The Insurance Service, a central office element of the Department of Veteran Affairs(VA) in Philadelphia, directs and manages all of the VA Government Life Insurance programs. This position serves as the Senior Accountant for the Insurance Accounting Staff, Stakeholder Engagement Mission Support, VA Insurance Service.

Duties

Provides professional accounting advice and assistance to supported organizations regarding the operational accounting functions and the application of generally accepted accounting principles, policies, and procedures. Proposes new procedures and methods or modifies existing procedures and methods to resolve current problems and enhance the validity, accuracy, and integrity of accounting processes. Assists in the implementation of new procedures or policies to ensure compliance with established financial accounting requirements. Develops, interprets, recommends and implements general accounting and cost accounting policies, procedures and reports for VBA benefit and support programs that will increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the agency. Writes and produces directives, reports, handbooks and other instructions outlining the policies and procedures for conducting the overall accounting and reporting activities for VBA's financial management program. Develops and maintains standard operating procedures for monitoring and coordinating the implementation of VBA's accounting systems. Performs some analysis of systems to ensure that system requirements provide internal controls, audit trails and checks and balances. Develops financial system requirements to correct problems or implement new or enhanced accounting methods. Identifies discrepancies and their sources, prescribes corrective action, and develops and presents training to preclude recurrence. Participates in decision-making sessions and advises financial managers and program directors on regulatory requirements, financial policies, and data interpretation. Works independently and handles the workload in accordance with established priorities to ensure timely completion of assigned team tasks.

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. 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. Applicant must meet the Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR) AND Specialized Experience: Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR):Degree: Accounting; or a degree in a related field such as business administration, finance, or public administration that included or was supplemented by 24 semester hours in accounting. The 24 hours may include up to 6 hours of credit in business law. (The term "accounting" means "accounting and/or auditing" in this standard. Similarly, "accountant" should be interpreted, generally, as "accountant and/or auditor.") OR Combination of education and experience: at least 4 years of experience in accounting, or an equivalent combination of accounting experience, college-level education, and training that provided professional accounting knowledge. The applicant's background must also include one of the following: Twenty-four semester hours in accounting or auditing courses of appropriate type and quality. This can include up to 6 hours of business law ;A certificate as Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor, obtained through written examination; or Completion of the requirements for a degree that included substantial coursework in accounting or auditing, e.g., 15 semester hours, but that does not fully satisfy the 24-semester-hour requirement of paragraph A, provided that (a) the applicant has successfully worked at the full-performance level in accounting, auditing, or a related field, e.g., valuation engineering or financial institution examining; (b) a panel of at least two higher level professional accountants or auditors has determined that the applicant has demonstrated a good knowledge of accounting and of related and underlying fields that equals in breadth, depth, currency, and level of advancement that which is normally associated with successful completion of the 4-year course of study described in paragraph A; and (c) except for literal nonconformance to the requirement of 24 semester hours in accounting, the applicant's education, training, and experience fully meet the specified requirements AND: Specialized Experience: To qualify, applicants 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: Knowledge of accounting and ability to analyze system-generated reports, conduct reconciliations, and data collections for insurance funds. Knowledge of professional accounting and auditing theories, principles, practices, and techniques. Knowledge of research and analytical methods sufficient to plan, conduct studies concerning any aspect of the insurance program. Understanding of accounting and auditing theories, principles, practices, and technique. 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. The Office of Personnel Management's group coverage qualification standards, associated individual occupational requirements (IOR), and individual qualification standards covering white collar occupations in the Federal competitive service can be found here.

Education

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

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. 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.

Contacts

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