Senior Systems Engineer / Architect

Full Job Description

This position is located in IT DIR OFFICE, ACCOUNTING SERVICES, MOCAS SYSTEM, MOCAS PROGRAMMING BRANCH, ZTCEB Defense Finance and Accounting Services (DFAS) mission is to lead the Department of Defense (DoD) in finance and accounting by ensuring the delivery of efficient, exceptional quality pay and financial information.

* If selected, this position title will read IT CYBERSECURITY SPECIALIST (APPSW).

Resumes for federal government positions need more detailed work descriptions and accomplishments than a typical private sector resume.

Please be sure to clearly describe the full scope of your work experiences in your resume.

Basic Requirement: Applicants must have IT-related experience demonstrating the following competencies appropriate to, or above, the level of this position.

Your resume and work experience should clearly support your ability to meet these competencies and will be evaluated as part of the entire application process.

Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.

Customer Service - Works with clients and customers (that is, any individuals who use or receive the services or products that your work unit produces, including the general public, individuals who work in the agency, other agencies, or organizations outside the Government) to assess their needs, provide information or assistance, resolve their problems, or satisfy their expectations; knows about available products and services; is committed to providing quality products and services.

Oral Communication - Expresses information (for example, ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information (for example, technical, sensitive, controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately.

Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.

AT THE GS-12 LEVEL: In addition to the Basic Competency Requirements listed above, one year of specialized experience equivalent in level of difficulty and responsibility to that of the next lower grade GS-11 in the federal service, which demonstrates the ability to perform the duties of the position, is required.

Specialized experience is defined as serving as a systems engineer/architect on current software platforms (e.g., mainframe) and future software platforms (e.g., web, cloud).

Experience must include analyzing system requirements and developing and securing software, APIs, or data exchange interfaces using a range of technologies (e.g., COBOL, JCL, Assembler, Java, Python).

This role requires experience in troubleshooting and resolving software and system issues in both current and modern environments.

AT THE GS-13 LEVEL: In addition to the Basic Competency Requirements listed above, one year of specialized experience equivalent in level of difficulty and responsibility to that of the next lower grade GS-12 in the federal service, which demonstrates the ability to perform the duties of the position, is required.

Specialized experience is defined as serving as a senior systems engineer/architect on current software platforms (e.g., mainframe) and future software platforms (e.g., web, cloud).

Experience must include leading the analysis of complex system engineering solutions across a wide range of technologies (e.g., COBOL, JCL, Assembler, Java, Python), and developing and securing software, APIs, and data exchange interfaces for transitional systems.

This role requires experience in troubleshooting and resolving complex issues in both current and modern environments and contributing to architectural design decisions.

Volunteer Experience: 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 to paid employment.

You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

You may qualify for consideration if meeting time-in grade, specialized experience, education requirement, 90 days after competitive appointment requirement, and all other qualification requirements within 30 calendar days after the closing date of the announcement, unless otherwise indicated on the announcement.

We may use this announcement to fill additional vacancies within 90 days of the closing date. Major Duties:

• Serves as a senior engineer/architect responsible for engineering solutions to stabilize and/or modernize a large-scale mainframe-based system.
• Leads the effort to analyze complex business problems, breaking them down into manageable components and designing improved systems to solve them.
• Applies deep knowledge of both mainframe (e.g., COBOL, JCL) and current software technologies (e.g., Java/C#, Python, Cloud) to sustain, enhance, re-engineer, and migrate application components.
• Develops and maintains critical interfaces and APIs between the mainframe system and new platforms, ensuring data integrity and system interoperability.
• Designs, implements, and manages Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) pipelines to automate application builds, testing, and deployment.
• Integrates security scanning and compliance checks directly into the development workflow, championing DevSecOps best practices to enhance system security and accelerate delivery.
• Troubleshoots and resolves the most complex system design, software, and integration problems that arise during the stabilization and/or modernization process.
• Acts as a key resource for responding to high-level problem reports, identifying systemic defects, and implementing lasting solutions. Provides technical guidance and mentorship to junior developers on the team.
• Ensures all development and engineering activities comply with applicable DoD and agency standards, security protocols, and established SOPs.
• Reviews technical documentation and industry best practices to recommend and implement improvements to the software development lifecycle.