Program Manager (Center Director)

Full Job Description

This position is located in the Small Business Administration, Field Operations Center West - FOCW in Citrus Heights, CA.

As the Center Director, you will be responsible for planning, directing, managing, evaluating, and coordinating the implementation of the disaster loan program for all states west of the Mississippi River, American Samoa, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

Federal status applicants must meet both Time-In-Grade AND experience requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

However, if you have separated from the Federal Government for at least 52 weeks, you are not subject to the Time-in-Grade requirement.

Experience: To receive credit, you must indicate the month and year as well as the average hours worked per week for each employer.

Average work hours must be stated on the resume to quantify each period of work experience or that experience will not be credited toward meeting the specialized experience requirement.

You must address the specific specialized experience required for each grade level of this position on your resume or application or you will be rated "Ineligible" for that grade level.

GS-15: One year of specialized experience, equivalent to the GS-14 grade level in the Federal service, obtained in either the private or public sector: Developing or implementing and communicating the strategy, vision and direction of an organization; AND Overseeing, managing, or advising on the day-to-day operations of an organization or program; AND Analyzing and making recommendations or decisions on workload distribution.

Do not copy and paste the duties, specialized experience, or occupational assessment questionnaire from this announcement into your resume as that will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position.

Additional information on the qualification requirements is outlined in the OPM Qualifications Standards Handbook of General Schedule Positions.

It is available for your review on OPM's Qualifications web site: Program Management Series, GS-0340 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.

TIME-IN-GRADE: If you are a current career or career-conditional federal employee applying for promotion under Merit Promotion you must have completed a minimum of 52 weeks in positions at the next level lower than the position being filled All qualification requirements must be met by 11:59 pm (Eastern Time) on 03/19/2026.

Major Duties:

As a Program Manager (Center Director) at the GS-0340-15, some of your typical work assignments may include: Operation and staffing of Disaster Field Offices and Disaster Recovery Centers in cooperation with state, local and Federal officials.

Coordination and maintenance of a close working relationship with the Processing and Disbursing Center (PDC) and Disaster Lending Platform for the processing of loan applications from disaster survivors and the overall workflow.

Spokesperson to other government agencies, to top business and industry officials, and to Congressional staff and committees.

Coordination and acquisition of space, supplies, furnishing and equipment to meet the needs and goals of the FOCs response to major disasters.

Responsible for organizing damage surveys for disasters where administrative declarations by SBA has been requested.

Coordinates with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) where Presidential declarations have been requested.

Coordination with the Field Operation Center Director in developing procedures and processes to respond consistently to all types of disasters; reviews and evaluates the substantive work of the Centers to assure compliance with center quality standards; and develops and implements corrective actions as necessary.

Directly, or through subordinate staff, supervises Field Operations, Public Affairs, Information Technology (IT), and Administrative Support staff.