Summary

This position is located in the Office of Information Technology for Patents (OITP) , Office of Patent Automation (OPA), Office of the Commissioner for Patents, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) OPA is responsible for program and project management functions to ensure that the necessary functional and technical requirements are addressed in the development of automation tools and technologies needed to support improvements in Patents business operations.

Duties

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The physical worksite for this position is located in Alexandria, Virginia. Presence at the Alexandria, VA campus is required for this role, as it includes on site functions that must be performed in person. Position may be eligible for situational telework in accordance with agency policy/business unit discretion. The agency currently allows for 52 hours of telework per calendar year.

Major Duties for this position include:

• Directs the development and execution of the USPTO's strategic vision, goals, and priorities, ensuring alignment with internal stakeholder's objectives, modernization efforts, and long-term technology roadmaps.
• Serves as the Director, OPA, providing executive leadership, strategic direction, and oversight for enterprise-wide patent automation programs, products, services, and initiatives supporting the USPTO patent examination and business operations as well as represents the USPTO and OPA in interactions with external stakeholders, including the DOC, GAO, OIG, foreign intellectual property offices, the WIPO, industry groups, applicants, practitioners, vendors, contractors, and other federal agencies.
• Evaluates organizational performance and program effectiveness using performance metrics, data analytics, customer feedback, operational assessments, and continuous improvement practices; identifies risks and opportunities; and implements corrective actions and strategic improvements to enhance service delivery and mission outcomes.
• Leads the planning, design, development, implementation, modernization, enhancement, and sustainment of mission-critical patent automation systems, applications, data services, and technology solutions that support the end-to-end patent lifecycle, including filing, examination, classification, publication, issuance, post-grant processing, international obligations, and related business operations.
• Collaborates with senior executives, business unit leaders, legal counsel, technical organizations, and operational stakeholders across the USPTO to identify business needs, establish priorities, resolve complex issues, and advance strategic initiatives that support the agency's mission and objectives.
• Provides executive oversight of artificial intelligence (AI), including agentic approaches, to improve automation, efficiency, and operational effectiveness, machine learning, advanced analytics, automation, and emerging technology initiatives, including examiner-facing tools, prior art search capabilities, classification systems, workflow automation, fraud detection and mitigation capabilities, decision-support tools, and other innovations that improve patent quality, operational efficiency, and customer experience.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• Applications will only be accepted from United States Citizens and Nationals.
• Your resume and question responses must demonstrate the job-related competencies.
• You must meet the definition of specialized experience.
• Required to pass a background investigation and fingerprint check.
• Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (www.sss.gov).
• If selected, you may be required to complete a one year probationary period.
• You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.
• Time-in-grade/band requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.
• Suitable for Federal Employment.
• This position requires the completion of OGE-450 Financial Disclosure.

Qualifications

You must meet the United States Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) qualification requirements (including specialized experience and/or educational requirements) for the advertised position. You must meet all eligibility and qualifications requirements by the closing date of the job announcement. OPM Qualifications Standards are available at General Schedule Qualification Standards (opm.gov). For OPM Standards for 1220 series are available at Patent Administration Series 1220.

Specialized Experienceis experience that has equipped applicants with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the federal service. For this position, the next lower grade level is a GS-14.

Specialized experience for this position includes:

• Directing the planning and implementation of automation solutions for mission-critical systems.
• Applying expert knowledge of patent laws, regulations, policies, business processes, workflows, and examination operations to ensure information technology solutions effectively support the end-to-end patent lifecycle.
• Leading teams of federal employees and contractors through organizational change, workforce development, performance management, succession planning, training initiatives, policy development, process improvement efforts, and execution of mission-critical programs, projects, and operational activities.
• Providing leadership and oversight of enterprise information technology programs supporting the USPTO's mission objectives, including AI implementation.

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.

Education

Education may not be substituted for specialized experience at this grade level.

Additional information

If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System. If you are exempt from registration under Selective Service Law, you must provide appropriate proof of exemption. Please visit the Selective Service System website for more information.

This is a Non-Bargaining Unit position.

If selected for this position, you may be required to complete the Fair Credit Act Memo, which gives consent so that one or more consumer credit reports may be obtained for employment purposes.

This is a Public Trust position and has a risk level designation of "high risk."

Background Investigation - If selected for this position, you may be required to complete a Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306), which includes a fingerprint and credit check, to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background investigation.

Supervisory Probationary Period- If selected, you may be required to complete an initial one-year supervisory probationary period.

All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choice.

Relocation Expenses are not authorized and will not be paid.

CTAP candidates will be eligible for selection priority if it is determined that they have exceeded the minimum qualifications for the position by attaining at least a "well qualified" rating of 85 out of 100. Information about CTAP eligibility is on the Office of Personnel Management's Career Transition Resources website at: OPM CTAP/ICTAP.

CTAP documentation requirements are listed in the 'Required Documents' section of this announcement.

More than one selection may be made from this announcement if additional identical vacancies in the same title, series, grade, and unit occur within 90 days from the date the certificate was issued.

All application materials become the property of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.