The Southern Arizona VA Healthcare System is recruiting for a Food Service Specialist (Chef) assigned to Nutrition and Food Services, responsible for culinary technical standards by ensuring that efficient, safe, and high-quality food services are provided to the Veteran, both inpatient and outpatient.

Duties

Major duties and responsibilities will include: Serves as the technical and quality expert of culinary standards Creates and tests specialized recipes and develops specialized food preparation methods to meet the needs of the Veteran population Creates specialized food service menus, recipes and service techniques offered in a hospital setting to include diets for multiple medical conditions Analyzes and performs quality improvement tasks for menus and food service arrangements Oversees and continually improves food service operations Identifies and resolves difficult issues and challenges in a complex environment Applies advanced culinary techniques which minimize the use of restricted nutrients to develop refined and patient pleasing flavors, textures and presentations Plans future advancement in food services, new techniques, procurement and production needs Identifies culinary and food service developmental and training needs of employees Performs quality control on plate presentations, recipe compliance, taste quality control, plate waste studies and overall culinary controls Develops culinary performance, technical standards, and quality improvement initiatives for food service operations Identifies issues, deficiencies or improvements, especially in the area of food production, productivity, safety and quality, taking immediate corrective action which can vary from one-to-one training to procedural changes Ensures compliance with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Food Code, Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points principles, Joint Commission Standards and food safety principles Provides budgetary input on food service operations and culinary program advancements Serves as Contracting Officer Representative (COR) for food service, food distribution, and purchase and maintenance of equipment contracts and oversees subsistence/supply ordering Conducts studies and investigations to include problem analysis and development of logical/documented recommendations on corrective actions Performing related duties as required. Work Schedule: 40 hours/week TOD varies and may include weekends and holidays Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Food Services Specialist (Chef)/PD99847S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/25/2023. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-9. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. 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. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education s described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-09 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to overseeing food service operations; identifying and resolving issues; knowledge of culinary procedures; maintaining inventory; knowledge of food service production equipment; assisting with inspecting food for quality; using a computer to perform administrative duties; and providing courteous and efficient customer service. NOTE: Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must clearly indicate the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. OR Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree. or have successfully completed three full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. or equivalent degree. or have successfully completed an LL.M. degree that is related to the position being filled. OR Combination: Applicants may have a combination of experience and education as described above that equates to one year of experience. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Administration and ManagementFood ServiceQuality ManagementTechnical Competence 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; religions; 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. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: Requires physical exertion when lifting, bending, pushing, frequent walking, standing, stooping, reaching, stretching; and also when unpacking and/or tagging supplies and equipment and carrying moderately heavy items such as personal computers, equipment, subsistence, supplies and chemical supplies. Work involves regular and recurring exposure to moderate risks and discomforts associated with production areas, such as exposure to heat, odors or fumes used in work processes; works near operating kitchen equipment (knives, slicers, ovens, stoves, kettles, etc.). Some situations require you to continually stay alert and to take special safety precautions, including wearing special protective items of clothing. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address Tucson VA Medical Center 3601 South Sixth Avenue Tucson, AZ 85723 US
• Name: David Tweedy
• Phone: 520-312-5779
• Email: [email protected]