Senior AV/VTC Engineer and Technical Lead

Position Summary
vTech is seeking a Senior AV/VTC Engineer and Technical Lead to lead onsite video teleconference services supporting USDA ARS, NASS, NAL, and other organizations within the Research, Education and Economics Mission Area. The Senior Engineer will lead installation, configuration, programming, testing, operation, maintenance, troubleshooting, documentation, and lifecycle planning for enterprise audiovisual and video-conferencing systems. The role provides technical leadership to two IT Engineers and serves as a principal technical interface with USDA stakeholders.
Essential Responsibilities

• Lead daily AV/VTC operations and guide the two assigned IT Engineers across USDA facilities.
• Lead preparation of technical documentation for operation, configuration, testing, maintenance, and support of VTC and analog/digital video systems.
• Facilitate setup, testing, operation, monitoring, and closeout of videoconferences, executive webinars, lockup meetings, presentations, and special events.
• Provide real-time technical support for lockup meetings during which Internet access is blocked until a specified release time.
• Support large Microsoft Teams and Zoom for Government webinars moderated by agency senior leadership.
• Install, configure, program, integrate, test, maintain, and troubleshoot enterprise AV/VTC systems and related infrastructure.
• Lead meeting-space site surveys, gather stakeholder requirements, document agency configuration and support constraints, and recommend compatible technologies.
• Lead the AV/VTC lifecycle from initial customer engagement and design through installation, testing, transition, operation, maintenance, and continual improvement.
• Diagnose system errors and recurring problems; document troubleshooting, root causes, corrective actions, and preventive measures.
• Develop and maintain SOPs, technical standards, room profiles, configuration records, test procedures, operational checklists, user guides, and maintenance documentation.
• Perform and oversee room-readiness checks and preventive maintenance before scheduled meetings.
• Provide technical and operational guidance to USDA customers and ensure compatibility with USDA Client Experience Center standards and requirements.
• Contribute to the VTC maintenance and lifecycle plan, including future-state options, estimated costs, and return-on-investment considerations.
• Support meeting calendars, biweekly status reports, routine checklists, user-training materials, and other required deliverables.
• Identify technical risks, dependencies, capacity issues, aging equipment, and potential service interruptions and communicate them to the Project Manager.
• Maintain accurate, complete, grammatically correct, and contract-compliant documentation while safeguarding sensitive USDA information.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and at least 10 years of relevant telecommunications engineering or closely related experience when billed under the recommended Schedule LCAT.
• Demonstrated experience leading personnel who prepare operational, configuration, and test documentation for VTC and analog/digital video systems.
• Demonstrated real-time technical support for lockup meetings where Internet access is restricted until a specified time.
• Demonstrated experience supporting Microsoft Teams and Zoom for Government during large webinars moderated by agency senior leadership.
• Demonstrated experience leading and performing site surveys for meeting-space renovations and translating stakeholder needs into compatible solutions.
• Hands-on AV/VTC lifecycle experience spanning design, installation, programming or configuration, testing, operations, and maintenance.
• Field experience with Cisco, Crestron, AMX, Polycom, InFocus, VoIP, or comparable enterprise AV/VTC technologies.
• Working knowledge of AVIXA/InfoComm standards and video, audio, control, display, signal-routing, and conferencing technologies.
• Ability to develop detailed SOPs, test records, configuration documents, user guides, maintenance procedures, diagrams, and technical reports.
• Exceptional customer-facing presentation, writing, and interpersonal skills; proficiency with Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and Adobe Acrobat.
• Valid state-issued driver's license, proof of vehicle insurance, eligibility to work with USDA, and ability to travel among National Capital Region facilities.

Preferred Qualifications

• AVIXA Certified Technology Specialist (CTS).
• CompTIA Security+ or applicable DoD 8570-aligned certification.
• Manufacturer certification or formal training in Crestron, Cisco collaboration, AMX, Poly, Microsoft Teams Rooms, or Zoom Rooms.
• Prior USDA, federal-agency, executive-event, embargoed-information, or production-data-release support experience.
• Experience preparing lifecycle-cost, technology-refresh, cost-benefit, or ROI analyses.

Security and Access Requirements

• Ability to obtain USDA facility-access approval and applicable PIV/LincPass authorization.
• Completion of required USDA Cyber Security and Privacy training.
• Compliance with visitor pre-notification, workforce-integrity, and sensitive-information handling requirements.

Resume Screening Knockouts
1. Leadership of AV/VTC personnel or teams.
2. VTC and analog/digital video technical documentation.
3. Lockup-meeting support.
4. Microsoft Teams and Zoom for Government webinar support.
5. Large events moderated by agency senior leadership.
6. Leadership of meeting-room site surveys.
7. AV/VTC design-to-installation lifecycle experience.
8. Onsite availability in Beltsville and the National Capital Region.