Contract Specialist

Summary

The Office of Construction & Facilities Management provides the Department of Veterans Affairs with expertise in design, major construction and lease project management, design & construction standards, & historic preservation. Its work supports the delivery of high-quality, cost-effective facilities for our Nation's veterans and includes soliciting general construction contractors, architects, engineers, and other services for requirements typically valued between $30 million and $100 million.

Duties

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Major duties include but are not limited to:

• Applies Federal Acquisition Regulations in preparing request for proposals (RFP) and request for quotes (RFQ) to ensure full compliance;
• Oversees planning, preparation and conduct of pre-solicitation, pre-proposal and/or post-awards functions on contracts;
• Prepares award contracts using contracting language, source selection procedures;
• Reviews contracts to ensure proper funding allocations and timely payments;
• Analysis acquisition processes, audits, and small business practices to ensure compliance;
• Assesses requests for the procurement of complex equipment and services;
• Provides technical advice, guidance and legal interpretation in all areas of contracting;
• Utilizes electronic contract management system(s);
• Communicates as a business advisor to internal and external acquisition customer; and
• Analysis acquisition processes, audits, and small business practices to ensure compliance.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. EST.

Compressed/Flexible: Available

Telework: Available - Ad Hoc telework (situational telework) as determined by the agency policy.

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description Title/PD#: Contract Specialist~/00332A

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Financial Disclosure Report: Required

Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary, although there are regular and recurring construction inspections requiring a considerable amount of walking, stooping, bending and climbing.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process
• Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents).
• Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Selective Placement Factor: Applicants must possess an active Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (FAC-C) (Professional) from the Office of Federal Procurement Policy's (OFPP) at the time of application. Applicants who do not meet this requirement will be found ineligible for further consideration.

Individual Occupational Requirements: To qualify for this position, you must meet the individual occupational requirements for Contracting Series, 1102 for GS-13 and above which include:

• 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 by the the senior procurement executive of the selecting agency.

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.

GS-14 grade level: One year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-13 grade level in the federal service); experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) and other characteristics to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled, in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience includes:

• Leading architect-engineer and construction contract negotiation teams by planning, directing, and coordinating complex actions involving multiple requirements, long-term efforts of up to five years, limited historical cost data, multiple contractors and subcontractors, collaboration among acquisition specialists-including engineers, production specialists, legal advisors, auditors, logistics specialists, and financial managers-and interrelated contracts in which changes to one may affect others;
• Marshaling expert knowledge of procurement regulations, contracting principles, and current methods-including sophisticated pricing arrangements (e.g., Forward Pricing Rate Agreements (FPRAs), Fixed-Price Incentive Firm (FPIF), Cost-Plus-Incentive-Fee (CPIF), etc.), cost accounting, and life-cycle costing-to plan, develop, implement, maintain, and administer all contractual aspects of architect-engineer and construction contract initiation and implementation programs; or
• Applying initiative, resourcefulness, and sound judgment to interpret procurement laws (e.g. Title 41, United States Code (Public Contracts), Competition in Contracting Act (CICA), Small Business Act, Procurement Integrity Act, etc.), federal regulations (i.e., Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) & Veterans Affairs Acquisition Regulation (VAAR)), and agency contracting policies from the VA Acquisition Manual (VAAM) to resolve unique issues not addressed by existing guidance-including award-fee contracts, leasing agreements, design-to-cost option clauses, and fixed-price research and development contracts-and develop new or revised techniques to achieve effective results for architect-engineer and construction contract initiation and implementation programs.

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

There is no educational substitution for the GS-14 level.

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.

Education

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.

Additional information

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

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.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be well-qualified, applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors if applicable, and must be proficient in most of the requirements of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website which can be found at https://www.opm.gov/.

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

If you are unable to apply online and request information about the Alternate Application process, please contact the Agency Contact listed for this Job Opportunity Announcement (JOA).

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Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.