Intelligence Operations Specialist

• Drafts reviews and edits analytical products to forecast and assess future situations.
• Ensures secure data handling at point of capture and maintains chain of custody.
• Monitors and reviews new intelligence for agricultural equities.
• Reports across all classification levels using open-source materials advanced databases and intelligence systems.
• Applies project management best practices from planning to evaluation.
• Assists leadership in the development of risk assessments strategies and approaches for minimizing and reducing risk to USDA or U.S. agriculture.
• Participates in developing in-depth strategic operational and tactical intelligence research analysis.
• Supports both short- and long-term complex research projects on short and fixed timelines.
• Maintains awareness and researches areas of emerging concern for U.S. agriculture.
• Serves as a liaison with internal and external stakeholders to create and maintain relationships.
• Facilitates the horizontal and vertical sharing of information and intelligence and integrates the same between multiple USDA agencies and offices as well as the broader U.S. interagency.
• Supports coordination with intelligence and counterintelligence partners on relevant analyses or issues of concern.
• Duties described above are at the full performance level GS-11 duties at the GS-09 level will be developmental.

• You must be a US Citizen or US National.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
• Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
• If selected you may be required to serve a probationary or trial period as applicable to appointment type.
• Direct Deposit: Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify including your rights and responsibilities visit applicant must undergo and successfully obtain and maintain a background investigation for a Top Secret SCI clearance. You must meet initial and periodic suitability determinations based on favorable background investigations and updates.
• This position is considered critical-essential and as such may be required to return to his/her assigned duty station outside of normal duty hours to provide support to USDA policymakers particularly during crisis periods.
• Selectee must submit to a urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment and random testing thereafter. Final appointment and continued employment is conditional on negative results for illegal drug use.

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including time-in-grade restrictions specialized experience and/or education as defined below.

Time in grade:
Current federal employees applying for a promotion opportunity must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirement of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled.

Minimum Qualifications: Applicants must meet the Specialized Experience and/or Education requirements as shown below. If qualifying based on experience your application or resume must clearly show that you possess the specialized experience requirements. Specialized experience is defined as experience that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled and has equipped you with the particular knowledge skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position.

GS-09: Qualifying experience for GS-09 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-07 which included experience using open-source materials databases and intelligence systems for developing strategic operational and tactical intelligence research analysis and reporting.
OR
Masters degree or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a masters degree or equivalent graduate degree or LL.B. or J.D. if related.
OR
A combination of education and experience as described above.
NOTE: Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for the GS-09 grade level.

GS-11: Qualifying experience for GS-11 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-09 which included experience using open-source materials databases and intelligence systems for developing strategic operational and tactical intelligence research analysis and reporting; and performing risk analysis and risk assessments regarding national security topics.
OR
Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or LL.M. if related.
OR
A combination of education and experience as described above.
NOTE: Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for the GS-11 grade level.

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 and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience including volunteer experience.

In the event of an emergency USDAs Office of Homeland Security (OHS) employees may be subject to 24 hour on-call availability. This service may require irregular work hours work at locations other than the official duty station and may include duties other than those specified in the employees official position description. Travel requirements in support of emergency operations may be extensive in nature (weeks to months) with little advance notice and may require employees to relocate to emergency sites that require functioning under intense physical and mental stress.