General Counsel

Duties

As General Counsel, you will be responsible for duties to include, but are not limited to:

Develops and provides comprehensive legal advice and support to the USAGM Chief Executive Officer, Chief Legal Officer and executive leadership:

• Renders and/or oversees the development of authoritative legal opinions, oral and written, on an exceptionally broad range of complex legal issues and problems requiring knowledge and experience in many diverse legal areas.
• Advises on laws, regulations, Congressional legislation, etc. which may affect the USAGM's mission and function, including probable impact of new or revised legislation and recommends agency course of action.
• Evaluates new and proposed legislation and foreign affairs initiatives to identify those that may impact on the Agency, the Agency, and the entities it oversees. Develops analyses of these and formulates and recommends policy options, implementing procedures and possible resources.
• Drafts or reviews proposed legislation affecting the agency's relationships with the entities it oversees, including the grantee organizations.
• Drafts or reviews charters and enabling legislation for special entities as may be required by USAGM to pursue specific goals or achieve specific objectives.
• Reviews the implementing procedures for these entities for legal adequacy and sufficiency.
• Answers questions over interpretation of legal authorities and represents the agency on legal matters pertaining to the interpretation and execution of its enumerated, unique and complex statutory authorities.
• Drafts or reviews USAGM policies and procedures relating to its multiple and complex authorities and functions, and assures compliance with all pertinent laws and regulations, including, among others, the Ethics in Government Act, the Government in the Sunshine Act, the Freedom of Information Act, and the Privacy Act.
• Provides advice and guidance on all aspects of the agency's operations and resolves legal and policy problems pertaining to the non- military radio, television and digital media broadcasting services of the U.S. Government and related domestic and overseas activities.
• Reviews proposed contracts, memoranda of understanding, and other agreements involving matters pertaining to non-delegable authorities of USAGM to assure that such agreements are adequately drawn to protect the interests of the U.S. and the USAGM.
• Participates with the USAGM CEO and other high-ranking officials in overall policy formulation and program planning for the agency.

Represents the CEO, Chief Legal Officer, and USAGM in dealings with other federal agencies including the Justice Department and the Department of State on all legal matters.

Exercises delegated authority to oversee planning, direction, and timely execution of OGC organization and programs, including development, assignment, and higher-level clearance of goals and objectives for OGC executives, supervisors, and managers.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• U.S. citizenship is required.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• You will be required to complete a pre-employment security investigation and background check for the security level designated for this position.
• This position is not eligible for inclusion in a bargaining unit.
• All federal employees are required to have direct deposit.
• You may be subject to a one-year probationary period effective from the date in which you are appointed unless this probationary period has already been served.
• Selected candidate will be required to submit Executive Branch Personnel Public Financial Disclosure Report, OGE Form 278.
• Veterans' preference is not applicable to the Senior Executive Service.
• You must meet all minimum qualifications to be deemed eligible. Only experience obtained by closing date of this announcement will be considered.

Qualifications

To meet minimum qualification requirements for this position, applicants must provide evidence of progressively responsible leadership experience that is indicative of senior executive level management capability and directly related to the skills and abilities outlined under the Mandatory Technical Qualifications (MTQs) and Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) .

All applicants MUST submit written narrative responses addressing each Mandatory Technical Qualification (MTQ) and Executive Core Qualification (ECQ) separately. When preparing your responses to the MTQs and ECQs, you are encouraged to follow the Challenge, Context, Action and Result model outlined in the OPM's Guide to Senior Executive Service Qualifications . Your examples should be clear and concise, and emphasize your level of responsibilities, scope of complexity of programs managed, and program accomplishments including the results of your actions. ECQ narrative statements may not exceed ten (10) pages; MTQs may not exceed two (2) pages . Please included your full name on all documents submitted.

You must upload your written narrative responses to MTQs and EQCs to your application package. Failure to meet the basic qualification requirement and address all Mandatory Technical and Executive Core Qualification factors will result in your application being disqualified.

Note: Current career SES members, former career SES members with reinstatement eligibility, and SES Candidate Development Program graduates who have been certified by OPM do NOT need to provide ECQs narratives.

MANDATORY TECHNICAL QUALIFICATIONS (MTQ): Mandatory for all applicants.

All applicants must submit a written narrative response to the following MTQs. You must address each MTQ separately. Each MTQ narrative must not exceed two (2) pages. Please give examples and explain the complexity of the knowledge possessed and the sensitivity of the issued you handled.

MTQ 1: Professional Legal Acumen - This requires graduation from an American Bar Association accredited law school and current possession of an active bar membership in good standing, which permits the practice of law in the United States. This qualification also requires:

• Experience in a senior legal position in an organization with demonstrated proficiency in analyzing complex and novel legal problems and formulating solutions by application of sound and thorough legal analysis.
• Expert legal research and writing skills to ensure that written opinions have sound precedent value and can withstand scrutiny by opposing interests.
• Knowledge of comprehensive and relevant Federal laws and court decisions, Comptroller General Decisions, and similar policies and procedures related to a broad range of administrative functions such as contracting, personnel, and security, as well as radio, television and digital media communications.
• Demonstrated ability to successfully provide legal advice and opinions at the executive level, including conveying complex legal information in an easily understood way to managers, whose knowledge base of the subject in question may be limited in scope.

MTQ 2: Specialized Legal Acumen - This qualification requires experience related to legal issues in one or more of the following areas of law: federal civil litigation, labor law, employment law, contracts law, fiscal appropriation law, and laws relating to the Privacy Act and Freedom of Information Act, substantive knowledge of Congress and the legislative process and/or media, journalism, and mass communications, intellectual property, copyright law, "fair use", plagiarism, freedom of speech, defamation of character, liability, confidentiality, and protection of sources.

EXECUTIVE CORE QUALIFICATIONS: Mandatory for all competitive applicants.

All applicants must submit a written narrative response to each of the following ECQs. Your narrative must address each ECQ separately, should contain at least two examples describing your experiences and results; and demonstrate the underlying competencies in the narrative. Your ECQ narrative responses must not exceed 10 pages.

ECQ 1 - LEADING CHANGE: This core qualification involves the ability to bring about strategic change, both within and outside the organization, to meet organizational goals. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to establish an organizational vision and to implement it in a continuously changing environment. Competencies: Creativity and Innovation, External Awareness, Flexibility, Resilience, Strategic Thinking, Vision.

ECQ 2 - LEADING PEOPLE: This core qualification involves the ability to lead people toward meeting the organization's vision, mission and goals. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to provide an inclusive workplace that fosters the development of others, facilitates cooperation and teamwork, and supports constructive resolution of conflicts. Competencies: Conflict Management, Leveraging Diversity, Developing Others, Team Building.

ECQ 3 - RESULTS DRIVEN: This core qualification involves the ability to meet organizational goals and customer expectations. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to make decisions that produce high quality results by applying technical knowledge, analyzing problems, and calculating risks. Competencies: Accountability, Customer Service, Decisiveness, Entrepreneurship, Problem Solving, Technical Credibility.

ECQ 4 - BUSINESS ACUMEN: This core qualification involves the ability to manage human, financial, and information resources strategically. Competencies: Financial Management, Human Capital Management, Technology Management.

ECQ 5 - BUILDING COALITIONS: This core qualification involves the ability to build coalitions internally and with other Federal agencies, State and local governments, nonprofit and private sector organizations, or international organizations to achieve common goals. Competencies:

Education

This position has a Basic Requirement of a J.D degree (under certain circumstances holders of LL.M, or LL. B degrees may meet the requirement if those degrees authorize them practice law in the United States.

Applicant must be a graduate from a full course of study in a School of Law accredited by the American Bar Association and be an active member in good standing of the bar of a state, territory of the United States, the District of Columbia or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

Additional Information

Actual salary for Senior Executive Service positions may vary depending on the scope and the complexity of the qualifications and current compensation of the selectee.

Veteran's Preference does not apply to the Senior Executive Service.

Applicants must meet all of the qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

This vacancy has been amended to extend closing date.