Chief Propulsion Division

September 10, 2024

Job Description

Summary

Serves as Chief, Propulsion Division for Glenn Research Center (GRC) and is responsible for the managing and leading the division that provides technical expertise in research, analysis, trade studies, development and flight of propulsion systems and subsystems for aeronautics and space applications.

This job is open to

  • Senior executives
    Those who meet the five Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs).
  • The public
    U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

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Duties

The Chief Propulsion Division:

  • Leads and manages the division to provide all research, discipline engineering, and system analysis capabilities for aeronautical and space propulsion, fluids and combustion physics for normal and reduced gravity conditions, and thermal and fluids discipline support to the directorate’s power, communications, and materials and structures development competencies. These propulsion systems are applicable across a wide range of programs and projects and support activities from conceptual design to flight system development.
  • Plans, coordinates, and evaluates the work of the division including managing programmatic and organizational areas.
  • Leads the division in providing the expertise for research, analysis, trade studies, development and flight propulsion systems, and subsystems for aeronautics and space applications.
  • Manages all research, discipline engineering, and system analysis capabilities needed for fluids and combustion physics for normal and reduced gravity conditions.
  • Develops innovative design and analysis tools, experimental test techniques, and capabilities to maintain and enhance the Center’s leadership in propulsion technology.
  • Advocates for resources to ensure strong technical capability in strategic area consistent with the Center’s roles and mission.
  • Provides budgetary oversight of areas of responsibility within the division.
  • Serves as chair or member of various Agency and/or Center and external boards, panels, working groups, and/or committees, as needed or requested.
  • Fosters and continually drives a culture of engagement, diversity, inclusiveness, excellence, and innovation within and outside of the organization and NASA. Champions the Agency’s commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) and creates an environment and culture that promotes and enables the Agency’s commitment to safety, inclusion, integrity, teamwork, and excellence.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

  • The individual selected will be required to file an ‘Executive Branch Personnel Financial Disclosure Report’ (OGE-278) in accordance with the Ethics in Government Act of 1978.
  • Initial Senior Executive Service (SES) Career appointee is subject to a one-year probationary period.
  • Successful completion of a background investigation commensurate with the risk and sensitivity level of the position.
  • Successful completion of pre-employment and random drug testing may be required.
  • Must meet qualifications requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Qualifications

As a basic requirement for entry into the Senior Executive Service (SES), you must clearly articulate and describe within your five (5)-page resume evidence of progressively responsible supervisory, managerial, or professional experience which involved management of a program or organization of significant scope and complexity, normally obtained over several years by serving in positions at the GS-15 level or equivalent. Your resume must not exceed the five (5) page limit, any additional pages over the page limit will not be considered.

Your resume must provide information regarding your professional experience and accomplishments that demonstrate your ability to perform the duties of this position and meet the five Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs). In addition, you must provide a separate narrative response to each of the Mandatory Technical Qualifications (MTQs) described below. Your narrative responses must not exceed one (1) page per MTQ, and you must upload all MTQ responses in one document. If you fail to do so, your application will be rated ineligible.

If you are currently serving under a career SES appointment, are eligible for reinstatement into the SES (this means you were previously employed as a Career SES employee and you successfully completed a one-year probationary period) or have successfully completed a SES Candidate Development Program and been certified by OPM, you MUST submit a resume and in a separate document address the MTQs. Your resume must clearly state that you are a current career SES, eligible for reinstatement, or SES CDP certified and year of certification.

Please DO NOT submit separate documents addressing the ECQs. Only your five (5) page resume and one (1) page narrative response to each MTQ will be accepted and considered. Any additional documents submitted will not be accepted.

EXECUTIVE CORE QUALIFICATIONS:

ECQ 1 – Leading Change: 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. Leadership Competencies: Creativity and Innovation, External Awareness, Flexibility, Resilience, Strategic Thinking, Vision

ECQ 2 – Leading People: 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. Leadership Competencies: Conflict Management, Leveraging Diversity, Developing Others, Team Building

ECQ 3 – Results Driven: 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. Leadership Competencies: Accountability, Customer, Decisiveness, Entrepreneurship, Problem Solving, Technical Credibility

ECQ 4 – Business Acumen: The ability to manage human, financial, and information resources strategically. Leadership Competencies: Financial Management, Human Capital Management, Technology Management

ECQ 5 – Building Coalitions: The ability to build coalitions internally and with other Federal agencies, State and local governments, nonprofit and private sector organizations, foreign governments, or international organizations to achieve common goals. Leadership Competencies: Partnering, Political Savvy, Influencing/Negotiating

MANDATORY TECHNICAL QUALIFICATIONS:

MTQ 1- Demonstrated experience in leading and managing research, analysis, trade studies, and development of propulsion systems and subsystems for aeronautics and space applications such as airbreathing, combined cycle, rocket, electric aircraft and in-space electric, and advanced propulsion.

MTQ 2- Demonstrated experience in leading, directing, and/or managing a multidisciplinary research and engineering organization, including development and advocacy for new programs/projects and working with multiple stakeholders.

Your application package must be in your own words. Experience statements copied from a position description, vacancy announcement, or other reference material constitutes plagiarism and may result in disqualification and losing consideration for the job. NASA prohibits the use of artificial intelligence (AI) or AI-assisted tool in drafting application and assessment responses. Please visit https://www.nasa.gov/careers/how-to-apply/#Artificial-Intelligence to review NASA’s guidance on the use of AI tools during the application process.

RESOURCES

Additional information about the SES and ECQs can be found on the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) SES Website.

When preparing your resume-based application, you are encouraged to review OPM’s Guide to Senior Executive Service Qualifications. A sample 5-page resume can be found on page 30 of the reference document.

Education

This position has a positive education requirement. To be eligible, you must clearly state in your resume the following: degree, major and/or minor, and college/university.

A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university with major study in engineering, physical science, mathematics, life sciences, computer science, or other field of science.

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a credential evaluation service that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs. These education credentials must be deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, click here.

Additional information

Must be able to obtain and maintain a Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information security clearance.

  • Benefits
    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.
    Review our benefits
    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.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

All qualifications requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.

We will review your resume and required documents to ensure you meet the basic qualification requirements. If you meet the basic qualification requirements, your application will be referred to and evaluated by an executive panel. Highly Qualified applicants may undergo one or more interviews and/or be asked to provide a list of references or additional documents to confirm eligibility and qualifications.

If selected, you may be required to submit an ECQ narrative statement or be prepared to undergo a structured interview with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualifications Review Board (QRB).

  • Benefits
    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.
    Review our benefits
    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.
  • Required Documents
    As a new or existing federal employee, you and your family may have access to a range of benefits. Your benefits depend on the type of position you have – whether you’re a permanent, part-time, temporary or an intermittent employee. You may be eligible for the following benefits, however, check with your agency to make sure you’re eligible under their policies.
    NASA’s application process has been specifically developed to ensure that we only ask you for the information we absolutely need to evaluation your qualifications and eligibility. The application process for this announcement is the resume-based method. Only provide the following documents:
    1. Five (5)-page resume, which includes information regarding your professional experience and accomplishments that demonstrate you meet the ECQs.
    2. Narrative response to the MTQs, which cannot exceed one (1) page per MTQ.

    Please include your full name on all documents. Any additional pages over the page limit (5 pages for resume and 1 page per MTQ), will not be considered. You may be asked to provide additional documentation to support your eligibility and the information provided in your application package. For example, we may request transcripts, SF-50s, SES Candidate Development Program certificate, etc. Therefore, we encourage you to have these documents prepared and ready when requested by the agency. If you fail to provide the required documents within the stated time period, we may withdraw a job offer and/or remove you from further consideration.
    Failure to provide all the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in removal from consideration.

  • How to Apply
    To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section.
    A complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration.
    • To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application.
    • Follow the prompts to select your resume and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
    • After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.
    • You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included