Program Manager.

Bureau of Land Management; Sacramento (CA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

The Bureau of Land Management is seeking a senior manager to lead statewide land-use planning and program management for public lands in California. You will coordinate with the State Director to ensure sustainable public benefit and oversee multi-year budgets and policy development.

Qualified candidates will have extensive experience administering land management programs, supervising staff, and delivering strategic targets.

Qualifications

• At least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to GS-14 in federal service.
• Experience administering land management programs through subordinate supervisors.
• Experience managing budget operations including formulation and execution.

Responsibilities

• Directly or indirectly manage a large workforce of permanent and seasonal employees.
• Lead statewide land-use planning and program management collaboration with the State Director.
• Oversee full lifecycle program management and multi-year budgets.
• Develop SOPs and guidance to improve program performance.

Skills

Leadership

Budget management

Program management

Policy implementation

Strategic planning

Job description

Duties
Some of the major duties you will perform include but are not limited to the following:

• Manage directly or indirectly, through subordinate managers and supervisors, a large workforce of full-time permanent employees and a fluctuating workforce of seasonal and temporary employees in the accomplishment State's priorities.
• Interview candidates for positions; recommend appointment, promotion or assignment for positions; make or approve selections for subordinate non-supervisory positions; hear or resolve groups or individual grievances or serious complaints from employees; and effects disciplinary measures.
• Lead the planning, direction, and integrated management of statewide BLM-administered public lands in collaboration with the State Director to ensure long-term, sustainable public benefit.
• Oversee full lifecycle program management across assigned programs, including the formulation, justification, and execution of multi-year program budgets.
• Develop, update, and implement program policies, standard operating procedures (SOPs), and technical or operational guidance to improve program consistency and performance.
• Exercise delegated authority to make final statewide land‑use planning and programmatic decisions; resolve long‑range and operational issues affecting program execution; and ensure program activities maintain quality, consistency, and alignment with approved plans and performance standards.
• Anticipate shifts in priorities, workloads, and resource conditions; adapt plans and reallocate assets as necessary to maintain mission readiness and program continuity.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Direct Deposit participation required.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more, visit
• A financial disclosure report will be required within 30 days of appointment.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period to evaluate your fitness and whether your continuation of employment advances the public interest.
This probationary or trial period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.
Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary or trial period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and that their appointment should be finalized. In the absence of agency action to affirmatively certify continued employment beyond the probationary or trial period, such appointments are terminated. Upon completion of your probationary or trial period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.
This is a supervisory position that may require completion of a supervisory probationary period.

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement - 09/21/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. Competitive candidates must also meet Time-in-Grade requirements as defined in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F.
For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of specialized experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the work schedule requirement as the service dates will be reflected. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, your resume must state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience.
Minimum Qualification Requirements: To qualify for this position, you must meet the following minimum qualifications:

Experience

To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-14 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience: Examples of specialized experience may include: Administering a land management program through subordinate supervisors. Overseeing public lands planning and implementation, and/or administering natural resources programs in a multi-resource environment. Implementing policy and strategy for program operations and accomplishing strategic target goals. Monitoring progress toward strategic organizational goals, evaluating performance, and taking action to improve performance. Comprehensive knowledge of program evaluation and measurement technics to perform workforce planning. Experience managing budget operations, including budget formulation and execution. You must include hours per week worked on your resume.

Volunteer Experience

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 directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

This position does not allow substituting education for experience.

Additional information

Additional vacancies may be filled using this job announcement.
If otherwise eligible and qualified, you may be offered a recruitment or relocation incentive. The decision to offer an incentive will be made on a case-by-case basis and is neither promoted nor guaranteed. For information visit:
All DOI employees, their spouses, and minor children may not acquire or retain any claim, permit, lease, small tract entry, or other rights granted by the Department in Federal lands, with limited exceptions. Additional ethics prohibitions can be found here,
Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.
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.
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.