Management and Program Analyst

Summary

This is a Direct Hire Authority (DHA) solicitation utilizing the DHA for certain competitive service to recruit and appoint qualified candidates to positions in the competitive service.

About the Position: This position is located in the Operations Directorate (J3) at Headquarters, U.S. Southern Command

(USSOUTHCOM). Serves as the senior executive advisor to the J3 Chief of Staff, providing high level analytical, strategic, and operational integration support across the Directorate.

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Duties

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• Serves as senior advisor to the J3 Chief of Staff on Directorate operational synchronization, strategic taskings, leader engagements, and mission execution.
• Prepares executive-level briefings, talking points, and correspondence; represents J3 senior leadership during meetings and command engagements.
• Prepares executive-level briefings, talking points, and correspondence; represents J3 senior leadership during meetings and command engagements.
• Provides authoritative advice on civilian and military manpower, force structure, organizational design, staffing priorities, and workforce distribution.
• Analyzes manpower data, personnel trends, and emerging operational requirements to inform J3 staffing posture and readiness decisions.
• Assesses JTD, JMD, and JTMD documents; identifies gaps and develops recommendations for authorizations, billets, skill mix, and organizational changes.
• Leads Directorate workforce initiatives, including hiring, talent acquisition, onboarding, training, performance management, awards, and succession planning.
• Interprets DoD, Joint Staff, and USSOUTHCOM personnel policies and develops J3 procedures to ensure compliant implementation.
• Develops dashboards, trackers, and reporting tools to provide leaders visibility of personnel actions, staffing levels, readiness impacts, and workforce trends.
• Maintains J3 property accountability; supports GPC functions, workforce-engagement efforts, and corrective action for administrative discrepancies.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• Appointment may be subject to a suitability or fitness determination, as determined by a completed background investigation.
• Designated Tier 5, Special Sensitive (High Risk). Incumbent must obtain and maintain a Top Secret Security Clearance with Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) access as a condition of employment.
• This position is covered by the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Program. The incumbent must pass urinalysis testing, as required prior to appointment and periodically thereafter.
• This position has a Temporary Duty (TDY) or business travel requirement of 10% of the time.
• Per DoDM 8140.03, non-software/AI cyber roles must meet: 1) Foundational requirements in 9 months, 2) Resident requirements in 12 months, and 3) 20 hours of Continuous Professional Development (CPD) per work role code (overlapping allowed).

Qualifications

Who May Apply: US Citizens

In order to qualify, you must meet the experience requirements described below. 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). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Additional information about transcripts is in this document.

Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience in the Federal service which includes 1) serving as a senior advisor to a geographic combatant command J3 or comparable operational directorate, supporting operational synchronization, senior-leader engagements, executive-level briefings, and the coordination of internal command and Joint Staff taskings through the Enterprise Task Management Software Solution (ETMS2); 2) conducting complex civilian and military manpower, force-structure, organizational-design, and workforce-distribution analyses to assess Joint Table of Distribution (JTD), Joint Manning Document (JMD), and Joint Table of Manpower and Distribution (JTMD) requirements and recommend staffing, authorization, billet, skill-mix, and organizational changes aligned with USSOUTHCOM mission priorities; 3) interpreting and implementing Department of Defense, Joint Staff, and USSOUTHCOM personnel and manpower policies to develop Directorate-level compliance procedures, personnel-action trackers, workforce dashboards, and reporting tools that identify readiness impacts, staffing trends, and administrative risks; and 4) advising senior leadership on workforce planning, talent acquisition, performance management, training, awards, succession planning, property accountability, and workforce-engagement initiatives to improve Directorate readiness, organizational effectiveness, and mission execution.

Education

Some federal jobs allow you to substitute your education for the required experience in order to qualify. For this job, you must meet the qualification requirement using experience aloneno substitution of education for experience is permitted.

Additional information

• Male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must complete a Pre-Employment Certification Statement for Selective Service Registration.
• You will be required to provide proof of U.S. Citizenship.
• This position requires a 1 year probationary period during which the agency evaluates your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In making this determination, the agency may consider your performance and conduct; agency needs and interests; whether your continued employment supports organizational or Government goals; and whether it promotes the efficiency of the Federal service. Continued employment requires written certification that it advances the public interest.
• Direct Deposit of Pay is required.
• Selection is subject to restrictions resulting from Department of Defense referral system for displaced employees.
• If you have retired from federal service and you are interested in employment as a reemployed annuitant, see the information in the Reemployed Annuitant information sheet.
• This is a(n) Management & Program Analysis Career Field 26 position.
• Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement.
• Salary includes applicable locality pay or Local Market Supplement.
• When you perform a Civilian Permanent Change of Station (PCS) with the government, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) considers the majority of your entitlements to be taxable. Visit for more information.
• Permanent Change of Station (PCS) allowances may be authorized, subject to the provisions of the Joint Travel Regulations and an agency determination that a PCS move is in the Government Interest.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.