Summary
The Office of Inspector General (OIG), works within the U. S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to prevent or stop waste, fraud and abuse in departmental programs. The OIG also consults with the Congress about programs in progress and proposed new laws and regulations. The OIG carries out its mission by issuing audit reports, evaluations, and management advisories with findings and recommendations to improve program delivery and performance.
Duties
This position is located in the Office of Inspector General, Principal Assistant Inspector General for Auditing and Evaluation, Assistant Inspector General for Financial, Information Technology and Procurement Audits. The incumbent is responsible for the planning, leading, supervision of highly complex analyses, assessments, audits and evaluations of sensitive information systems, information technology methods, controls and strategies, policies and procedures, and management practices. This includes providing independent assessments to determine the adequacy of the Department of Transportation's cybersecurity posture for its systems, networks, telecommunications infrastructures, operational practices, utilization of information technology system resources, cyber-security operations to determine its efficiency and compliance with laws, regulations, policies, and/or contract; by conducting activities related to the detection and prevention of fraud, waste, and abuse. As an Senior IT Specialist you will: Provide technical skills, advice, guidance, and recommendations to management and other JA staff on critical IT security issues and makes decisions or recommendations that significantly influence important IT security policies and programs within DOT. The incumbent also provides strategic budget planning and Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) duties including contract administration, conducts risk assessments and penetration testing, prioritizes assets, allocates IT resources, and implements security measures in support of the JA-20 Lab. Be responsible for conducting the performance of audits and serving as the senior IT specialist on an OIG Red Team by leading red team operations/penetration tests, social engineering campaigns and physical penetration of DOT modes to determine the effectiveness of organizations, IT programs and activities, and examining whether an entity is complying with all applicable laws and regulations. Be responsible for performing and supporting team members that perform all phases of audit work in which red team engagements are performed including planning the audit and defining engagement scopes, managing testing timelines, overseeing junior testers and preparing the audit report. The incumbent must ensure that all phases of the audit are done in accordance with generally accepted Government auditing standards. Lead in developing annual and long-range IT audit plans, provides technical advice, hands-on practical training and guidance to subordinate staff for red team/penetration test activities, audit activities and coordination functions, and maintains close liaisons with Department program and management officials in the areas of assigned responsibility. Be responsible for creating, monitoring, renewing, and getting approval of the budget plan to ensure efficient allocation of resources for hardware, cybersecurity software, training, and contracts. Plan and design the architecture of the lab and other services to support secure and scalable operations to include hardware, software, networking (such as routing and switches), security, and virtual machines. Support report preparation and ensures effectiveness of presentation, adequacy of supporting data, and conformance with policies and standards. Conducts site visits to make sure that audits are being performed and supervised in an effective and timely manner. Develop quality technical vulnerability assessments and penetration testing reports to create executive-level summaries for non-technical agency stakeholders. Provide technical supports and serves as an Information System Security Officer (ISSO) for the JA-20 Lab while achieving and maintaining an Authority to Operate (ATO) for the OIG Lab General Support System (GSS) infrastructure. Be required to lead the preparation of Congressional testimony. This includes leading (1) the preparation of the written and oral statements, (2) the research and assembly of supporting documentation, and (3) quality of the product all within established timeframes.
Requirements
Federal employees must meet Time-In-Grade (TIG) requirements for merit promotion consideration. TIG is the 52-week requirement Federal employees in competitive service, General Schedule (GS) positions at GS-5 and above must serve before they are eligible for promotion to the next grade level. Applicants must meet qualifications and time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
How you will be evaluated
All applicants: Your application will be reviewed in two phases to determine how you move forward in the hiring process. Phase I: Your resume will be reviewed to determine your technical qualifications for this position based on the required specialized experience. ONLY two (2) pages of your resume will be reviewed. Additional information beyond your resume (e.g., cover letter, links embedded in your resume) will not be reviewed. Applicants who do not respond to the application questions may be rated ineligible. GS- 14 Applicants passing “Phase I” will move on to the “Phase II” of the assessment process where your application will be reviewed and rated based on the KSAs/Competencies listed in the vacancy announcement by a Subject Matter Expert (SME). Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents). Applicants who do not respond to the application questions may be rated ineligible. Federal employees must meet Time-In-Grade (TIG) requirements for merit promotion consideration. TIG is the 52-week requirement Federal employees in competitive service, General Schedule (GS) positions at GS-5 and above must serve before they are eligible for promotion to the next grade level. TIG requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. Supporting documents may either be uploaded or faxed to 571-258-4052. The requested information MUST be received by fax within 48 hours prior to the closing date of the vacancy announcement (not including Saturdays, Sundays or government holidays). NOTE: If you exaggerate or falsify your experience, education and/or your responses to questions, your ratings are subject to change or you may be removed from employment consideration. Applicants who fail to submit all the required documentation listed in the announcement, in addition to their resumes, will be considered ineligible for further consideration for this announcement. You may preview questions for this vacancy.