Do you want to be a part of the engine that drives economic growth and national prosperity? The United States Patent and Trademark Office is seeking a highly-motivated executive to serve as the Midwest Regional Director. In this role, you'll have an unparalleled opportunity to lead the charge in expanding the benefits of our innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem throughout the Western Region of the United States.

Duties

As a part of the USPTO Senior Executive Service (SES) cadre, you will be among a group of highly skilled executives, contributing to one of the important missions in the federal government. This position is an SES member, an elite group of senior government leaders who possess a diverse portfolio of experience and expertise required to lead across agencies. This cadre of dedicated executives is charged with providing strategic leadership and upholding a commitment to public service. As an SES member, you will influence the direction of innovation and transformation of the federal government and lead the next generation. The Midwest Regional Office was the first-ever USPTO satellite office located outside of Washington, D.C., and was selected to promote innovation and stimulate the economy by connecting entrepreneurs to government resources, supporting students and teachers through our STEM education programs including professional development for teachers, gathering feedback from regional stakeholders, and recruiting diverse talent from the region. The Midwest Regional Office is located in Detroit, Michigan, and serves a hub of education and outreach. The Midwest Region includes Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio and Wisconsin. As Midwest Regional Director, your role will be vital to expanding the U.S. economy by $1T by bringing into the innovation ecosystem those who have not traditionally participated. As the Regional Director, you'll work with the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO, other regional directors, and the USPTO executive team and staff to communicate and carry out the agency's mission, vision, strategic goals, and further outreach objectives. The Regional Director will collaborate with other business units within the USPTO to incentivize innovation, particularly among traditionally underrepresented individuals and communities; help facilitate the protection of innovation and brands; and work as a catalyst to bring more ideas to impact, especially in key technology areas. The Regional Director will be shaping the US to create jobs, foster economic prosperity, promote national security and solve world problems. The Regional Director will also play a key role in employee hiring and engagement in the region and will be the managing director of the Office. If you're committed to the principles of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, you'll have the potential to make a tremendous positive impact. Come join the dynamic leadership team at the USPTO working together with the full spectrum of innovators, to protect, incentivize, and support innovation in the region. Here are some of the exciting duties you'll engage in: You'll be at the forefront of many initiatives related to intellectual property, supporting activities and efforts focused on incentivizing and protecting innovation from individual inventors, small to medium-sized enterprises, and other entities in the Midwest Region, including those in and from traditionally underrepresented communities. You'll represent the agency in the Midwest Region, and a vital part in delivering information on and advocating for the value of intellectual property by strengthening the public's understanding of intellectual property and the products and services the USPTO offers. You'll engage with stakeholders and those who do not yet have access to the innovation ecosystem to protect more innovation and bring it to impact to solve problems, create jobs, and enhance economic prosperity. You'll facilitate, coordinate, and lead high-level engagements with intellectual property and stakeholder leaders at the local, state, and Federal levels. You'll inspire, promote innovation, work with innovators, and stimulate the economy by increasing and connecting entrepreneurs to government resources, supporting students and teachers through STEM education programs, gathering feedback from regional stakeholders, and recruiting diverse talent from the region. You'll play a key role working with the business units to ensure employee engagement in the region. You'll provide leadership and oversight to the Midwest Regional Office staff and will be responsible for the overall administrative management and performance of subordinate staff. You'll be responsible for facilities management oversight, including coordinating with USPTO's Executive Leadership on issues related to closures of the office due to unscheduled events (e.g., extreme weather, natural disasters, non-operational IT systems, etc.).

Requirements

• You must be a U.S. Citizen or a National.
• Background and/or Security investigation, if selected for position.
• Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (www.sss.gov).
• Financial Disclosure Report (OGE-278) will be required upon appointment.

Qualifications

Experience must have been at a sufficiently high level of difficulty to clearly show that the candidate possesses the required Professional/Technical Qualifications (PTQs) and Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) set forth below. Applicants are required to input narrative responses to the PTQs in the text boxes as prompted by USAJobs. Each PTQ have a 10,000-character limit (to include spaces) that must be adhered to. Do not write "see resume." Uploaded documents addressing the PTQs will not be accepted. Professional/Technical Qualifications: PTQ 1: A background or skill set that demonstrates the ability to succeed at stakeholder and community outreach and development. Understanding of how to support, facilitate, coordinate, and lead high-level engagements at the local, state, and Federal levels to share visions, effect change, and incentivize behavior that will benefit and encourage the growth of our innovation-based economy, including in underrepresented sectors across the entire region. PTQ 2: Ability to effectively lead programs and/or people. Ability to inspire others and to establish and maintain positive working relationships with others and in teams working toward common goals. Ability to resolve conflicts. Excellent communication skills for keeping leadership informed as issues arise and higher-level decisions are needed. PTQ 3: Knowledge of the patent and trademark processes. PTQ 4: Ability to represent programs and initiatives positively before external and internal stakeholders and to communicate effectively and comfortably through public speaking. PTQ 5: Demonstrated ability to effectively plan, organize, and implement programs and measure their progress toward established goals. For the following five Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs), you will be required to submit a narrative response addressing your specific knowledge, skills, and abilities that demonstrate your possession of these qualifications if selected. Once selected for the position, you'll provide specific examples of what you've done that demonstrate your possession of each ECQ. For more information about the Executive Core Qualifications please visit this site: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/senior-executive-service/reference- materials/guidetosesquals_2012.pdf ECQ 1: Leading Change - This core qualification involves the ability to bring about strategic change, both within and outside the organization, to meet organizational goals. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to establish an organizational vision and to implement it in a continuously changing environment. Competencies: Creativity and Innovation, External Awareness, Flexibility, Resilience, Strategic Thinking, and Vision. ECQ 2: Leading People - This core qualification involves the ability to lead people toward meeting the organization's vision, mission, and goals. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to provide an inclusive workplace that fosters the development of others, facilitates cooperation and teamwork, and supports constructive resolution of conflicts. Competencies: Conflicting Management, Leveraging Diversity, Developing Others and Team Building. ECQ 3: Results Driven - This core qualification involves the ability to meet organizational goals and customer expectations. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to make decisions that produce high quality results by applying technical knowledge, analyzing problems and calculating risks. Competencies: Accountability, Customer Service, Decisiveness, Entrepreneurship, Problem Solving and Technical Credibility. ECQ 4: Business Acumen - This core qualification involves the ability to manage human, financial and information resources strategically. Competencies: Financial Management, Human Capital Management and Technology Management. ECQ 5: Building Coalitions - This core qualification involves the ability to build coalitions internally and with other Federal agencies, State and local governments, nonprofit and private sector organizations, foreign governments, or international organizations to achieve common goals. Competencies: Partnering, Political Savvy, and Influencing/Negotiation. Encouraged to follow the Challenge, Context, Action and Result (C-C-A-R) model outlined in the Guide to SES Qualifications. Challenge - Describe a specific problem or goal. Context - Describe the individuals and groups you worked with, and/or the environment in which you worked, to address a particular challenge (e.g., clients, co-workers, members of Congress, shrinking budget, low morale). Action - Discuss the specific actions you took to address a challenge. Result - Give specific examples of measures/outcomes that had some impact on the organization. These accomplishments demonstrate the quality and effectiveness of your leadership skills. Note: Submit only the documents requested. Additional documents will not be reviewed. Responses to the ECQs are not required at this time. However, if selected for this position, you will be required to provide narrative responses to the five ECQs. Note: Current career SES members, former career SES members with reinstatement eligibility, and SES Candidate Development Program graduates who have been certified by OPM, only need to submit a resume and narrative statement covering each of the PTQs and do NOT need to address the ECQs. Experience refers to paid and unpaid work, 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.

Education

This position does not have a higher-level education requirement.

Contacts

• Address EXRD - Office of the Under Secretary and Director Office of Human Resources Mail Stop 171 P.O. Box 1450 Alexandria, VA 22313-1450 US
• Name: Kesha Nelson
• Phone: 571-272-1836
• Email: [email protected]