Position Title: Strategic Interagency Deputy Team Leader/Senior Planner
Solicitation Number: SOL-OFDA-16-000008
Salary Level: GS-14 Equivalent: $107,325- $139,523
Issuance Date: November 17, 2015
Closing Date: December 8, 2015
Closing Time: 5:00 P.M. Eastern Time
Dear Prospective Applicants:
The United States Government (USG), represented by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), is seeking applications from qualified U.S. citizens to provide personal services as a Strategic Interagency Deputy Team Leader/Senior Planner under a United States Personal Services Contract (USPSC), as described in the attached solicitation.
Submittals must be in accordance with the attached information at the place and time specified. Applicants interested in applying for this position MUST submit the following materials:
1.Complete resume. In order to fully evaluate your application, your resume must include:
(a) Paid and non-paid experience, job title, location(s), dates held (month/year), and hours worked per week for each position. Dates (month/year) and locations for all field experience must also be detailed.Any experience that does not include dates (month/year), locations, and hours per week will not be counted towards meeting the solicitation requirements.
(b) Specific duties performed that fully detail the level and complexity of the work.
(c) Names and contact information (phone/email) of your current and/or previous supervisor(s). Current and/or previous supervisors may be contacted for a reference.
(d) Education and any other qualifications including job-related training courses, job-related skills, or job-related honors, awards or accomplishments.
(e) U.S. Citizenship
Your resume should contain sufficient information to make a valid determination that you fully meet the experience requirements as stated in this solicitation. This information should be clearly identified in your resume. Failure to provide information sufficient to determine your qualifications for the position will result in loss of full consideration.
2.Supplemental document specifically addressing the Quality Ranking Factors (QRFs) shown in the solicitation.
3.USPSC Application form AID 302-3. Applicants are required to complete and sign the form.
Additional documents submitted will not be accepted.Incomplete or late applications will not be considered. OFDA reserves the right to select additional candidates if vacancies become available during future phases of the selection process.
Applicants can expect to receive a confirmation email when application materials have been received. Applicants should retain for their records copies of all enclosures which accompany their applications. Your complete resume and the supplemental document addressing the QRFs must be emailed to:
OFDA Recruitment Team
E-Mail Address: recruiter@ofda.gov
Website: www.OFDAjobs.net
Any questions on this solicitation may be directed to OFDA Recruitment Team via the information provided above.
Sincerely,
Renee Reed
Contracting Officer
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The Strategic Interagency Deputy Team Leader/Senior Planner will provide critical leadership and outreach to interagency partners on USAID/OFDA disaster and coordination issues; work closely with USG officials within the USG disaster response and humanitarian assistance community; assist with the organization of quarterly policy coordination forums; initiate creative and new approaches to partnership; and serve as a key source of information on humanitarian issues pertaining to the interagency for the office. He/she will help lead the planning of organizational strategies and responses to humanitarian crises, actively work with other members of the office, and anticipate and prepare documents and briefing memos on humanitarian issues for key meetings and events.
The Strategic Interagency Deputy Team Leader/Senior Planner will manage critical issues within the interagency community on behalf of OFDA as tasked. He/she must have the ability to both multi-task and be very detail oriented and results oriented. The assignment requires providing expert analytical and advisory support on a wide range of humanitarian issues for the planning, development, and execution of U.S. foreign policy disaster response and humanitarian assistance objectives within a broad and complex interagency environment.
The role requires the ability to work within a team structure with significant interaction with the U.S. interagency, demanding strong diplomatic and communication skills to accurately represent positions in a complex multilateral setting, based on guidance from Washington. Contacts occur in a wide variety of planned and unplanned, formal and informal settings, including open meetings and conferences, where the interagency team may be called upon to explain and defend U.S. positions on humanitarian issues with the international community. Contacts will be primarily within the USG, other teams within HPGE, other OFDA divisions, analysts and officials in international organizations, and representatives of NGOs in partnership with the HPGE Policy Team.
The position requires extensive experience with and a thorough understanding of the U.S. interagency, disaster response structure, international humanitarian assistance environment, operations, related policies, regulations, and inter-relationships among the USG, donors and other international organizations. Detailed knowledge of humanitarian operations and the working of other federal agencies is required.
Specific areas of responsibility include:
Strengthening / Building Interagency Relationships
· Serve as one of the Strategic Interagency Team’s experts in USG institutional cooperation, and contribute to policy and programming guidance for strategic planning for interagency planning, preparation and deployment of interagency partners.
· Analyze, design, implement, and evaluate policies for interagency partners focusing on key agency priority areas within the international disaster response area.
· Represent Division and OFDA interests to interagency counterparts in partnership with OFDA on planning and implementation policies as required.
· Monitor and analyze interagency institutional arrangements and structures. Formulate agenda of research and analytic needs leading to training and other formalized agreements for improving and bolstering USAID/OFDA’s interagency cooperation and communications.
· Review and analyze interagency relationships and response scenarios in collaboration with various analytic units.
· Coordinate the development of long-range planning for interagency partnerships and engagement within OFDA. Establish short- and long-range goals of the organization, develops detailed plans for implementing them, and oversees implementation of the goals. Determine if adjustments or changes in objectives or emphasis are needed in organization functions. Recommend and/or put into action organizational or process changes.
· Design and participate in broad interagency disaster response and assistance assessments. Support OFDA teams’ intra-office in planning and strategizing interagency engagement on non-disaster response status as well as response status.
· Provide guidance to response teams regarding capacities and authorities of interagency colleagues in a disaster response environment.
· Coordinate information and build consensus from various offices, bureaus, and interagency organizations involved in the preparation and approval of various documents with divisional teams.
· Assist in developing and implementing the OFDA strategy for interagency engagement.
· Coordinate with other federal agencies to provide OFDA staff with briefings on federal capabilities.
· Support the development of agenda and convening of the OFDA quarterly International Disaster Forum.
· Work with other OFDA divisions to identify and support pre-identified interagency agreements.
· Support the Interagency team with interagency coordination meeting and calls as needed in support of OFDA’s response divisions.
· Attend external interagency meetings as requested.
· Understand the political and institutional environment in which decisions are made and implemented in humanitarian situations.
· Assist the Interagency Training Team in the development of training materials and research for OFDA’s interagency training, as well as logistical support as needed.
· Provide support for taskers and other briefings and public inquiries.
· Provide OFDA briefings as appropriate.
· Sign-up for and serve as needed, on Washington-based RMTs, which provides services and support to DARTs deployed in response to disasters. The duties on RMTs will be varied.
· Serve as the OFDA after-hours duty officer on a rotational basis, for approximately one week every six months.
· As needed, serve on DARTs which may require immediate (within 24 hours) deployment overseas for an extended period of time.
· As needed, deploy within the U.S. to serve as an interagency liaison for up to 90 days.
· The USPSC is responsible for planning and carrying out assignments. The USPSC is responsible for planning approach or methodology to be used in carrying out assignments.
EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION
(Determines basic eligibility for the position. Applicants who do not meet all of the education and experience factors are considered NOT qualified for the position.)
Bachelor’s degree with study in or pertinent to the specialized field (including but not limited to international relations, human rights, economics, public health, disaster management, public policy or a related field) plus seven (7) years of progressively responsible professional experience. Demonstrated experience working on government relations, interagency coordination, and managing and building government partnerships. Applicants must demonstrate two (2) years of work experience for or with U.S. government agencies working on international crisis engagement and/or policy engagement. Overseas professional experience desired.
OR
Master’s degree with study in or pertinent to the specialized field (including but not limited to international relations, human rights, economics, public health, disaster management, public policy or a related field) plus five (5) years of progressively responsible professional experience. Demonstrated experience working on government relations, interagency coordination, and managing and building government partnerships. Applicants must demonstrate two (2) years of work experience for or with U.S. government agencies working on international crisis engagement and/or policy engagement. Overseas professional experience desired.
SELECTION FACTORS
(Determines basic eligibility for the position. Applicants who do not meet all of the selection factors are considered NOT qualified for the position.)
· Applicant is a U.S. Citizen.
· Complete resume submitted. See cover page for resume requirements. Experience that cannot be quantified will not be counted towards meeting the solicitation requirements.
· USPSC Application form AID 302-3. Applicants are required to complete and sign the form.
· Supplemental document specifically addressing the Quality Ranking Factors (QRFs) submitted.
· Ability to obtain and maintain a Secret up to Top Secret security clearance as provided by USAID.
· Ability to obtain a Department of State medical clearance.
· Satisfactory verification of academic credentials
QUALITY RANKING FACTORS (QRFs)
(Used to determine the competitive ranking of qualified applicants in comparison to other applicants. The factors are listed in priority order from highest to least.)
QRF #1 Proven experience working on government relationships, managing, building and sustaining partnerships. Proven understanding of how to assess and strengthen relationships with other government agencies in building a stronger USG engagement on an organization’s overall objectives and goals. Demonstrated ability to work with a diverse array of individuals and organizations within the U.S. Government on a common goal or objective. Preferred experience in the role of liaison with USG interagency relationships at all levels throughout the humanitarian and foreign policy communities with a knowledge of international disaster assistance and disaster risk reduction policies.
QRF #2 Proven ability to create networks and build coalitions. Proven experience serving as a relationship manager establishing and nurturing a network of officials in federal agencies to build upon and enhance a broad objective or goal of the community of participating agencies. Please provide specific examples.
QRF #3 Proven experience in representing policy positions and providing guidance to decision-makers. Demonstrated ability to perform in a high-visibility, high pressure, environment, while simultaneously managing multiple projects. Highly developed oral and written communication skills. A high degree of diplomatic and leadership skills. Please provide specific examples.
QRF #4 Demonstrated knowledge and experience with U.S. policy and regulations for international responses to natural disasters and complex emergencies. Knowledge of the structures, mandates, and policies of the United Nations system is needed.
BASIS OF RATING:Applicants who meet the Education/Experience requirements and Selection Factors will be further evaluated based on scoring of the QRF responses. Those applicants determined to be competitively ranked may also be evaluated on interview performance and satisfactory professional reference checks.
Applicants are required to address each of the QRFs in a separate document describing specifically and accurately what experience, training, and/or education they have received as it pertains to each factor. Be sure to include your name and the announcement number at the top of each additional page. Failure to address the selection factors and/or Quality Ranking Factors may result in not receiving credit for all pertinent experience, education, and/or training.
The most qualified candidates may be interviewed and required to provide a writing sample. OFDA will not pay for any expenses associated with the interviews. Professional references and academic credentials will be evaluated for applicants being considered for selection. Note: Please be advised that references may be obtained independently from other sources in addition to the ones provided by an applicant. OFDA reserves the right to select additional candidates if vacancies become available during future phase of the selection process.
The Applicant Rating System is as Follows:
QRFs – 50 points:
QRF #1 – 20 points
QRF #2 – 15 points
QRF #3 – 10 points
QRF #4 – 5 points
Interview Performance – 35 points
Satisfactory Professional Reference Checks – 15 points
Total Possible Points: 100
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