IT Specialist (Senior IT Solutions Architect)

Summary

This position is located in the Small Business Administration, Office of the Chief Information Officer in Washington, D.C. The incumbent serves as a Senior IT Solutions Architect within the OCIO Program Solutions, Architecture, and Engineering Division (PSAED) and is a senior technical expert for enterprise solutions architecture, network and systems engineering, and cloud-native modernization across one or more major SBA programs or mission portfolios.

Duties

• As an IT Specialist (Senior IT Solutions Architect) at the GS- 2210-14, some of your typical work assignments may include: Serve as senior technical expert and trusted advisor to the Director of PSAED, DCIO, and program leadership on architecture, engineering, and modernization issues for assigned portfolios. Design and maintain solutions architectures covering network engineering; on-premise, hybrid, and cloud infrastructure (AWS, Azure); container and microservices platforms; and event-driven and streaming architectures. Develop business cases, cost-benefit analyses, total cost of investment assessments, and performance measures to support IT investment decisions. Represent the division on architecture and engineering matters for assigned portfolios with program office leadership, partner offices, vendor solution architects, and external technical groups.

Qualifications

MINIMUM QUALICATIONS: To be considered minimally qualified for this position, you must show that you have the required IT-related experience for the grade level to which your are applying: GS-14, Required Competencies: Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail. Customer Service - Works with clients and customers (that is, any individuals who use or receive the services or products that your work unit produces, including the general public, individuals who work in the agency, other agencies, or organizations outside the Government) to assess their needs, provide information or assistance, resolve their problems, or satisfy their expectations; knows about available products and services; is committed to providing quality products and services. Decision Making - Makes sound, well-informed, and objective decisions; perceives the impact and implications of decisions; commits to action, even in uncertain situations, to accomplish organizational goals; causes change. Information Management - Identifies a need for and knows where or how to gather information; organizes and maintains information or information management systems. Interpersonal Skills - Shows understanding, friendliness, courtesy, tact, empathy, concern, and politeness to others; develops and maintains effective relationships with others; may include effectively dealing with individuals who are difficult, hostile, or distressed; relates well to people from varied backgrounds and different situations Oral Communication - Expresses information (for example, ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information (for example, technical, sensitive, controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately. Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations. Reasoning - Identifies rules, principles, or relationships that explain facts, data, or other information; analyzes information and makes correct inferences or draws accurate conclusions. Teamwork - Encourages and facilitates cooperation, pride, trust, and group identity; fosters commitment and team spirit; works with others to achieve goals. Technical Competence - Uses knowledge that is acquired through formal training or on-the-job experience to perform one's job; works with, understands, and evaluates technical information related to the job; advises others on technical issues. AND GS-14: One year of specialized experience, equivalent to the GS-13 grade level in the Federal service, obtained in either the private or public sector: 1. serving as a senior technical advisor for enterprise solutions architecture, systems engineering, and cloud modernization; AND 2. designing and maintaining secure, scalable, and cost-effective solutions across on-premise, hybrid, and cloud environments; AND 3. translating business and mission requirements into architecture designs involving infrastructure, APIs, integration patterns, identity services, Zero Trust, and data platforms; AND 4. conducting technical evaluations, proofs of concept, and well-architected reviews; AND 5. developing technical standards, business cases, cost-benefit analyses, and modernization roadmaps; AND 6. supporting IT governance, acquisitions, and authorization activities; AND 7. ensuring alignment with federal IT and cybersecurity requirements such as FISMA, NIST, FedRAMP, and Zero Trust guidance; AND 8. communicating and defending complex technical recommendations to senior leaders, stakeholders, vendors, and cross-functional teams in support of enterprise modernization objectives. These qualifications must be clearly referenced in your resume. If you are a current career or career-conditional federal employee applying for promotion under Merit Promotion you must have completed a minimum of 52 weeks in positions at the next level lower than the position being filled. Additional information on the qualification requirements is outlined in the OPM Qualifications Standards Handbook of General Schedule Positions. It is available for your review on OPM's Qualifications web site: Competency-Based Qualification Standard for the Information Technology Management Series, 2210 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. Generally, time in Non-Pay status as a federal employee is not creditable towards the specialized experience requirement listed above. All qualification requirements must be met by 11:59 pm (Eastern Time) on 09/16/2026.

Education

There is no education substitution for this grade level.

How to apply

Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions will affect your rating. If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and/or experience your rating may be adjusted to more accurately reflect your abilities. Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include the initial online assessment and submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. The application process is as follows: 1. To begin the application process, click the Apply Online button. 2. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation. 3. Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59PM (ET) on the announcement closing date. 4. After submitting an online application, you will be notified whether or not you are required to take additional online assessments through the USA Hire Competency Based Assessment system. This message will be delivered to you both on screen and via email notification. 5. If you are asked to take the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be presented with a unique URL to access the USA Hire system. Access to USA Hire is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Be sure to review all instructions prior to beginning your USA Hire Assessments. Click here for Computer System Requirements 6. Note, set aside at least 3 hours to take these assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue at a later time, you can re-use the URL sent to you via email and also found on the Additional Application Information page that can be located in the application record in your USAJOBS account. To update your application, including supporting documentation, at any time during the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account. There you will find a record of your application, the application status, and an option to Update Application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. To verify the status of your application both during and after the announcement open period, log into your USAJOBS account at https://www.usajobs.gov/ All of your applications will appear on the Welcome page. The application record in your USAJOBS account provides an Additional Application Information page that provides information regarding the documentation you submitted and any correspondence we have sent related to this application. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/