This position is being filled under the memorandum from the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (USD(P&R)) "Expansion of Direct Hire Authority for Certain Personnel of the Department of Defense," dated October 15, 2021. This position is part of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency.

Duties

As a CONTRACT SPECIALIST at the GS-1102-7/9/11/12/13 some of your typical work assignments may include: The primary responsibilities of this position are to perform a full range of pre- and post-award contracting functions. This is a developmental position. Work assignments are progressively complex and intended to broaden your skills and provide you with practical experience to prepare you to perform at the target grade level. At the target grade level the major duties are: Note: Candidate will engage in the duties outlined below and will observe or assist others in performing them initially and will gradually progress and will be expected to perform the duties independently when the full performance level is reached. Contract Planning Plans the overall approach to meet contracting program objectives for procuring a variety of complex requirements involving highly specialized procurements of significant importance to the Agency. Performs market research/analysis to determine availability of the requirement; analyzes market trends, commercial practices, conditions, and technological advances, and selects appropriate contracting techniques and procedures to solve any acquisition problems. Analyzes difficult contracting issues and determines recommended course of action, which often departs from previous approaches. Provides business advice and assistance to technical personnel involved in development of the statement of work or data requirements. Reviews procurement requests for adequacy and compliance with administrative, regulatory, and procedural requirements and consistency with current market practices and conditions. Reviews and evaluates procurement requests for which previous experience and cost data are less directly applicable, such as applied research, the development of prototype equipment, competitive sourcing, or complex services. Reviews procurement requests to determine whether, based on market analysis, the requirement can be performed by small businesses. Actively solicits Small Business/Small Disadvantaged Business (SB/SDB) participation and obtains subcontracting plans. If required, initiates action to have all or part of a procurement set-aside exclusively for small business performance. Develops evaluation criteria to use in determining source selection and "best value" request for proposal which include utilization of past performance data and technical qualifications for awards other than lowest price. Procurements usually involve a variety of complexities such as socioeconomic considerations, development cost for minority/disadvantaged Small Business/Small Disadvantaged Business (SB/SDB) contractors, difficult to define scopes of work, legal conditions, rigid deadlines, or incentive arrangements causing additional complications. Resolves problems that limit competition and modifies clauses that discourage potential bidders. Serves as the point of contact for assigned procurements. Contract Execution Procures more complex and/or diversified commodities, services, construction, and/or research and development. Determines appropriate method of procurement, e.g., sealed bidding or negotiation using a wide range of contracting methods and contract types. Contracts assigned contain a variety of complexities such as: special handling provisions or other specialized terms and conditions, unfavorable market conditions, and limited competition or sole source due to urgency or quantity. For negotiated agreements, meets with potential offerors to develop/modify requirement statements. Determines the competitive range. Conducts any necessary conferences to discuss, develop, or revise offer received; performs price or cost analysis; plans and conducts negotiations on price, technical requirements, terms, and conditions of the contract; develops and effects persuasive acquisition strategies so as to convince those initially opposed to agree to contractual positions. Recommends award and prepares final contract to include appropriate standard clauses and special provisions and incentives, such as cost and performance incentives.

Requirements

• Must be a U.S. Citizen
• Occasional Travel
• Work Schedule: Full-time
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service
• Suitable for Federal employment, determined by a background investigation
• May be required to successfully complete a probationary period
• Overtime: Occasionally
• Tour of Duty: Flexible
• Recruitment Incentives: Authorized. See link for more information: https://www.dtra.mil/Business/DTRA-Opportunities/
• Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA): Exempt at the GS-13 and Non-Exempt at the GS-07, GS-09, GS-11 and GS-12
• Financial Disclosure: Required; Submit a Confidential Financial Disclosure Form, OGE 450, within 30 days of entering the position, annually, and upon termination in accordance with DoD Directive 5500.7-R, Joint Ethics Regulation, August 30, 1993
• Telework Eligibility: This position is telework eligible
• Must be able to obtain/maintain a on-Critical sensitive (Secret) security clearance.
• This is a drug testing designated position.
• This is an Acquisition Workforce position in the Contracting functional area. The incumbent will be required to become certified in the Professional tier within 1 year.

Qualifications

You may qualify for this position based on: 1) the qualifications below, or 2) via Education, found in "Education" section below. You may qualify at the GS-07, if you fulfill the following qualifications: A. One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-05 grade level in the Federal service as listed below: Demonstrating business administration/management or any contracting-related experience. B. A 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree with a major in any field. You may qualify at the GS-09, if you fulfill the following qualifications: A. One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service as listed below: Applying contracting regulations, contract law and legal precedents; compiling/evaluating price and/or cost data for a variety of pre-award and/or post-award activities; and performing tasks in support of contract administration. B. Master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D., if related. You may qualify at the GS-11, if you fulfill the following qualifications: A. One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service as listed below: Applying contracting procedures and techniques to carry out recurring assignments involving the use of formal advertising and negotiated methods of contracting and contract administration; Reviewing requisitions and recommending procurement methods; procurement off-the-shelf items or services; negotiating contracts. OR B. 3 full academic years of progressively higher level graduate education or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, OR C. You have some specialized experience as described in A, but less than one year; and you have more than one year but less than two years of education as described in B. You have computed the percentage of the requirements that you meet, and the total is at least 100%. (To compute the percentage, divide your total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then divide your semester hours of graduate education beyond the first year by 18. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify.) You may qualify at the GS-12, if you fulfill the following qualifications: One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level in the Federal service as listed below: Applying a wide range of contracting methods and contract types to plan and carry out both pre-award and post-award procurement actions; Applying contracting policies and procedures, negotiation techniques, and technical requirements to negotiate procurement of supplies and services; and Administering contracts, such as firm fixed-price, fixed-price with re-determination provisions, cost reimbursement, or contracts with incentive provisions. You may qualify at the GS-13, if you fulfill the following qualifications: One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level in the Federal service as listed below: Performing the full range of pre and post award contractual actions required in the procurement of services and supplies utilizing negotiation, and small purchase negotiation procedures; Interpreting and ensuring that contract actions are in accordance with relevant laws, regulations, policies, standards or procedures; Reviewing procurement requests to assure clarity, adequacy, and completeness; Executing and conducting the procurement process from solicitation to award and through all post award phases of contracting, including modifications, processing payments, final invoicing, final evaluation, and closeout. 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. In addition to meeting qualifications, your application package must reflect the applicable experience to meet the Individual Occupational Requirements for the 1102, series as listed below: Basic Requirements for GS-5 through GS-12 A 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree with a major in any field; 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. Basic Requirements for GS-13 and Above 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.

Education

Education may only be used in lieu of specialized experience for the GS-07-11 grade levels.

ARE YOU USING YOUR EDUCATION TO QUALIFY FOR THE GS-09 or GS-11?
You MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims.
All materials must be submitted by the closing date of the announcement.

GRADUATE EDUCATION: One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours that your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that 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: https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html

Contacts

• Address Defense Threat Reduction Agency 8725 JOHN J KINGMAN ROAD MSC 6201 FT BELVOIR, VA 22060-6201 US
• Name: DTRA Servicing Team
• Phone: 614-692-0259
• Email: [email protected]