This announcement will be filled through OPM-authorized Direct Hire Authority due to a Critical Hiring Need. Veterans preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants do not apply to this vacancy. This position is located within the Office of the Executive Director, Financial Management Office (FMO), Acquisition Branch. The Acquisition Branch awards contracts and orders for necessary products and services under the requirements of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR).

Duties

The position is a Lead Contract Specialist assisting the Chief Acquisition Officer in planning, directing, and coordinating all activities for a variety of supply and service contracts. Serves as an acquisition team leader and interacts professionally with a variety of functional program specialists such as accountants, attorneys, economists, statisticians and other subject matter experts to prepare and coordinate the Government position, and conduct negotiations with the contractor. Reviews program acquisition requests and the clarity of "scopes of work", selects the best acquisition method and ensures adequate understanding of instruction and performance characteristics. Serves as a principal contracting advisor to the program management office, and represents the agency as the program's contractual authority at conferences and meetings. Meets with representatives of commercial firms, manufacturers and educational institutions to ensure open competition, and to negotiate contract terms, conditions and modifications for goods or services. Negotiates for services that are new, lack precedent, and involve difficulty in defining the scope of work to be performed. Negotiates forward-pricing rate agreements and other cost or pricing arrangements and analyzes all applicable elements such as various expense pools, labor rates, contractor business volume forecasts, economic conditions, business trends, union agreements, local labor markets and inflation rates. Performs continual planning to integrate the actions involving contractual obligations and responsibilities of both the Government and the contractor. Ensures that the organization's strategic plan, mission, vision, and values are communicated to the team and integrated into the team's strategies, goals, objectives, work plans and work products and services. Prepares reports and maintains records of work accomplishments and administrative information, as required, and coordinates the preparation, presentation and communication of work-related information to the supervisor. Researches, learns and applies a wide range of qualitative and/or quantitative methods to identify, assess, analyze and improve team effectiveness, efficiency and work products; Supports program area customers by providing guidance and assistance in drafting statements of objectives (SOOs), statements of work (SOWs) performance work statements (PWSs), and the conduct of acquisition planning and market research activities.

Requirements

• U.S. citizenship requirement must be met by the closing date of this vacancy.
• This position is subject to a background investigation.
• Males born after December 31, 1959 must register with Selective Service.
• You may serve a one-year probationary period under this appointment.
• You must meet time-in-grade requirement by the closing date of this vacancy.
• You must submit a copy of your performance appraisal with your application.
• This position is not in the bargaining unit.
• This position is designated as eligible for remote work. If selected, you must be approved for remote work prior to onboarding in accordance with FTC's Workplace Flexibilities Policy.
• If approved for remote work or telework from a regional office, your salary may change based on your official duty station.

Qualifications

To qualify for a Lead Contract Specialist at the GS-14 level, you must meet the following Basic Requirements: Time-In-Grade Requirement: If you are current Federal employee, you meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For this GS-14 position, you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-13 level. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility MUST be submitted within your application package. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. By the closing date of this vacancy announcement, you must meet the following educational/experience requirements listed below: Completion of all mandatory training prescribed by the head of the agency for progression to GS-13 or higher level contracting positions, including at least 4-years experience in contracting or related positions. At least 1 year of that experience must have been specialized experience at or equivalent to work at the next lower level of the position, and must have provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the work of the position. and A 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree, that included or was supplemented by at least 24 semester hours in any combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management. Exceptions: Employees in GS-1102 positions will be considered to have met the standard for positions they occupy on January 1, 2000. This also applies to positions at the same grade in the same agency or other agencies if the specialized experience requirements are met. However, they will have to meet the basic requirements and specialized experience requirements in order to qualify for promotion to a higher grade, unless granted a waiver under Paragraph D. Waiver: When filling a specific vacant position, the senior procurement executive of the selecting agency, at his or her discretion, may waive any or all of the requirements of Paragraphs A and B above if the senior procurement executive certifies that the applicant possesses significant potential for advancement to levels of greater responsibility and authority, based on demonstrated analytical and decision making capabilities, job performance, and qualifying experience. With respect to each waiver granted under this Paragraph D, the senior procurement executive must document for the record the basis of the waiver. If an individual is placed in a position in an agency on the basis of a waiver, the agency may later reassign that individual to another position at the same grade within that agency without additional waiver action. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS Specialized Experience For the GS 14 level: - You must also have at least 52 weeks (1 year) year of specialized experience at the GS-13 or equivalent level in the Federal service that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Specialized experience includes: Preparing pre-negotiation memorandums and conduct negotiations with potential contractors Preparing the competitive range, post negotiation memorandums and the source selection decision document Reviewing correspondence, progress reports, and data submitted by the contractor during performance to detect any factors not in accordance with the contract or otherwise adversely affecting the government's interest and Leading work on a variety of highly complex and concurrent procurement and contractual processes and/or reviews 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 has an education requirement. You must submit a copy of your transcripts (or a list of your courses including titles, credit hours completed and grades). Unofficial transcripts will be accepted in the application package; however, official transcripts will be required prior to receiving an official offer.

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: FOREIGN EDUCATION

Contacts

• Address Federal Trade Commission 600 Pennsylvania Ave, NW Suite H-723 Washington, DC 20580 US
• Name: Dominique Hardy
• Phone: 202-326-3797
• Email: [email protected]