Assessment and Authorization Specialist III - Remote Washington, DC Posted

The Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) advances the Department of Energy’s (DOE) mission by establishing and implementing policies, standards, and services that meet mission requirements, balance risk and innovation, and define clear performance expectations across the enterprise information ecosystem. The OCIO is committed to continuously improving information technology (IT) services and strengthening the Department’s cybersecurity posture to enable mission execution while ensuring responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars through efficient, effective, and innovative management practices.

The A&A Specialist III (Mid-Level) supports this mission by overseeing and conducting comprehensive assessments of security and privacy controls, identifying risks, and recommending corrective actions to ensure DOE systems meet all required cybersecurity and privacy standards. This position also oversees and responds to system- and security-related data calls, research, and analysis as requested from DOE.

• Oversee and lead comprehensive assessments of implemented security and privacy controls and control enhancements to determine effectiveness, including whether controls are implemented correctly, operating as intended, and producing desired outcomes.

• Lead the evaluation and documentation of the severity of deficiencies identified during assessments and provide proper oversight and guidance in recommending appropriate corrective actions to mitigate vulnerabilities.

• Lead preparation of detailed security and privacy assessment reports outlining results, findings, and recommendations, and deliver these to Team Leaders for review and decision-making.

• Oversee the assessment of controls in accordance with assessment procedures defined in approved assessment plans.

• Oversee and conduct initial remediation actions on deficient controls and perform reassessments on remediated controls to validate effectiveness.

• Assess both system-specific and inherited controls as part of the Department’s continuous monitoring strategy.

• Apply comprehensive knowledge to multiple complex assignments and contribute to deliverables and performance metrics as required.

• Oversee assessments of existing and new NIST and FISMA systems, including subsystems within respective system boundaries, communicate results, articulate potential implications of identified control weaknesses, and work to document through artifacts and documentation.

• Lead and oversee assessments within Cloud environments such as SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS, and systems and platforms within an on-prem environment.

• Lead and oversee the review, analysis, and creation of Assessment & Authorization (A&A) packages to include Assessment Readiness Workbooks (ARW), Security Assessment Plans (SAP), Security Assessment Reports (SARs), and Risk Assessments for completeness, accuracy, and effectiveness of controls.

• Lead and oversee the review, analysis, and creation of findings packages outlining identified findings, weaknesses, remediation, and provide an overview during findings meeting reviews.

• Oversee the review of significant system change requests, deviation requests, and provide oversight and leadership on potential system or system security impacts.

• Review and analyze vulnerability scan reports, test reports, and Plan of Action & Milestones (POA&Ms), Hardware/Software lists, Network Diagrams, Data Flows, System Change Requests/Proposal, for completeness, accuracy, effectiveness of controls, and plans and procedures implementation.

• Review identified and documented findings and provide oversight, leadership, and recommendations to support documentation, rationalization, and subsequent remediation efforts.

• Oversee and lead…