It depends on the mix and your situation.
How long do you have to go before retirement eligibility. Those close are putting a lifetime medical benefit worth 250K on the block...

Didn't you forget to mention that he should not recommend others in the last that he knows are not suitable for the job. It will reflect badly upon him if he is the only quality candidate. If you don't know of any others who qualify don't recommend anyone. The pitfalls of a bad recommendation is that the prospective employer will be and should be checking your recommendations to evaluate you.

But Bob, you neglect the most important part:

This guy is in the catbird seat: He's a federal employee, he does what he chooses, is courted by vendors and respected by his peers. If he takes this position, he becomes a contractor. The world of federal contracting, especially in IT, is considerably different from the world of being the government customer. Little things like cost, schedule, and functionality are considered in the black and white light of profit.

That said, the benefits are better. The raises are nice. But you rarely get to walk away after 40 hours on the contractor side of the street. And your accountable to more constituencies than you ever had before.

Going home again is rarely an option. The grass, shall we say, is always greener over the septic tank.

Don't throw away your federal retirement unless you have some kind of private plan that will compensate for that. The way things are going, if you voluntarily leave service you will never get back in. That's a pretty big bridge to burn.

Bob's advice is good--read it over carefully and take note especially of the sentence 'which matters to you more...security or opportunity.'

Having had the opportunity to take the leadership position without having to leave a civil service position, I can say for sure that the people I used to work with, but now manage, make up most of the 'stony' days.

By all means, put your hat in the ring. It shows confidence to those non-federal managers. But keep your eyes on the prize - a federal job with all related benefits that come due in retirement is a pearl beyond price.

You "helped in some of the organizational development for this new, multi-year, large scale project." Uhh. I don't know about your agency, but for my agency (Department of the Interior) this could be a conflict of interest, and may be prohibited by law. Before you quit to give yourself this job, run it through your ethics office and solicitor's office. OTOH, if this is Department of Defense, well this is simply the way business is done, no problem. Just be sure it is well funded before hiring yourself.

All that is good advice and consider it seriously but if you still cannot make a decision use the "nickel" computer. Flip a coin (nickel) call it heads or tail (yes or no), then whatever the coin flip happens leave you - how do you feel about it.

Were you really disappointed that it said "yes" or were you happy it said "yes" and of course the same applys to "no".

Another factor to consider is your relationship to this new position if you don't get the job. It sounds like if you stayed put, you might be working with this new person? Given your role so far in organizational issues, if you don't throw your hat in the ring, would you have a chance to be part of the selection process for the leader? (If you do express interest, that virtually excludes you from the selection process.) If you don't get the position, how will you feel about working with someone who has a role you wanted? And working with others who may have been part of the selection process, who know why you weren't selected? If you know some of the key people who will be part of the selection process, since if you can have a candid albeit confidential discussion with them about how they'd see your candidacy (politicians do this all the time - float the idea of running, to see how others react)

Forget the retirement. Undecided asks, "What are the ethical boundaries? What are the potential consequences?" Nothing personal, but you're not the one to ask. Every federal agency has, by law, an "ethics counsellor." That's who Undecided should ask. What he's contemplating may well be illegal.

The short answer to the possible consequences is "jail time." He's a fed. He had a direct part in the development of the project. That may well be enough to disqulaify him from employment with the contractor for a period of several months to a couple of years. Soliciting a job with the contractor, or being solicited by the contractor, or contact with the contractor for other reasons, are all probable violations or law and regulation, and could land him in jail.

Granted, Undecided may already have spoken with his ethics counsellor, but the tone of his inquiry certainly doesn't read like it. If he hasn't, I hope he does so, and soon.

Another Federal Employee.

Review the field and then, or also, nominate yourself? Why not? It worked for Cheney.