Correspondence Analyst

Washington Headquarters Services • Arlington, VA

5d

About The Position

The Correspondence Analyst serves in the Correspondence Analysis Branch (CAB) within Washington Headquarters Services, supporting the Secretary of War and senior leadership. CAB oversees unclassified official correspondence, staff packages, military nominations, and CATMS records management for Department of War components. The analyst works on a rotating shift basis and manages unclassified correspondence and staff action packages addressed to or from the Secretary of Defense, Deputy Secretary of Defense, and Executive Secretary. The role includes analyzing, controlling, tasking, tracking, routing, dispatching, and archiving correspondence and ensuring appropriate coordination and timely handling of priority actions. The position also includes final review of outgoing correspondence, management of high-priority congressional inquiries and White House referrals, interpretation of DoD correspondence policy, quality-control audits, and maintenance of the CATMS CMD organizational structure. This is an operational role that requires shift work and may require evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime, unusual hours, and on-call readiness during off-duty periods.

Requirements

• U.S. citizenship is required.
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a Top Secret security clearance; a Special Background Investigation is required with favorable adjudication.
• Must meet the GS-12 qualification requirement of one year of specialized experience equivalent to GS-11 in Federal service or the private sector.
• Specialized experience must include analyzing complex correspondence to determine action offices, coordinators, and suspense dates while using an automated correspondence and task management system to control, route, and archive official records.
• Specialized experience must include independently managing suspense actions, monitoring progress, reconciling discrepancies, and liaising between action officers and senior leadership to complete priority tasking accurately and on time.
• Specialized experience must include applying correspondence management policies, such as DoD manuals for written material, information security marking requirements, and addressee identification, to quality-review outgoing packages for procedural, grammatical, and security compliance.
• Must satisfy Selective Service registration or exemption requirements if applicable.
• May be required to successfully complete a probationary or trial period; the position specifies a one-year probationary period.
• Must be determined suitable for Federal employment and participate in direct deposit.
• Subject to pre-employment and random drug testing and the DoD Priority Placement Program.
• Must perform shift work and may be required to work evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime, unusual hours, or unscheduled hours with little or no advance notice; must be on call during off-duty periods.
• All qualification requirements and time-in-grade requirements must be met by the announcement closing date and documented in the resume.
• Resume may not exceed two pages; applicants are advised to include months and hours worked per week for each employment entry.
• Education cannot be substituted for experience.

Responsibilities

• Manage unclassified correspondence and staff action packages coming into and leaving the CMD that are addressed to or from the Secretary of Defense, Deputy Secretary of Defense, and Executive Secretary; analyze, control in CATMS, task, set suspense dates, route to the office of primary responsibility, dispatch, and archive them.
• Establish and implement unclassified correspondence procedures for analysts.
• Coordinate, staff, and execute priority actions and actions of particular interest to the Executive Secretary, ensuring timely, cohesive, and accurate support.
• Analyze correspondence from the President, White House staff, Congress, and foreign officials to determine offices of primary responsibility, set suspense timelines, and verify CATMS metadata for executive tracking.
• Reconcile the weekly Secretary of Defense Correspondence Action Report (SD 391), update stoplight coordination and monthly performance reports, and arbitrate tasking disputes among OSD, Joint Staff, and Military Services.
• Perform final review of outgoing correspondence signed by the Secretary of Defense, Deputy Secretary of Defense, and Executive Secretary; coordinate timed releases with the Executive Support Branch and dispatch correspondence via diplomatic pouch, courier, or secure digital channels.
• Manage, task, and track high-priority congressional inquiries and White House referrals, coordinating with legislative staff and the Assistant Secretary of War for Legislative Affairs to ensure rapid-response compliance.
• Serve as the authoritative editor and interpreter of DoD Manual 5110.04-M (Manual for Written Material), conduct quality-control audits, and administer configuration changes to the CATMS CMD organizational structure.

Benefits

• Federal employee benefits package available to the employee and family; specific benefits depend on position type and should be confirmed with the hiring agency.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed