IT Specialist (SysAdmin/CustSpt)

Summary

The position is in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Office of Information & Technology (OIT), Enterprise Command Operations (ECO). The purpose of the position is to provide system analysis and customer support for all Major Incidents related to information Technology (IT) service outages, degradation of services, and unplanned service disruptions that negatively impact the VA's nationwide plans, goals, and mission effectiveness in support our nation's Veterans.

Duties

OIT Mission: The mission of the Office of Information and Technology (OIT) is to collaborate with our business partners to create the best experience for all Veterans. OIT Vision: To become a world-class organization that provides a seamless, unified Veteran experience through the delivery of state-of-the-art technology. Major Duties: Plans and coordinates enterprise-wide restoration activities during major IT service outages. Assesses operational impacts of outages and develops restoration strategies to minimize business disruption. Coordinates contingency and continuity actions necessary to restore critical IT services. Evaluates incident trends and recommends improvements to enterprise service reliability and availability. Monitors and evaluates enterprise IT service performance during incidents and service degradations. Analyzes outage data and system performance information to identify trends and recurring issues. Conducts root cause and after-action analyses to improve future system performance and availability. Coordinates restoration efforts involving network, server, application, and infrastructure outages affecting enterprise services. Assesses technical impacts and risks associated with service disruptions affecting information systems. Leads emergency response actions required to restore secure operation of enterprise IT services. Collaborates with technical subject matter experts to diagnose and resolve system and network failures. Coordinates emergency changes to applications, operating systems, hardware, and infrastructure required to restore service. Oversees implementation and integration of fixes, patches, and updates during outage recovery efforts. This position is primarily aligned to the following NICE Cybersecurity Workforce Framework work roles: 411 - Technical Support Specialist For more information about these work roles, where they fit within the larger Cyber Workforce, and how they can support your unique career journey, please visit the Cyber Career Pathways tool on the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Careers and Studies website: https://niccs.cisa.gov/tools/cyber-career-pathways-tool Work Schedule: Wednesday-Saturday, 10:30PM - 9:00AM ET or Tuesday-Saturday, 3:00PM - 11:30Pm ET; Tour of duty may be subject to change based on organizational needs. Compressed/Flexible: As determined by the Agency Policy Telework: Adhoc telework may be authorized at management discretion. Virtual: This is NOT a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: IT Specialist (SysAdmin/CustSpt)/ PD18158A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized Travel Required: Up to 25% travel may be required, as needed, for this position. Financial Disclosure Report: Not Applicable Physical Demands: The work is sedentary. Walking, Standing, bending, or occasional lifting of boxes or IT equipment weighing up to 40 pounds. Working Conditions: Work is performed in a typical computer operations environment. Rooms are well-lighted, air conditioned office spaces with moderate noise from common office equipment. Computer equipment on the operations floor involves the use of high voltage electricity. The position involves permanent tours of duty involving day, night, weekends, and holiday tours of duty 24x7x365. The position will involve mandatory and optional overtime. The work area is adequately lit, heated, and ventilated Drug Testing Position: Not Applicable Requirements

You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required. You may be required to serve a probationary period Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 11/06/2026. Applicants must meet all requirements when a request is received to fill a vacancy. You may qualify based on your experience as described below: 1. Individual Occupational Requirements (IOR) Basic Requirement Experience must be IT related; the experience may be demonstrated by paid or unpaid experience and/or completion of specific, intensive training (for example, IT certification), as appropriate. For all positions individuals must have IT-related experience demonstrating each of the four competencies listed below. The employing agency is responsible for identifying the specific level of proficiency required for each competency at each grade level based on the requirements of the position being filled. Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail. Customer Service - Works with clients and customers (that is, 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. Oral Communication - Expresses information (for example, ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information (for example, technical, sensitive, controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately. Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations. AND 2. Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-11 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is defined as: Experience leading and coordinating enterprise-level IT incident management operations in a 24/7 environment, including monitoring, triaging, and resolving major system outages affecting multiple users or locations. Demonstrated ability to analyze complex IT systems (networks, applications, servers), direct cross-functional technical teams, and restore services within defined service level agreements. Experience communicating incident status and impacts to stakeholders and senior leadership, developing reports and root cause analyses, and applying ITIL-based processes for incident, problem, and change management. Experience supporting policy implementation, process improvement, and operational planning for IT service delivery. 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; religions; 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. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

There is no substitution of education for experience at the grade level(s) of this announcement. How You Will Be Evaluated

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position: Accountability Attention to Detail Customer Service Decision Making Flexibility Influencing/Negotiating Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Reading Comprehension Reasoning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. 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; religions; 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. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members. Other Information

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.