The purpose of this position is to serve as a Supervisory Contract Specialist for the US Department of Veterans Affairs with the responsibility for performing professional work involving procurement of supplies and services using procedures outlined in the Federal Acquisition Regulations, VA Acquisition Regulations, Public Laws, and agency policy.

Duties

Major duties and responsibilities include: Supervises a group of employees performing work at the GS-05 through GS-12/13 grades; Exercises supervisory authorities and responsibilities involving work assignment and review, as well as the administrative and personnel management functions relative to the staff supervised; Distributes workload within the team and ensures the work assignments of employees in the team are carried out; Reviews the work of team members at various stages of completion, to assure compliance with all regulations, policies, directives, etc.; Establishes guidelines and performance expectations for staff, which are clearly communicated through the formal employee performance management system; Provides informal feedback and periodically evaluates employee performance; Initiates nondiscriminatory practices and affirmative action for the area under his/her supervision; Provides direction to the team in the selection and application of appropriate problem solving methods and techniques; Trains subordinates in methods and techniques of performing contract actions, and provides or arranges for specific administrative or technical training necessary for accomplishment of individual and team tasks; Monitors and reports on the status and progress of work, checking on work in progress and reviewing completed work to see that instructions on work priorities, methods, deadlines and quality have been met; Prepares individual development plans and conducts performance evaluations for subordinate staff; Aids requiring activities in performing market research, reviewing specifications and statements of work, and approving acquisition milestone plans; Advertises all applicable requirements and preparing the solicitation document using agency contract writing systems for issuance, insuring regulatory and legal sufficiency, and promoting maximum competition; Conducts public bid openings, reviews bids and determines responsiveness and responsibility of low bidder in accordance with applicable regulatory requirements when using sealed bidding; Serves as the Source Selection Authority and establishes Technical Evaluation Boards (TEB) to determine acceptability and ranking of technical proposals; Identifies appropriate negotiation team members, formulates pre-negotiation objectives, and facilitates the negotiation as the team leader and chief negotiator; Prepares detailed price negotiation memoranda, outlining in writing the details of negotiations with contractors in competitive and noncompetitive negotiations; Provides signatory authority and executes contract awards within warrant authority, as requested by supervisor; Serves as contract administrator on awarded contracts; Conducts post-award conferences with Contractor and Government personnel to provide information and to clarify standard and special contractual provisions of the contracts; Negotiates required changes to contract conditions to protect the agency; Administers payment provisions of the contract for partial payments, progress payments and final payments using the Department of Veterans Affairs On-line Certification system; Closes out contract upon completion of the contract, resolution of all conflicts, and final disposition of payment and obtains adequate release of Claims documents to protect the agency; Performs other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Tour of Duty is 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Compressed/Flexible Schedules: Available Telework: VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Remote: This is not a remote position. (Remote refers to work performed on full-time basis anywhere other than a VA facility or using VA-leased space.) Virtual: This is not a virtual position. (Virtual refers to work performed on full-time basis using VA-leased space or at a VA facility other than the facility that hired the employee.) **For this position, telework (up to 80% per pay period) or remote work (100% off site) may be authorized upon supervisor approval if within the local commuting distance of the advertised duty station. Vacancies can be filled at any of the duty locations listed, dependent upon space availability and management approval. Current employees may remain at their current duty locations. Position Description/PD#: Supervisory Contract Specialist Direct Hire Authority (DHA)/PD02009A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary in nature. There are no special physical requirements. Candidates may be referred to the selecting official based off the number of applicants. The first 50 applicants will be reviewed. Additional candidates may be referred based on hiring needs.

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/16/2023 Basic Requirements: Applicants must meet the basic requirement for this position.To meet the basic requirement for Contract Specialist GS-13 and above positions, applicants must have: 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. Note: The Defense Acquisition University (DAU) does not grant Academic degrees; therefore courses completed at the DAU are not creditable towards meeting the 24 semester hour requirement, in the fields identified above, unless the coursework has been evaluated by an accredited institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, and appears on a college or university transcript. Specialized Experience GS-13: Applicants must also meet the specialized experience for the GS-13 grade. You may qualify based on your experience described below for the GS-13 Supervisory Contract Specialist (Branch Chief) position: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-12) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience includes experience with: Serving as senior or lead Contract Specialist for an agency/department, recommending the appropriate contract type or contract method for the product or service being procured. Providing guidance regarding complex contracts to other Contract Specialists in a contracting office to include firm-fixed price, firm-fixed price with economic price adjustments and cost reimbursement. Providing guidance and training to other Contract Specialists on contract methods to include simplified acquisitions, sealed bidding, negotiations, cost sharing, multiple awards, commercial items and special provisions. Utilizing and training other Contract Specialists on electronic systems for contract writing, contract management, contract reporting, and financial management in accordance with agency/department and Federal (or similar) policies. Reviewing statements of work to ensure they adequately describe requirements. Negotiating with vendors to acquire products or services or to address technical requirements, cost/pricing, or other terms and conditions. Interpreting and applying Federal laws (or similar), acquisition regulations, policies, contract law and procedures applicable to acquisition and contract administration which includes change orders, supplemental agreements, terminations, claims, and close out of contracts. Establishing and monitoring acquisition milestones to ensure progress toward award. Serving as contract administrator on awarded contracts and conducts post-award conferences to negotiate required changes to contract conditions to protect the agency/department. Education: There is no education substitute for the GS-13 grade. Preferred requirements are available on the following FAC link: Contracting (FAC-C) | FAI.GOV 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. For more information on these qualification standards, 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

Transcripts: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. Transcripts must depict the name of the college to determine accreditation, and your name must also be displayed on the transcripts. If qualifying based on a degree, or for positions requiring a degree, the transcript must show the date the degree was conferred. If selected, you must provide official transcripts. Transcripts should state degree conferred, and have a date. Undergraduate transcripts are required to meet the basic requirement for this position; please submit all transcripts. Copies of Official Transcripts are accepted and are the best way to ensure your education is interpreted correctly in accordance with OPM qualification standards, but unofficial transcripts are accepted if they contain all the required information. If credit for a course is being questioned by the HR Professional performing qualifications, it is your responsibility to provide supporting descriptive information (course syllabus/descriptions) in your application package.

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 VHA Service Center - 2 6100 Oak Tree Blvd Independence, OH 44131 US
• Name: VHA National Recruitment Center
• Phone: (844)456-5208
• Email: [email protected]