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Contract Specialist/Procurement Analyst (Direct Hire)

Department of Transportation
Department of Transportation - Agency Wide
This job announcement has closed

Summary

You will serve as a Contract Specialist and may support any of the programs and offices across DOT. You will award, administer, and close-out contracts to support these programs and may procure complex studies; technical & professional services; professional training services; specialized equipment; or IT supplies/services. These programs administer large dollar, multiyear contracts; financial assistance agreements; task/delivery orders; inter/intra-agency agreements; and purchase orders.

Overview

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Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
12/19/2020 to 12/18/2021
Salary
$64,009 to - $118,603 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 11 - 13
Location
Many vacancies in the following location:
Location Negotiable After Selection, United States
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - Some travel is required for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
Yes—Permanent Change of Station (PCS), Relocation, and Recruitment Incentive authorization varies by position/selection.
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time - Full Time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
00 - Career ladder promotion potential varies by agency and position.
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
DOT-2021-0146
Control number
586972100

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Applications will be accepted from any U.S. citizen. Direct Hire Authority will be used to fill this position. The 'Rule of Three', Veterans Preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants does not apply to this vacancy.

Duties

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As a Contract Specialist you will:

  • Be responsible for the full range of pre-award functions involving procurements (including assistance agreements), typically involving technical services or programs of research and development, specialized equipment or systems. Be responsible for the solicitation, analysis, evaluation, and negotiation of proposals and budgets.
  • Perform acquisition planning, scheduling procurement from time of acceptance in the Division through award. Develop procurement objectives for the requirement in terms of competition and price range, and constructs the considerations. Prepare and maintain current acquisition plans, appropriate milestone charts, and related schedules.
  • Perform detailed analyses of all elements of cost in contractor and applicant proposals and budget applications, and make competitive range determinations.
  • Conduct pre-proposal conferences with prospective offerors and applicants to arrive at a clear understanding of what is required under the proposed procurement. Obtain appropriate data from technical officials. Issue solicitations, with amendments as necessary, to clarify questions concerning such topics as specification changes, language ambiguities, or clarification of contract clauses.
  • Be responsible for the full range of post-award functions involving procurements (including assistance agreements) to include negotiation of contract changes, administrative and other modifications, termination, and closeout,

The ideal candidate for this position will have a solid background and experience in the award and administration of contracts using the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) specifically Parts 8, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16.  He or she would possess expertise in the award of a wide variety of contract types to include firm-fixed-price, time-and-materials and cost reimbursement for the acquisition of professional and technical services, as well as research and development, and in conducting price analysis and detailed cost analysis.  It is recognized that the breadth and depth of experience will vary by grade level of the candidate.  It is considered favorably although not required for the individual to have knowledge and familiarity working with interagency acquisitions and/or grants and cooperative agreements.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. citizen & meet specialized experience to qualify
  • Submit application and resume online by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date
  • Required Documents must be submitted by the closing date.
  • Direct Hire Authority will be used to fill this position

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:

  • SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for the Selective Service.
  • PROBATIONARY PERIOD: Applicants may be required to successfully complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed).
  • CONFIDENTIAL FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE REPORT: The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 requires the applicant selected for this position to submit a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE Form 450) within 30 days of appointment and annually thereafter.

Qualifications

To meet the minimum qualifications for this position, you must (1) meet the Education Requirement for the series, (2) provide a copy of transcripts for verification, AND (3) meet either the education or experience qualifications for the grade at which you are requesting consideration.

To qualify for the GS-11 on Experience, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-09 it must include:

  • Experience awarding and administering Delivery/Task Orders and Purchase Orders.


To qualify for the GS-11 on Education alone, you must have:


3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree.
You can also qualify based on a combination of higher level graduate education and experience. This must be fully supported by your resume and transcripts, provided with your application.

To qualify for the GS-12 on Experience, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-11 it must include:

  • Experience awarding, administering and closing out a variety of contract types to include firm-fixed-price, time-and-material and cost reimbursement type contracts using acquisition regulations as a regular and recurring part of your job.

You cannot qualify on education at the GS-12 level; you must have experience.

To qualify for the GS-13 on Experience, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-12 it must include:

  • Experience independently awarding, administering and closing out multi-million dollar contracts to include firm-fixed-price, time-and-material and cost reimbursement type contracts using acquisition regulations as a regular and recurring part of your job.

You cannot qualify on education at the GS-13 level; you must have experience.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:

1.  Contracting/Procurement - Knowledge of various types of contracts, techniques, or requirements (for example, Federal Acquisitions Regulations) for contracting or procurement, and contract negotiation and administration.



For all types of consideration, 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

For additional information about applying to Federal positions, please click on the following link: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-policies/#url=e4

Students enrolled in a qualifying degree program can apply if the anticipated graduation date is within six months of closing date of the announcement. Graduation transcript must be received before start date.

Other applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Education

BASIC MANDATORY EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS FOR GS-11-12:

A 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree with a major in any field;  OR

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.

Graduate Education:
To qualify for GS-1102 positions on the basis of graduate education, graduate education in one or a combination of the following fields is required: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management.

Note: 
For positions at GS-07 through GS-12, applicants who are qualifying based on experience must possess at least one year of specialized experience at or equivalent to work at the next lower level, that provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the work of the position, in addition to meeting the basic requirements in paragraph A or B, above.

MANDATORY REQUIREMENTS FOR GS-13: 

A. 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

B. 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

C.  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.

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.

Additional information

*PLEASE NOTE: This is an open continuous, not to exceed one-year, vacancy.  We will review applications as needed and refer the top candidates for potential interviews during the open period of the announcement.  Duty locations will vary.  The difference in salary is determined by the locality pay in each location.  Salaries for all areas are available on the OPM website at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/salary-tables/pdf/2020/SF.pdf

Multiple vacancies will be filled from this announcement

If you are hired for this position; you will not receive additional consideration from this announcement.

COVID VACCINATION: As required by Executive Order 14043, Federal employees are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 regardless of the employee’s duty location or work arrangement (e.g., telework, remote work, etc.), subject only to exceptions as required by law.  If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before appointment or onboarding with the agency.  The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required exception from this requirement.

This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if similar vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

For this announcement, all applicants will be reviewed to determine if they meet the basic qualifications for this position, specifically the educational and specialized experience requirements. 

Applicants will not be rated or ranked.  Veteran's Preference does NOT apply.

All applications that are verified to meet the basic qualifications will be referred to the selecting official.

DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE: PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.  All answers provided in the on-line process must be substantiated by a resume. If, upon review, it is determined that your resume and/or supporting documents do not support your answer choices, your application may be removed from consideration.

Ultimately, the Automated Staffing Office is responsible for determining an applicant's eligibility. Please ensure that your resume provide enough detail to support your answers to the Vacancy Specific Questions.


To preview questions please click here.

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