Summary This position serves as MARAD's Tanker and Cable Security Program Officer within the Office of Commercial Sealift, managing the Tanker Security Program (TSP), Cable Security Fleet (CSF), and the Voluntary Tanker Agreement (VTA). Duties include preparing and managing operating agreements, reviewing and drafting legislation, and administering program finances. The role advises DOW, USTRANSCOM, and Congress, and interacts with senior commercial industry leaders on sealift readiness. Duties
The Tanker and Cable Program Officer:
- Serves as MARAD’s primary lead for planning, organizing, and implementing the Tanker Security Program (TSP), the Cable Security Fleet (CSF), and the Voluntary Tanker Agreement (VTA).
- Manages the financial administration of the TSP and CSF, including programmatic funding and budgeting and the analysis and payment of monthly participant stipend invoices.
- Maintains continuous liaison with high-level officials across MARAD, Department of Transportation, Department of War, the U.S. Coast Guard, and external organizations. Presents senior-level program briefs.
- Plans, prioritizes, and assigns work to subordinates, evaluates staff performance, and identifies and arranges for staff training and development needs.
Qualifications
To meet the minimum qualifications for this position, you must meet the specialized experience requirements.
To qualify for the Grade 14, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-13, it must include:
- Experience with commercial tanker or cable ship operations or chartering.
- Experience with program management, including budgeting and analysis.
- Experience communicating with senior leaders through written products and presentation.
- Experience managing a team, evaluating performance; and developing the workforce.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:
- Knowledge of commercial tanker or Cable ship operations, or Commercial ship chartering: Uses knowledge acquired through formal training or extensive on-the-job experience to develop, implement, and evaluate the Tanker Security Program (TSP) Cable Security Fleet (CSF), and the Voluntary Tanker Agreement (VTA); advises others on technical issues.
- Program management and Budgeting experience: Manages the financial administration of the TSP and CSF. Performs and reviews multi-level program analyses. Analyzes proposed and pending legislation affecting the TSP and CSF. Drafts legislative language, proposals, and amendments to address gaps or changes in program authority.
- Communication and Stakeholder engagement: Maintains continuous liaison with high-level officials across MARAD, Department of Transportation, Department of War, the U.S. Coast Guard, and external organizations. Presents senior-level program briefs.
- Supervisory and Program leadership: Plans, prioritizes, and assigns work to subordinates, evaluates staff performance, and identifies and arranges for staff training and development needs. Streamlines policies and procedures to guarantee optimum efficiency, and provides expert leadership to strategic and workforce planning for areas of responsibility.
For all types of consideration, 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, 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.
For additional information about applying to Federal positions, please click on the following link: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-policies/#url=e4
All applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
Requirements
CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:
As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:
- your performance and conduct;
- the needs and interests of the agency;
- whether your continued employment would advance the organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
- whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.
Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.
- SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for the Selective Service.
- BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION: A background security investigation is required for all selected individuals. Appointment will be subject to the applicant’s successful completion of the security investigation and favorable adjudication. Failure to meet these requirements will be grounds for termination.
- DRUG TEST: This position has been determined to be a critical safety/security position as defined in the Department of Transportation (DOT) Order, DOT 3910.1D entitled "Drug and Alcohol-Free Departmental Workplace." Therefore, if selected for the position you will be required to submit to a pre-employment/pre-appointment drug test, you will also be subject to Random Drug Testing.
- DEU REQUIREMENTS: Applicants selected under delegated examining procedures may be required to successfully complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed).
- SUPERVISORY PROBATIONARY PERIOD: New supervisors must complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed).
- TIME-IN-GRADE: Federal applicants must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade in the competitive or excepted service in the executive branch to satisfy time-in-grade restrictions contained in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F. See Other information for additional instructions.
How you will be evaluated DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE: Please be clear and specific when describing your experience, as HR evaluates applications strictly on the facts provided and will not make assumptions. To receive full credit, your narrative responses must be written in paragraph format and explicitly match your resume. Begin each response by listing the exact position title, organization, employment dates (MM/YYYY–MM/YYYY), full- or part-time status, average weekly hours, and federal series/grade (if applicable). Within the body of the paragraph, clearly describe your specific duties, actions taken, tools used, and measurable outcomes. HR will cross-check these details against your resume; if your resume does not fully support every claim and timeframe, the experience will not be considered for credit, which may result in an ineligible determination.
Eligible Federal employees also seeking consideration for non-competitive reassignment for this position must indicate interest and must have competitive status on a SF-50, meet minimum qualifications, served at the same grade or higher, or held or exceeded the promotion potential of this position.
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 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).
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Benefits
How to apply To be considered, you must submit all required resume details and applicable documents no later than 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date of the announcement.
Note: Uploading documents to USAJobs does not automatically attach them to this application. You must review and verify that all files are successfully transferred to our system before final submission. Late or incomplete applications will be disqualified.
- To begin, click the Apply Online button on the job announcement.
- Follow the directions to register, submit all required documents and complete the assessment questionnaire.
- You may review your saved application(s) at https://help.usajobs.gov/
If you are having difficulty applying online, please contact the DOT Automated Staffing Office via email at: Transjobs@dot.gov.
Other information The Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act prohibits the Department of Transportation and its Operating Administrations from requesting an applicant's criminal history record before that individual receives a conditional offer of employment. In accordance with 5 U.S. Code § 9202(c) and 5 C.F.R § 920.201 certain positions are exempt from the provisions of the Fair Chance to Compete Act. Applicants who believe they have been subjected to a violation of the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act, may submit a written complaint to the Department of Transportation by email at, FairChanceAct@dot.gov. To learn more, please visit our page at: The Fair Chance to Compete Act | US Department of Transportation
CURRENT OR FORMER FEDERAL APPLICANTS: Submit SF-50 documentation proving your highest competitive grade, federal eligibility, and 52-week time-in-grade requirement. To pass HR validation, it’s recommended to combine and upload these into a single PDF:
- Start Date: The SF-50 showing when you were originally appointed or promoted to the qualifying grade.
- End Date: An SF-50 dated at least 52 weeks later (e.g., a Within-Grade Increase, promotion, or subsequent action) to prove a sequential 52-week period.
Warning on Incomplete Documentation: Do not submit an award or current-year annual pay adjustment SF-50 by itself. These do not prove your original entry date or grade. If your documents fail to conclusively prove a full 52-week history, you will be rated Ineligible.
This announcement may be used to fill additional positions is similar vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate(s).