Operations Research Analyst

Summary

This position is part of the Defense Human Resources Activity. The incumbent will collaborate with team members to plan and execute the full analytic lifecycle. Must also be able to help design and build user focused analytics. Must possess curiosity, creativity, flexibility, focus, and attention to detail while working with partners throughout the enterprise and Department.

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Duties

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As a Operations Research Analyst at the GS-1515-13 some of your typical work assignments may include:

• Perform advanced data analytics and modeling for assigned projects under the general direction of senior analysts or the supervisor, applying established analytical techniques to defined problems.
• Design, build, and maintain data pipelines and analytic tools, following established data engineering standards and reproducibility practices.
• Develop user-focused analytics and decision-support products to inform PRMA decision makers and policy analysts, with review by senior staff.
• Engage with stakeholders to clarify analytic requirements, prepare briefings, reports, and visualizations, and communicate results for assigned projects.
• Contribute to the management of a research portfolio-including cyber workforce and installation mapping analyses-by supporting project planning, tracking, and reporting, and assisting senior staff in evaluating new tools and methodologies.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. citizen
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service
• Resume and supporting documents (See How To Apply)
• Suitable for Federal employment, determined by a background investigation
• May be required to successfully complete a probationary period
• Work Schedule: Full Time
• Overtime: Occasionally
• Tour of Duty: Flexible
• Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
• Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA): Exempt
• Financial Disclosure: Required
• Telework Eligibility: This position is telework eligible

Qualifications

You may qualify at the GS-13, if you fulfill the following qualifications:

A. One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level in the Federal service:

• Experience applying advanced data analytics, statistical modeling, and machine learning techniques (e.g., regression, clustering, NLP) to support organizational decision-making, under the guidance of senior staff.
• Experience contributing to the analytic lifecycle, including data ingestion, preparation, feature engineering, modeling, validation, and delivery of results for assigned projects.
• Experience designing, building, and maintaining data pipelines and analytic tools, including the use of version control software (e.g., GitLab) to ensure reproducibility and documentation.
• Experience engaging with stakeholders to clarify analytic requirements and communicating results through briefings, written reports, and data visualizations (e.g., Tableau, Power BI).
• Experience contributing to the management of analytic projects or research portfolios, including planning, tracking, and reporting on project progress.

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). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

In addition to meeting qualifications, your application package must reflect the applicable experience to meet the Individual Occupational Requirements for the 1515 series.

B. Basic Education Requirement: A Bachelor's Degree or higher in operations research; OR at least 24 semester hours in a combination of operations research, mathematics, probability, statistics, mathematical logic, science, or subject- matter courses requiring substantial competence in college-level mathematics or statistics. At least 3 of the 24 semester hours must have been in calculus.

NOTE: Courses acceptable for qualifying for operations research positions may have been taken in departments other than Operations Research, e.g., Engineering (usually Industrial Engineering), Science, Economics, Mathematics, Statistics, or Management Science. The following are illustrative of acceptable courses: optimization; mathematical modeling; queueing theory; engineering; physics (except descriptive or survey courses); eco