The position is in the Veterans Benefits Administration's (VBA), Office of Communication (OC), located in Washington, DC and reports to the Director of Communication. OC is responsible for planning, developing, implementing and overseeing VBA's internal and external communication, messaging, marketing, advertising and digital communication strategy.

Duties

Specific duties include: As the Deputy Director of the Office of Communication, the incumbent co-leads and provides counsel on matters of importance to the Office of the Under Secretary for Benefits regarding Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) programs and performance. Serves as a senior program manager overseeing communication efforts in support of VBA programs. Collaborates with senior leadership to create internal and external communication campaigns and programs to engage stakeholders. Exercises decision-making authority on key management matters related to major programs and communication projects supporting VBA initiatives. Ensures that assigned programs are executed efficiently, effectively, and on time, in alignment with established goals, timelines, and budgets. Demonstrates a deep understanding of communication management principles and practices, along with a broad knowledge of the methods, processes, and techniques in related technical fields. Collaborates with staff from the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), Veterans Health Administration (VHA), Department-level offices, and other government agencies to ensure coordinated planning for communication programs, including contracting and legal matters. Engages with stakeholders, federal agencies, senior officials, and other parties interested in VBA's strategic direction and communication initiatives. Develops content for release through both internal and external media channels within and beyond the VBA. Establishes a communications framework for distributing information. Prepares communication plans, press releases, daily messages, articles, bulletins, and other informational materials as needed. Reviews and approves communications from other programs before final release. Represents VBA as a public affairs expert at conferences, training workshops, and other events. Supervises a team of highly skilled specialists and support staff. Establishes priorities, plans, and oversees work operations, and develops internal procedures. Conducts interviews and selects candidates for positions. Assigns tasks based on complexity and staff capabilities, provides guidance on both technical and administrative matters, evaluates performance, and makes recommendations for promotions, awards, and reassignments. Holds significant managerial authority in developing policies and strategies to achieve both short-term and long-term goals for the VBA. Prepares speeches, talking points, briefings, and other materials for the Office of the Under Secretary for Benefits and key staff for official functions. Independently researches to assess the forum and target audience. Collaborates with the speaker to determine the appropriate format (e.g., full speech, talking points, bullet outlines), ensuring the final product aligns with Department and organizational goals and values. Engages effectively with Veterans, their families, the public, and external stakeholders involved in Veteran services. Provides thorough and accurate responses to concerns raised by stakeholders, customers, and leadership, while representing the organization professionally and responsively. Monitor and direct the preparation and auditing of information materials for dissemination to various internal audiences. Promotes and maintains effective working relationships with representatives of government, Congressional offices, civic organizations, other agencies, representatives of the media, Veteran beneficiaries, Veterans Service Organizations, industry, the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), academia, and other special interest groups. Performs other related duties as assigned. Promotion Potential: None Work Schedule: Full time, Monday through Friday Compressed/Flexible: At the discretion of the agency Telework: Yes Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Supervisory Public Affairs Specialist; 42013-0 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required

Requirements

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• 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
• Selectees are required to service a one-year supervisory probationary period if not previously completed in a Federal position.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement:11/05/2024. TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENT: Applicants who are current Federal employees, former Federal employees applying for reinstatement, or a current federal employee applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment must meet time in grade requirements. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. NOTE: This does not apply to Non-Federal Applicants, or applicants applying for consideration under Non-Competitive Authority (i.e.... "30% or more Disability", VRA, and/or Schedule A). To verify your eligibility, you must submit a copy of your most recent Notification of Personnel Action, Standard Form 50 (SF-50). You must provide a copy of your most recent SF-50 that indicates proof of status, and shows Time in Grade (for example, you were a career or career-conditional employee) and identifies your position title, series, grade, step, salary, tenure, and type of service (Competitive or Excepted). If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must also submit your most recent promotion or within-grade increase in addition to your recent SF-50. If you previously held a higher grade, you must also submit any SF-50 showing that grade. DO NOT submit Award SF-50's and/or General Adjustment SF-50's as they cannot be used to prove time-in-grade. For a GS-15 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-14 level. MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT: You may qualify based on your experience as described below: GS-15 Grade Level Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-14 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Demonstrated experience serving as a principal advisor to senior executive leadership on public information programs, media relations, and communication policies. Served as a lead in the development and execution of internal and external public affairs and communication initiatives aligned with the agency's mission and policies to meet diverse information needs. Expert-level proficiency in coordinating, developing, and implementing corporate strategic public information and communication plans on a national scale. Effectively informs and educates key audiences about the organization's programs, policies, activities, and initiatives. Expert knowledge in devising and executing high-profile media strategies, proactive external engagement efforts, and editorial opportunities for major communication initiatives. Volunteer Experience: 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. Full vs. Part-Time Employment: Full-time employment is considered to be at least 35 hours per week. Part-time experience will be credited on a pro-rated basis; when including part-time employment in your resume you must specify the average hours worked per week. Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary. Some work may require walking and standing in conjunction with travel to attend meetings and conferences away from the work site. Work may require carrying light items such as papers, books, or small parts. The work does not require any special physical effort. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

This job does not have an education qualification requirement.

Contacts

• Address VBA Human Resources Center - Central Office 810 Vermont Ave NW Washington, DC 20420 US
• Name: Lakeisha Davis
• Phone: 410-230-4400
• Email: [email protected]