Customer Support & Communication Program Specialist

Summary

Creditable Service for Annual Leave Accrual and Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program are available. This position is in the Office of Public Affairs and Training (OPAT), Food Safety Education Staff (FSES). The primary mission is to effectively communicate with the public and internal audiences about food safety issues and FSIS programs; to increase citizen participation and behavior changes regarding food safety; and to implement FSIS' mission to reduce the risk of foodborne illness.

Duties

• Communicate professionally and effectively with consumers and others regarding meat, poultry, and egg product storage, handling, safety, labeling, and other areas related to FSIS’s mission.
• Serve a variety of specialized publics with diverse needs and characteristics, focusing on wholesomeness, food safety, storage, nutrition, and labeling.
• Provide information and resources to customers, using sound judgment to tailor responses to each customer’s unique needs, state of mind, and types of questions.
• Utilize previously cleared language and Knowledge Articles (KAs) in knowledge management software (e.g., Salesforce) to ensure responses are timely, accurate, consistent, and in plain language.
• Stay adaptable to changes in tools and methods, actively participate in training, and help capture and report hotline metrics.
• Assess and streamline efficiency and effectiveness of Hotline operations, appraise methods and techniques against metrics, and recommend improvements.
• Identify knowledge gaps, collaborate with senior staff and Salesforce Points of Contact (POCs) to draft, establish, and update KAs, ensuring new or missing information is clearly identified.
• Resolve calls about these subjects, track consumer trends, and ensure the team is trained and prepared for evolving inquiries.
• Recommend methods for promoting the Hotline to target audiences, assist in developing outreach to media outlets and platforms, and act as liaison with food science professionals.
• Take on additional tasks assigned to support the overall mission and effectiveness of the Food Safety Education Staff and Hotline.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including specialized experience and/or education, as defined below. To qualify for the GS-9: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-7 grade level in the Federal service that demonstrates: Knowledge of commonly accepted customer service and support principles. Basic understanding of and the ability to explain regulatory, scientific, technical, and other food safety and nutrition information in writing and orally. Research on the topics of food safety, storage, nutrition, handling, preservation, packing, and/or labeling of food (meat, poultry, and egg products). Basic knowledge of software applications and systems to access and provide information from pre-approved written and approved knowledge articles. OR Master's or equivalent graduate degree. OR 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree. OR LL.B. or J.D., if related. OR Combination of education and experience - Your total must equal 100% of the requirement, i.e. if you meet 50% of the education requirement, you must have 50% of the specialized experience requirement. Only education above and beyond the first year of graduate level education will count. To qualify for the GS-11: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-9 grade level in the Federal service that demonstrates: Experience using technical software applications and knowledge-management systems. Serving as a liaison with scientific, regulatory, or food-industry professionals. Ability to exercise independent judgment in resolving complex or sensitive consumer inquiries. Communicating complex regulatory, scientific, or technical information. Providing advanced, authoritative consumer guidance to the general public. OR Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree. OR 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree. OR LL.M., if related. OR Combination of education and experience - Your total must equal 100% of the requirement, i.e. if you meet 50% of the education requirement, you must have 50% of the specialized experience requirement. Only education above and beyond the first two years of graduate level education will count. 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

Education may be substituted for experience at the GS-09 and GS-11 level, as defined above in the qualifications section. There is no minimum education requirement for this position. How You Will Be Evaluated

Applications will be evaluated in accordance with Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) Delegated Examining Procedures and USDA policy using category rating. Applicants who meet basic minimum qualifications will be placed in one of three categories: Best Qualified, Well Qualified, or Qualified. Within these categories, applicants eligible for Veterans' Preference will receive selection priority over non-veterans. Category placement will be determined based on applicants' quality of experience and the extent to which they possess the following knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA) or competencies: Customer Service Oral Communication Written Communication Attention to Detail Technical Competence Problem Solving Learning Technology Application Flexibility Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork Decision Making Reading Comprehension Reasoning Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. Your application, including the online Assessment Questionnaire, will be reviewed to determine if you meet (a) minimum qualification requirements and (b) your resume supports the answers provided to the job-specific questions. Your resume must clearly support your responses to all the questions addressing experience and education relevant to this position. Those determined to be in the best qualified category will be referred to the selecting official for consideration. NOTE: If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your score may be adjusted to more accurately reflect your abilities, or you may be found ineligible. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating. Providing inaccurate information on Federal documents could be grounds for non-selection or disciplinary action up to and including removal from the Federal service. Clicking the link below will present a preview of the application form; i.e. the online questionnaire. The application form link below will only provide a preview and does not initiate the application process. To initiate the online application process, click the "Apply" button to the right. To preview the application questionnaire, click the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13083637 Other Information

Selectees may be eligible for Creditable Service for Annual Leave Accrual (CSALA) If you are selected for a position with further promotion potential, you will be placed under a career development plan and may be non-competitively promoted if you successfully complete the requirements and if recommended by management. However, promotion is neither implied nor guaranteed. Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program. For more information please visit: PSLF Program. Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement. 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. When assessed through a score-based category rating method, CTAP/ICTAP applicants must receive a rating of at least 85 out of a possible 100. 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.