There will also be a table at ALA, in the Placement Center from
10:30-12:00 on Sunday, June 24, if you want to talk to someone from the
State Department about it.
http://careers.state.gov/specialist/vacancy-announcements/iro
*VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT*
*United States Department of State*
How to Apply<http://careers.state.gov/specialist/vacancy-announcements/iro#howtoapply>
An Equal Opportunity Employer
*Announcement Number:* IRO-2012-0001
*Position Title:* Foreign Service Information Resource Officer
*Open Period:* 05/23/2012 to 07/06/2012
*Series/Grade:* FP-03 *Salary:* $65,413 – $96,061
*Promotion Potential:* FP-01
*Duty Locations:* Vacancies Throughout the World
*For More Info:* HR/REE, 202-203-5173, [log in to unmask]
Who May Apply
All potential applicants are strongly urged to read this entire Vacancy
Announcement to ensure that they meet all of the requirements for this
position before applying.
Applicants must be American Citizens and at least 20 years old to apply.
They must be at least 21 years of age to be appointed. By law, all career
candidates must be appointed to the Foreign Service prior to the month in
which they reach age 60.
Applicants are not eligible to reapply until one year after the application
date of prior announcements, provided there is a new open Vacancy
Announcement at that time.
Duration Appointment
Permanent
Marketing Statement
The Department of State is developing a rank-order list of eligible hires
to fill a limited number of Foreign Service Information Resource Officer
vacancies. The specific number to be hired will depend on the needs of the
Foreign Service.
Grade and Starting Salary Range: FP-03, $65,413 - $96,061
Summary
The Department of State’s Bureau of International Information Programs
(IIP) is the principal international strategic communications service for
the foreign affairs community. Talented IIP staff design, develop, and
implement a variety of information initiatives created strictly for key
international audiences, such as the media, government officials, opinion
leaders, and academia in more than 160 countries around the world. IIP
prides itself on using cutting-edge technology and strategic alliances to
produce information products and services, including Websites, Webcasts and
Web chats using various social media platforms, electronic journals,
speaker programs, and print publications uniquely designed to support State
Department initiatives, as well as those of other U.S. foreign policy
organizations.
Through its corps of 30 Foreign Service Information Resource Officers
(IROs), in the Office of American Spaces, IIP provides professional
direction and guidance to 182 Information Resource Centers (IRCs) located
at U.S. embassies abroad, and for approximately 600 partnerships with local
institutions around the world who host American Corners and Binational
Centers. The headquarters office in Washington establishes overall program
policy, and provides technical and administrative support, centralized
acquisition of electronic information resources, and centralized training
programs.
Most IROs assigned overseas have regional positions. IROs work closely with
the IRC programs at their home posts and make regular visits to IRCs within
their areas of regional responsibility, as well as to our partner
institutions. IRO regions may include five to ten countries. IROs are
presently assigned to the following home posts: Abu Dhabi, Abuja, Accra,
Almaty, Baghdad, Bangkok, Beijing, Belgrade, Brasilia, Buenos Aires, Cairo,
Dakar, Jakarta, Kabul, Kigali, Mexico City, Moscow, Nairobi, New Delhi,
Pretoria, Rome, Tokyo, Vienna, Warsaw, and Washington, D.C. All entry-level
assignments are two years. Subsequent overseas tours are two to three
years, depending on the country. All IROs should expect to do at least one
DC assignment during their careers.
While the preference of an applicant for a particular post or area of
assignment is given every possible consideration, assignments are dictated
by "the needs of the Foreign Service."
Key Requirements
All applicants, in order to be considered for selection, must:
- Be a U.S. citizen.
- Be at least 20 years old to apply and at least 21 years of age to be
appointed. By law (Foreign Service Act of 1980), all career candidates
(except for preference-eligible veterans) must be appointed to the Foreign
Service prior to the month in which they reach age 60.
- Be available for worldwide service.
- Be able to obtain a Top Secret Security Clearance.
- Be able to obtain an appropriate medical clearance for Foreign Service
work.
- Be able to obtain a Suitability Clearance, based on a review of the
candidate's record for conduct in accordance with suitability standards
defined in Chapter 3 of the Foreign Affairs Manual. For more details see
http://careers.state.gov/specialist/selection-process or
http://www.state.gov/m/a/dir/regs/fam.
Major Duties
Foreign Service IROs provide professional leadership and support to 182
IRCs located at U.S. embassies and consulates around the world, and to the
475 Locally Employed Staff who operate them. They also support
approximately 600 partnerships with local institutions around the world
that host American Corners and Binational Centers. Through extensive travel
within the assigned region, IROs provide professional direction and
guidance to Information Resource Centers by:
1. Performing advisory functions for International Information Programs
(IIP) and Washington-based Offices including providing feedback through
written reports and briefings; advising on overseas program environments;
monitoring trends and developments within the workplace; reporting on the
impact of IIP products; and filing reports in accordance with
Bureau-approved guidelines.
2. Developing new products and services for International Information
Programs (IIP) and Washington-based Offices including conceptualizing and
proposing new program ideas and operational procedures; serving as a member
of product development teams; and testing and evaluating new commercial
products for use in Information Resource Centers.
3. Performing administration for International Information Programs
(IIP) and Washington-based Offices functions including managing fiscal
resources; maintaining currency of centralized databases; explaining IIP
policies and procedures; identifying sources of funding; promoting
accountability with IIP and Department reporting requirements; and assuring
compliance of software use.
4. Performing advocacy and marketing functions for International
Information Programs (IIP) and Washington-based Offices including marketing
IIP products and services through presentations and briefings; promoting
awareness of Information Resource Centers; optimizing use of Bureau
products through informing others; and liaising with American library and
information communities.
5. Engaging with public affairs officials for Overseas Posts,
Information Resource Centers, American Corners, and Bi-national Centers
Assigned to IRO Portfolio including participating in the Public Affairs
Program; conducting official travel to assigned posts; providing
specialized expertise to maximize the impact of the Information Resource
Center; trouble-shooting problems on behalf of post personnel; and
promoting institutional linkages by networking among local and American
library and information institutions.
6. Managing the Information Resource Center for Overseas Posts,
Information Resource Centers, American Corners, and Bi-national Centers
Assigned to IRO Portfolio including developing the annual Information
Resource Center (IRC) plan, providing specialist management expertise on
IRC topics, researching local information infrastructure by networking and
evaluating sources; evaluating IRC collections; and advising on library
practices and standards.
7. Overseeing Locally Employed (LE) Staff for Overseas Posts,
Information Resource Centers, American Corners, and Bi-national Centers
Assigned to IRO Portfolio including training staff; conducting needs
assessments for professional development; hosting regional and topical
conferences; writing position descriptions; participating in staff
recruitment; and building professional communities.
8. Providing program oversight for Overseas Posts, Information Resource
Centers, American Corners, and Bi-national Centers Assigned to IRO
Portfolio including promoting best practices in Information Resource Center
(IRC) programs; conducting outreach to local library and information
professionals; developing collection resources; overseeing IRC programs;
advising staff on information management principles and processes;
recruiting candidates for US Government cultural and educational exchange
programs in library and information sciences; promoting the use of new
technologies; advising on copyright compliance; and negotiating the
purchase and licensing of information products.
9. Working with American Corners for Overseas Posts, Information
Resource Centers, American Corners, and Bi-national Centers assigned to IRO
Portfolio including advising on viability of partnerships; clearing
Memoranda of Understanding for American Corner partnerships; reviewing the
quality of services provided; developing American Corner collection
resources; participating in American Corner programming; promoting best
practices for American Corners; and training American Corner staff.
Education KNOWLEDGE, ABILITIES, AND OTHER REQUIREMENTS:
All IRO candidates must meet the following requirements:
*GENERAL AND SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS***
*Grade Level***
*Annual Salary***
*Education***
*Specialized Experience***
FP-03
$65,413 - $96,061
M.L.S.
4 years
- One in-grade step increase may be given for a Master’s degree in
addition to the M.L.S., in a work-related field, awarded before the date of
appointment.
- Two additional steps may be given for a doctoral degree in a
work-related field, awarded before the date of the appointment.
EXPERIENCE:
- One step for 3 to 4 years of closely related experience
- Two steps for 5 to 6 years of closely related experience
- Three steps for 7 or more years of closely related experience
Foreign Service Information Resources Officers are considered for promotion
annually in competition with others in their specialty.
Qualifications
In addition to the general requirements for employment in the Foreign
Service, an applicant must have an M.L.S. (Master’s in Library and
Information Science) from an American Library Association-accredited
graduate program and at least four years of progressively responsible
experience in library or information center programs or services, with
in-depth experience in functional areas relevant to the State Department’s
Information Resource Center program. Knowledge of and experience in the use
of current information technologies are essential as U.S. Mission
Information Resource Centers operate in an electronic environment.
Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet
Federal job requirements for this position if the applicant can show that
foreign education is comparable to education received in the United States.
It is the responsibility of the applicant to provide such evidence when
applying for Federal jobs. To view how foreign education is evaluated for
federal jobs please
http://www.opm.gov/qualifications/policy/ApplicationOfStds-04.asp.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, ABILITIES, AND OTHER REQUIREMENTS:
The education, specialized experience, and other qualifications above will
be evaluated for evidence of the following knowledge, skills, abilities and
other requirements that have been identified as important to successful job
performance as an Information Resource Officer based on extensive job
analysis research. Not all of these attributes need to be met by a
candidate; the attributes will be used as a set to evaluate candidates.
*A.* Knowledge of American librarianship; contemporary library and
information services; professional library and information science
communities; commercial information products and services; information
management; IIP products; information technology; American culture; and
overseas program environments.
*B.* General skill in active listening, coordination, monitoring, service
orientation, instructing, time management, reading comprehension, social
perceptiveness, writing, learning strategies, active learning, persuasion,
management of financial resources, management of personnel resources,
systems evaluation, speaking, critical thinking, judgment and decision
making, complex problem solving, and negotiation. Excellent Oral
Communication skills including: the ability to speak to large groups and
maintain an audience’s attention for extended periods.
*C.* Specialized skill in aligning specialist skills with organizational
vision; budget management; managing change; project management; analyzing
professional materials; engaging with foreign national contacts; working in
cross cultural environments; staff development; using specialized
databases; evaluating information resources; negotiating costs for
information products and services; organizing information resources;
articulating "America’s story"; training; conducting research; updating
relevant professional knowledge; conducting assessments; tracking
work-related trends and developments; developing outreach products and
programs; evaluating web products; recruiting American library
professionals; supervising IRC programs; developing outreach and
promotional strategies; networking and establishing partnerships; adapting
to change in the workplace; working on teams; building peer relationships;
mentoring; managing travel; and serving in public diplomacy positions.
*D.* Other requirements: having cross-cultural awareness, being worldwide
available, and being tolerant of working overseas.
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE:
Applicants must have a minimum of four years of recent, progressively
responsible experience in functional areas relevant to the Department of
State’s Information Resource Center program. Specialized experience must
demonstrate the applicant possesses the in-depth knowledge, skills and
abilities needed to perform effectively as an Information Resource Officer
at any U.S. State Department mission overseas.
- Knowledge of current U.S. library and information science theory and
practice, with special emphasis on electronic information resources and
services and the application and management of new technologies, including
web 2.0 and social networking.
- Experience in the administration of substantial library or information
center programs and services, including development of policy, program
planning, and budgeting.
- Skill in written communication, including the ability to produce
concise evaluative reports and program development plans.
- In-depth experience in one or more functional areas of library or
information center work, such as administration, reference, collection
development, young adult services or information technology.
- Ability to work effectively with officials and foreign national staff
to design, implement, evaluate and promote Information Resource Center
programs in a cross-cultural environment.
- Knowledge of Internet-based and commercial database electronic
information resources.
- Skill in oral communication, including training programs and other
public speaking.
- Knowledge of American Culture, values and customs, political and
social institutions, history and contemporary affairs.
Evaluations
- Candidates will be evaluated on their total background including
experience, education, awards, training, and self-development as it relates
to the position. Selection for this position will be made only from among
candidates possessing the best qualifications. Part-time work experience
will be prorated.
How to Apply
To apply, applicants must first register on USAJOBS at www.usajobs.gov and
create an online federal resume. Your online resume must be typed or you
may cut and paste an existing resume into the space provided.
Once you have completed the registration process, select the 'apply-online'
button to the right of the vacancy announcement (
http://state.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/317237600 ). That button will
transfer you to Gateway to State. *Please note that the deadline to submit
completed applications is July 06, 2012.*
Follow the 'apply online' instructions at Gateway to State by answering
self-assessment questions for the specific job to which you are applying.
When completed, the information you provided at USAJOBS and the answers to
the Gateway to State questions will become your application. Your
registration, resume, and responses to questions will be used to evaluate
your qualifications for this job. In addition, you must fax or upload some
information to complete your application package.
If you are having technical difficulty with the application process, please
contact the helpdesk by calling 1-866-656-6830 or by emailing
[log in to unmask]
Required Documents
As part of the online application, applicants will be asked to submit the
following required documents:
A. Supplementary Questionnaire:
*Purpose: *The Supplementary Questionnaire in the application provides an
opportunity to describe examples and accomplishments from your education
and life and work experience that show you have the KSAOs listed above for
the job of Information Resource Officer. Examples can be drawn from any
part of your personal experience. The information you give may be used in
your oral assessment/interview should you be invited and is an important
factor in the competitive evaluation of applicants.
*Instructions:* During the application process, you will be asked to
individually address each of the numbered items listed below, limiting
responses to 2,000 characters or less for each item. Examples can be drawn
from any part of your personal experience. You should compose your replies
carefully, as one of the skills necessary to succeed as a Foreign Service
Information Resource Officer is the ability to write clearly and concisely.
1. *Leadership and Teamwork:* Describe an example of your ability to
lead a team in the accomplishment of a goal, and to participate as a team
member working toward a common goal related to an information center.
2. *Functional Experience:* Describe specific examples which demonstrate
your experience in developing and carrying out information programs or
services in a library or information center setting.
3. *Problem Solving:* Describe how your evaluation and/or analysis of a
product or program in a library or information center setting resulted in
positive change.
4. *Public Speaking and Training:* Describe specific examples that
demonstrate your public speaking and teaching abilities in a library or
information center setting.
B. A Narrative Autobiography (two-to-three page typed equivalent – no more
than 5,000 characters) which discusses your:
1. personal background,
2. general comments on your work experience,
3. personal interests, hobbies, and travel, and
4. motivation for joining the Foreign Service.
The narrative autobiography is included inside the online application.
C. Fax or Upload College Transcripts
Applicants have the option to upload (view the FAQ on how to upload
documents<http://careers.state.gov/faqs/faqs-wiki/how-do-i-upload-my-required-documents-when-applying-through-gateway-to-state->)
or fax their transcripts. To submit the transcripts by fax, applicants will
be prompted to print out a fax coversheet once they have successfully
submitted their application. Instructions for submitting these forms are
included in the online application. The transcript must be faxed before the
closing date of this announcement, which is 11:59pm Eastern Standard Time.
*Important:* Whether you upload or fax, please submit all your documents at
the same time. If you must send any additional documents after your first
submission, be sure to include your first group of documents along with the
additional documents. This is because subsequent submissions erase prior
submissions.
For additional information please refer to our web site at
careers.state.gov/specialist/selection-process.
Both official and unofficial transcripts are acceptable as part of the
application process.
However, if you are selected for an interview you will be asked to bring
your official transcripts to your oral assessment. These materials will
become the property of the Department of State and will not be returned.
Once you have completed the online questionnaire, you will be prompted to
decide either to upload your documents or to print out cover sheets
generated within the application that must be used to fax the above
required documents.
*If faxing, it is extremely important that only these system-generated
cover sheets, and the phone number included on them, be used for faxing
these documents. *The cover sheets are coded to insure that your documents
are automatically attached to your online application. Please ensure that
each document is faxed separately with the appropriate system generated
cover sheet.
These documents must be either faxed or uploaded before the closing date of
this announcement, which is midnight eastern standard time.
All potential applicants are strongly urged to read this entire Vacancy
Announcement to ensure that they meet all of the requirements for this
position before applying.
What to Expect Next
All applicants will be notified via e-mail of the outcome of their
applications. Selected candidates will be invited to come for an oral
assessment at the Department of State, Washington, D.C.
*Selected candidates:* Please note all travel and other expenses incurred
in connection with the oral assessment are the responsibility of the
candidate.
Benefits
Health and medical coverage, federal retirement benefits, generous paid
leave, and an unprecedented chance to see the world and experience
different cultures. Overseas benefits include paid housing or a housing
allowance and paid education for dependent children between K-12.
*Additional Benefits:* Tax free housing overseas, tax free educational
allowance, etc. (See Benefits on our website,
careers.state.gov/specialist/benefits, for more information.)
Other Information INITIAL SALARY
Newly hired Information Resource Officer career candidates are assigned at
the FP-03 level. Specific step (or salary) within that level will be
determined at the time a firm offer of employment is made. Steps may be
awarded based upon such factors as additional graduate level education and
directly related specialized experience beyond the necessary to satisfy
qualifications and criteria.
Current Federal Civil Service employees (or former employees) will also be
assigned at the FP-03 level. Specific step (or salary) within the FP-03
level will be set at the nearest possible salary rate of the current (or
previous) grade.
Competitive Promotion and Within-Grade Increases:
IROs are considered for promotion annually in competition with others in
their grade level. Promotions are given to those who have the best
performance. Persons promoted are advanced to the next grade and receive
additional salary equivalent to at least two within-grade increases.
Due to the limited number of yearly promotion opportunities, promotion
panels select promotees based on published criteria and quality of
performance. Performance is evaluated annually, in writing, by the
supervisor.
In general, Foreign Service employees with documented satisfactory
performance are eligible to receive a within-grade step increase annually
up through step 10 and biannually from step 10 through 14. The normal
career path envisions promotion to FP-1 during the course of a 20-year
career.
TENURE
Information Resource Officer career candidates are considered for tenure
(career status) after they have completed a minimum of two years in their
first assignment after their training period in the Foreign Service. A
Tenuring Board determines suitability based on a number of factors. If
tenure is not granted during the first review, a second review will be made
one year later. Failure to achieve tenure in the prescribed time frame of
four years is grounds for separation.
Foreign Service IROs are considered for promotion annually in competition
with others in their specialty.
*Please note all travel and other expenses incurred in connection with the
oral assessment are the responsibility of the candidate.*
------------------------------
Executive Branch agencies are barred by 5 US Code 3303 as amended from
accepting or considering prohibited political recommendations and are
required to return any prohibited political recommendations to sender. In
addition, as mandated by 5 US Code 3110, relatives of federal employees
cannot be granted preference in competing for these employment
opportunities.
The Department of State is committed to equal opportunity and fair and
equitable treatment for all without regard to race, color, national origin,
sex (including gender identity or pregnancy), religion, age, sexual
orientation, disabling condition, political affiliation, marital status, or
prior statutory, constitutionally protected activity.
The Department provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with
disabilities. Applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation for any part
of the application or hiring process should so advise the Department. All
decisions for granting reasonable accommodations are made on a case-by-case
basis.
--
Carol Bean
[log in to unmask]
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