The Training Specialist position is located in the Philadelphia Insurance Center, Veterans Benefits Administration in the Philadelphia Regional Office. The Training Specialist is responsible for communicating with managers to identify training needs and mapping out development plans for teams and individuals. The incumbent will instruct students in accordance with the approved curricula, rules, procedures and strategic goals of the Insurance Center.

Duties

MAJOR DUTIES: Conducts studies to determine immediate and long range training needs, analyzes information obtained, and submits recommendations to the Quality Assurance & Training Assistant Chief and Chief. Identifies gaps between the skills of individual employees and what they need to know in order to perform their job. Determines training needs and requirements for the divisions or group by meeting with managers and talking with employees or administering surveys. Responsible for developing, administering, planning, coordinating, managing, directing, and/or reviewing all training events/activities for Insurance Operations training programs. Conducts training as assigned and scheduled following the approved curriculum, lesson plans, and student training guides. Facilitates learning through a variety of delivery methods including classroom instruction, virtual training, on the job training, web based, and Job Aids. Selects teaching strategies and materials to meet objectives and the needs of the students. Responsible for advising the Quality Assurance & Training Assistant Chief and Chief, on the daily operation of the training class to include reporting problems and needs in order to achieve goals and objectives set forth by the training program. Responsible for developing a classroom environment conducive to learning that entails staging the physical or virtual space, getting the students to cooperate, creating a communal environment, and maintaining a positive classroom climate and culture. Manages, maintains and utilizes in-house training supplies, equipment, technology and resources needed to facilitate and enhance the training program. Reviews and approves all training guides, assessments, tests, lesson plans, curriculums and other resources associated with each lesson prior to the training start date. Tracks and reports on training outcomes. Ensures student exams and/or evaluations are completed at the end of each lesson and evaluations forwarded to the Quality Assurance & Training Assistant Chief. Selects appropriate cases to be used in conjunction with the training guides. Ensures trainees are receiving proper exposure to live work being presented concurrently in the classroom. Responsible for obtaining workflow tasks from the Operating Divisions for each lesson that is taught. Reviews 100% of production tasks completed by trainees for timeliness and accuracy. Workflow tasks are returned with instructions to correct errors and oversights. Responsible for ensuring necessary corrections are made and advises the Quality Assurance & Training Assistant Chief and Chief of any trainee with a less than Fully Successful performance. Ensures that lessons are presented in the proper sequence and the scheduled time is allocated for each lesson is met. Identifies internal and external training programs to address competency gaps. Liaises with subject matter experts regarding instructional design. Responsible for grading all tests and maintaining accurate records showing the test results for each lesson as well as the test average for each trainee. Evaluates training progress and training procedures to monitor and analyze course effectiveness and update curriculum as needed. Keeps accurate records of attendance, grades, and evaluations to submit to the Quality Assurance & Training Assistant Chief. Develops and reports on the measurement of training needs and results. Supports all aspects of training and consult with managers and supervisors to assess training needs. Understands the role that technology plays in various aspects of the training process. Incorporates the four different types of learning styles into the training program. Engages the students in individual and cooperative learning activities and advises, counsels, and directs students who are having difficulty. The incumbent must recognize and seek assistance in making appropriate provisions for the adult learner who demonstrates different learning needs. Stimulates student reflection on prior knowledge and ask questions to link new ideas to previously introduced ideas. Makes connections to the adult learners' experiences, providing opportunities for active engagement, manipulation, and testing of ideas and materials, and encouraging the adult learner to assume responsibility for learning and performance outcomes. Maintains a training log to keep track of which employee completed training and record it in TMS. Categorizes training to align with job competencies in order to determine which employees could benefit from each available training course. Conducts in-depth reviews of the Insurance Policy holders Services and Insurance Claims divisions task inputs to ensure the accuracy of Operations processing and disbursements. As part of those reviews, makes recommendations to improve the Insurance Program's overall Quality Assurance program as it relates to disbursements and policy procedures.

Requirements

• You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this job
• Selectees are subject to a background/suitability investigation
• Selective Service registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• A probationary period may be required for employees and supervisors

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 03/05/2024. Time-in-grade: Applicants who are/were federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements. For a GS-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11 level. To support your claim of time in grade, you must submit your most recent appointment, promotion, or within grade increase SF-50 (not an award or general adjustment SF-50). Some applicants may have to submit more than one SF-50 to demonstrate their eligibility. See the required documents section for more information. 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. Specialized experience is defined as any position in which the applicant's major duties involved researching, interpreting and applying complex sets of VA Insurance laws, rules, regulations and procedures as they relate to the area of claims processing in the Insurance Division, such as processing of VA insurance applications, death claims, correspondence, answering inquiries on significant issues or other actions regarding entitlement to VA insurance or insurance proceeds in order to make decisions or to answer inquiries from veterans, beneficiaries, or their representatives on a range of substantive insurance issues. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include, but not limited to: Teaching or instructing in an adult education program, secondary school, college, military installation, or industrial establishment in the appropriate field(s). Supervising or administering a training program. Development or review of training/course materials, aids, devices, etc., and evaluation of training results. Work in the occupation or subject-matter field of the position to be filled that required training or instructing others on a regular basis. 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. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

There is no educational substitution for the GS-12 level.

Contacts

• Address Philadelphia VBA Regional Office 5000 Wissahickon Ave Philadelphia, PA 19144 US
• Name: Carolyn Miller
• Phone: 313-471-3912
• Email: [email protected]