. On the Home page, scroll down and locate your job application. Once the job has been located, click the "Track this application" link on the right under the application date. The page will refresh to display the Agency's Application Information page where you can scroll down and review any notifications the agency has sent you. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/.

Agency contact information

RRB Human Resources
Address
Railroad Retirement Board
844 N Rush St
Chicago, IL 60611
US
Learn more about this agency

Next steps

Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email. After a review of your complete application is made, you will be notified of your rating and possible referral to the hiring official. If further evaluation or interviews are required you will be contacted.


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


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