Federal Job

I’m in the Federal Government—Do I Really Need LinkedIn?

by

I frequently hear from my federal clients that they don’t need LinkedIn. Have you wondered if that’s true?

While I think it is fair to say that LinkedIn plays less of a role in federal hiring than it does in the private sector, I still think it’s value-add.

Here are 6 reasons why:

  1. The federal government is present on LinkedIn; jobs are posted there. While the vast majority of federal positions are also posted on USAJOBS.gov, many are also posted on LinkedIn. And many agencies use the recruiter function on LinkedIn to reach out to candidates.
  2. It’s a great way to research agencies—and find out who you might know. Looking for a new agency? Applying for your first federal job? LinkedIn is a great source of information about agencies; most have a presence. And you’ll likely find someone you know who works for that organization; it’s a great way to find real information about an agency.
  3. Some agencies (and certainly some hiring managers) will look for you on LinkedIn before they call you for an interview. You want to be easily found. Of course not all agencies or hiring managers do this but many do—whether they admit or not.
  4. Interview preparation. Getting ready for an interview? Find out who is on your interview panel and look them up on LinkedIn. It might provide you with some useful information that you can use during your interview.
  5. Networking is critical to your career. There are over 2.4M federal employees on LinkedIn. The Army alone has more than 500,000 employees on LinkedIn. The Air Force (USAF), Defense Department (DoD), Health and Human Services (HHS), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and the Postal Service (USPS), each have more than 100,000 employees who claim to work for those agencies—that’s another 600,000+ federal employees. And of course, that does not count the 220M users in the United States. Lots of possibilities.
  6. Establish yourself as an expert / get noticed. LinkedIn is a great place to showcase your experience and knowledge—as well as share the interesting things your agency is doing. I am not suggesting that you violate your agency’s ethics rules or share information that should not be shared; that still leaves you with plenty of other opportunities.

Looking for more information about LinkedIn? Check out our Resources which include bundles and ebooks about LinkedIn and more! You can also connect with and follow Solutions for the Workplace on LinkedIn too to stay up to date.

Do You Know There’s More Than One Way To Get A Federal Job?

by

While most federal jobseekers are focused on USAJOBS, there are dozens (and dozens) of approaches to get a federal job. You’ve already figured out that getting a federal job is complicated. And you may well know that veterans’ preference can be challenging—if you are not a veteran and trying to get your first federal position.

‍What do you need to know?

A) Not all positions require the use of veterans’ preference.

B) Some veterans may be eligible for as many as 4 different hiring eligibilities while others may be eligible for none.

C) There are many agency-specific hiring authorities; if you are a veterinarian, for example, or looking to work for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as an emergency specialist, or a healthcare provider looking to work for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)—just to name a few—the “standard” hiring process may not apply.

D) The Intelligence Community (IC), which includes 17 different agencies, has its own hiring process. And the IC hires a wide range of expertise, everything from security to STEM to intelligence analysis, contracting, computer science, and foreign language, to name a few. Here is a great place to start: https://www.intelligencecareers.gov/career-fields.

E) Lots of agencies have student internships (paid, too); the government also offers its Pathways Program for students still in school, recently graduated, and the prestigious Presidential Management Fellow (PMF) program. Start here for additional information: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/working-in-government/unique-hiring-paths/students/.

F) Other possible approaches (not inclusive) include being a military spouse, an individual with disabilities, a Native American (either American Indian or Alaska Native), a returning Peace Corps Volunteer, a former AmeriCorps volunteer, a current or former Department of State or Foreign Service Officer, to name a few. This can be complicated (as you can tell) and specific paperwork is required to establish your eligibility, but if you fall into one of these job categories, you should take advantage.

As you can see from the above, getting a federal job is about more than just applying through USAJOBS.gov. In some cases, you may not even need to use USAJOBS at all!! This is not easy to navigate and getting a federal job takes time (and likely multiple applications) but it IS doable. Good luck!

‍This post was written by Nancy Segal in collaboration with Federal Career Connection, Inc., an independently organized educational nonprofit organization who are grounded in community service and commitment to helping individuals in career transition. Learn more about the partnership by clicking here!

Are YOU Up-to-Date on Federal Hiring Flexibilities?

by

We have all heard that getting a federal job can be a laborious process. While that can certainly be true, federal agencies have more hiring flexibilities than ever before. If you are looking for a federal position, it behooves you to know that agencies can hire in multiple ways.

The flag of the United State of America in front a federal building.

While it is likely that not all the hiring flexibilities apply to your personal situation, nor are federal agencies not required to use these flexibilities—they may be available, depending upon your and the agency’s situation.

Here are some of the hiring flexibilities that exist. The appropriate use of these flexibilities is nuanced and varies for each authority/flexibility—this list is a good place to start.

  • Veterans’ authorities: Veterans Recruitment Act (VRA), 30+% compensable
  • Veterans Employment Opportunities Act (VEOA) and Veterans Opportunity to Work (VOW) Act
  • Military Spouse
  • Returning Peace Corps  and AmeriCorps Volunteers
  • Schedule A for People with Disabilities
  • Direct Hire (available for Contract Specialists, Cybersecurity Specialists, Veterinarians, among others)
  • STEM Hires (Economists, Biological Sciences, Fishery Biologists, General and Civil Engineers, Physical Scientists, Actuaries, Mathematics positions, Mathematical and regular Statisticians)
  • Reinstatement eligibles
  • 30-day appointments to positions for which a critical hiring need exists
  • 1-year, 1040-work hours per year appointments in remote/isolated locations
  • Temporary Appointments, not-to-exceed 120 days
  • Reemployed annuitants (when the retiree’s salary is offset by the annuity amount)
  • Contracting with private sector temporary firms
  • Student hires
  • Postal Career Service Employees*
  • Government Accountability Office*
  • Administrative Office of the US Courts*

* these positions are in the excepted service are not regulated by the Office of Personnel Management.

Again, the above list is not all-inclusive but meant to give you an idea of the myriad of ways that federal agencies can hire people. If you believe that any of these flexibilities might apply to your situation, reach out to an agency Human Resources Specialist for more details.

Getting a federal job does take time and effort but by understanding the process, you can make that process easier on everyone.

10 Steps to a Successful Job Search

by

Looking for a new job? If so, there are a number of things you should do before you submit your resume.

  1. Conduct informational interviews to learn about different jobs and organizations, and figure out what you want to do.
  2. Research organizations to identify those in your sweet spot—learn about their culture, mission, and values.
  3. Write a job search plan to hold yourself accountable; write down where you want to apply, how many applications you want to send out each day / week, how many people you will contact in your network each week, the time you will commit to networking each day, the resources you will use to help you prepare your career documents, etc.
  4. Once you have identified where you want to work and what you want to do, list your contacts so you can reach out to your network. Not sure you have the right contacts? There is where LinkedIn can help you see who you know who might be able to assist you.
  5. Draft your resume toward your target job(s). Make sure that your resume is appropriate for your career field, includes key words, focuses on the past 10 years, uses numbers to provide context to your work, accomplishments to demonstrate the value you have contributed to your employers, and a strong qualifications summary.
  6. Use your network to apply for positions you hear about, tweaking your resume each time to ensure it fits the specific announcement. If you can identify the hiring manager and find him/her on LinkedIn, read and respond to their posts. It’s OK to apply through job boards but do not make job boards your sole strategy.
  7. While you are waiting for responses, practice your interview skills.
  8. Follow up if you haven’t heard about your applications after 2-3 weeks.
  9. Don’t get discouraged. Job search takes time and in the current environment where many employers are still teleworking and the volume of applicants is high, it may take longer than usual to make the transition you want.
  10. Engage in self-care throughout the process. Job search is high stress. Don’t forget to do all of the things that you know you should: eat right, exercise, take breaks, engage with family and friends—and take time for yourself!

Are Your ECQs QRB-Ready?

by

Before you may be officially appointed to the Senior Executive Service (SES), your Executive Core Qualifications (ECQ) must be approved by an Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualifications Review Board (QRB). What do you have to do to ensure that your ECQs are ready? Follow these tips for a winning package:

  • Follow all formatting rules: 1-inch margins, 12-point font, and 10-page narrative limit. Number pages and don’t forget to include your name. There is no reason to include the competency definition.
  • Spell out your acronyms. Each time. Each ECQ should be readable as a standalone document.
  • Adhere to the CCAR model. Your ECQs should be written using the Challenge, Context, Actions, Results rubric. The focus should be on your executive actions and results.
  • No more than 2 stories per ECQ. Do not repeat stories. And make sure that your stories showcase your leadership achievements, not your technical acumen.
  • Use “I” throughout. Minimize the use of “we,” passive language, and third person.
  • Adhere to the time limits. All stories must be from the past 10 years; if possible, try to use stories from the past 5 years.
  • Do not name names. ECQs should name reference specific people.
  • Keep your personal philosophy, favorite leaders, and information about your “journey” to yourself.
  • Include all underlying competencies in your stories. For example, leading change should evidence vision, strategic thinking, innovation, flexibility, resiliency, and strategic thinking.
  • Be sure to align your stories to the ECQ definitions. And make sure that your examples demonstrate executive leadership, not managerial skills.
  • Remember that readers of your ECQs will not be from your agency. Be sure to make your ECQ stories understandable to people who do not know your agency or work.
  • Proofread, proofread, and proofread again.

Writing a strong set of ECQs takes time. Be prepared to spend 40-80 hours writing yours. And be sure to follow the rules! More information on ECQ writing can be found at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/senior-executive-service/reference-materials/guidetosesquals_2012.pdf.

When applying for a federal job, think like a hiring manager

by

Federal government hiring is based on hiring the best qualified, which makes it difficult to justify hiring people without all of the qualifications required and/or those whose experience is quite dated. For a successful job search, you need to be strategic about what you apply for. Do not waste your time applying for “everything;” instead, focus your efforts on those opportunities where you are a perfect (or nearly perfect) match for the stated criteria.

I wish I had a dollar for every time a client who complained: “If only they gave me a chance, I could prove I can do the job!” While I have no doubt that the comment is true, we are currently in a buyer’s market—where hiring managers have lots of choices to make among candidates. While it is certainly possible for a hiring manager to pick someone based on their potential (especially for jobs above the entry level), in my view, it is unrealistic to expect hiring managers to do this. Let’s think about this for a moment…

Most job postings specify the criteria the hiring organization is looking for—whether through specialized experience and the occupational questionnaires in the federal government, or in a section in a private section posting that says something along the lines of, “The ideal candidate will have…” All applicants should carefully review the qualifications required. If the posting asks for 10 years of experience and you have 6, you are not likely well qualified. Or, if your experience is in a different area all together, while again, you may the basic qualifications (like a degree), you are not likely to have the specialized experience required.

In most job sectors, organizations receive hundreds, if not thousands of applications. The first screen is of those who do not meet even most the basic qualifications (like the 10 years’ experience mentioned above). The next screen is for those who are a match for all of the criteria. While you may match half the criteria desired, from a hiring manager’s perspective, why should they pick YOU, when they can have someone who (at least on paper) is a 100% match? And from a fairness perspective, if they considered your application with only half the qualifications, they should also consider everyone else who has only half the qualifications…

A related question I receive is along the lines of, “I did exactly what they’re looking for 15 [or 20 or more] years ago, how come I’m not been called for an interview?” While in this circumstance you may have all of the qualifications, your experience is dated. And again, from a hiring manager’s perspective, would you want to talk to someone who is doing the job now, or someone who hasn’t done it in 15 or more years? Think like a hiring manager next time you apply for a federal job and increase your chances for an interview!