Systems Administrator

This notice is issued under direct-hire authority to recruit new talent to occupations for which NIST has a severe shortage of candidates.

Working as a Systems Administrator for the Office of Information Systems Management (OISM), Infrastructures Services Division, your key responsibilities will include: Infrastructure & Cloud Management: Implement technical solutions, manage cloud environments, and maintain CI/CD pipelines.

Deploy and manage cloud-based services and container orchestration platforms, identifying and resolving complex integration challenges. Operational Excellence: Independently apply established standard operating procedures (SOPs) and technical guidelines to resolve complex system issues.

Coordinate technical workflows to ensure the stability, security, and efficiency of centralized IT infrastructure across OISM and Information Technology Lab (ITL) National CyberSecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE).

Continuous Improvement: Analyze existing guidelines and workflows to recommend and implement measurable improvements in system performance and overall security posture. Collaboration & Communication: Maintain regular contact with IT staff, developers, and system users to coordinate technical initiatives and swiftly resolve service disruptions.

Present technical findings, project updates, and clear explanations of complex system issues to stakeholders, recommending data-driven courses of action.

Specialized Experience: Applicants must have one year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-11 level (ZP-III at NIST).

Specialized experience is defined as: Administering Windows server environments Implementing infrastructure automation (e.g., PowerShell, Python) Managing Active Directory services and managed vulnerability remediation processes 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. The qualification requirements in this vacancy announcement are based on the U.S.

Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook. If requesting reconsideration of your qualification determination, please refer to the following site: Applicant Reconsideration