The incumbent serves as Public Affairs Officer, member of the Management Systems Care Line and reports directly to the Medical Center Director. Incumbent is a member of the Network 2(VA Healthcare Network Upstate New York) Marketing/Communications Council and as such, supports the marketing/communications activities of the Network/Local Care Lines of the five member VA medical centers (Syracuse-Albany­ Buffalo/Batavia-Canandaigua-Bath).

Duties

Assists top management and VA staff in matters concerning media, and acts as principle liaison between the medical center and the media. Serves a network consultant/trainer on matters of media relations. Plans local media materials, researches appropriate historical, factual, and/or policy information, and writes news and feature releases and public service announcements on a variety of subjects pertaining to the VA facility and to veterans issues. Direct media representatives to the ground floor entrance. Assure that all VA interviewees are prompt and briefed. Address all appropriate media requests to help ensure that the interview is carried out effective Set up news (press) conferences with little notice regarding timely issues and/or matters of urgency. On matters of controversy, the incumbent will inform Syracuse VA top management (including the Director, Care Line Managers), the Network Office and the Regional Office of Public Affairs, New York City on such matters. Provides marketing/communication/promotional support for the ongoing enrollment events, designed to educate/attract veterans to VA healthcare. Provides marketing/promotional support for the recruitment of VA staff. Researches and measures the impact and dollar effectiveness of the public affairs activities and advises the Medical Center Director and network staff on where and how to utilize dollars targeted for public affairs activities. When the Syracuse VA Medical Center is involved in a disaster, the incumbent will handle all requests for information from outside sources. The incumbent is responsible for ongoing communication with media throughout the coverage area of Central New York for the purpose of building/maintaining awareness of the Syracuse VA Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOC), located in Potsdam, Watertown, Rome, Oswego, Auburn, Ithaca, and Binghamton. Will provide and create speech material for the Medical Center Director and other Syracuse VA Administrative staff. The incumbent is responsible for keeping the County/New York State Veteran Service Officers up to date on VA Issues and upcoming Syracuse VA outreach events in their area. Will promote Diversity in the Workplace and in all Media Auditorum Programs. Work closely with the Syracuse EEO Manager promoting and planning numerous media activities throughout the year such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Observance, Black History Month, Women's History Month, Hispanic Recognition Month, Asian American Recognition Month etc. Work closely with the Marketing Officer (Veteran Service Officer) and Marketing Representative to promote and assist of the planning for upcoming enrollment events and other forms of VA outreach activities. This may include a media campaign, providing press releases and/or ongoing communication with Veteran Service Officers and veteran groups and other veteran stakeholders. When requested, the incumbent will invite local media personalities for the purpose of hosting/serving as MC, or participating in auditorium events for drawing support of VA activities throughout the year. Work Schedule: 7:30AM-4PM, M-F Position Description/PD#: Public Affairs specialist, PD # 08844-O Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: 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, 11/04/2023. 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 within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-12. 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 as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-11, in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: ability to accurately communicate agency activities, policies and regulations, in writing and speaking to staff, to media representatives and to service organizations; knowledge of VA's operations, functions and objectives and of particular programs and procedures; ability to determine newsworthiness of materials and to market release and articles; to comprehend and analyze feedback from media or other sources; Knowledge of the Freedom of Information Act and of the Privacy Act on disclosure of veteran information. NOTE: 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. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Communications and MediaCreative ThinkingIntegrity/HonestyReasoningWriting 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: Work is generally sedentary with walking required during visits and tours of the Medical Center. Flexibility is required to accommodate events and activities occurring in other than normal duty hours. Mobility s required in terms of staging and assisting staff with equipment and other required materials. 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

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

Contacts

• Address Syracuse VA Medical Center 800 Irving Ave Syracuse, NY 13210 US
• Name: Girolamo Tavolante
• Phone: (315) 863-2853
• Email: [email protected]