Senior Advisor

Summary Applications will be accepted only from current permanent APHIS employees with competitive status and CTAP/RPL eligible candidates. Selectee will remain in their current duty station. This position serves as Staff Assistant to the MRPBS Deputy Administrator and Associate Deputy Administrator, playing a critical role in advising leaders and other senior Department officials on key management and business issues and decision-making processes based on an expert knowledge. Responsibilities The duties may include, but are not limited to: Performing or directing advisory and project-oriented assignments the effect of which is to impact core program and administrative operations throughout MRP and servicing customer organizations. Formulates the operational policies, instructions, methods, and programs within the framework of legislation, policies, and regulations of the Department and federal government. Prepares written reports of findings and recommendations for top Agency, mission area, and Departmental officials, and conducts oral briefings to negotiate and persuade top officials to accept and implement recommended approaches. Leads, or independently conducts, follow-up reviews to assess the degree of accomplishment of accepted and adopted measures. Serves as liaison to the Office of the Secretary, MRP Under Secretary's along with the APHIS and AMS Administrator’s Offices on a daily basis, as well as other Departmental offices, on issues that cover the full range of MRP programs and functions. Serves as MRPBS’ Deputy Administrator and/or Associate Deputy Administrator's representative involved in organizing and facilitating efforts of multiple task groups or teams focused on implementation of numerous major program initiatives. Coordinates the communication of action tasks and development and implementation of policy between the various Administrators, Associate Administrators, Deputy Administrators, and others both within and outside the Mission Area. Facilitates the preparation of a broad range of information resources documents critical to policy and decision-making processes at the Agency, Mission Area and Department level and beyond with limited direction and urgent turnaround times. Provides coaching and mentoring to unit Chiefs of Staff, staff officers and aspiring Mission Area-wide leaders to improve the organization’s capabilities and the quality of analytical products and written reports. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including time-in-grade restrictions, specialized experience and/or education, as defined below. TIME-IN-GRADE: Current federal employees applying for a promotion opportunity must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirement of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled. FOR THE GS-15 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-14 grade level) that demonstrates: (1) Participating in the development of policies, instructions, methods and programs applying appropriate laws, regulations, policies and procedures with impact across a national or international program or organization; (2) Identifying and proposing solutions to management problems that are characterized by their breadth, importance, and severity, and for which previous studies and established management techniques are frequently inadequate; (3) Independently determining courses of action for providing information - whether routine reports or in response to ad hoc queries - that is accurate, clear, complete and appropriate for the intended audience; (4) Managing inquiries that are complex, confidential, and/or have significant impact to the operations of the organization or cut across organizational boundaries. Note: There is no education substitution for this grade level. 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 and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Education This position does not have an education qualification requirement. Additional Information Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL), or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): Visit the OPM website for information on how to apply as a CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP eligible. To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL/ICTAP candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP/ICTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified (or above) based on an evaluation of the competencies listed in the How You Will Be Evaluated section. CTAP/ICTAP applicants must receive a rating of at least 85 out of a possible 100 to receive selection priority. Travel, transportation, and relocation expenses will not be paid. Any travel, transportation, and relocation expense associated with reporting for duty will be the responsibility of the selected employee. Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended, that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments here.