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Contract Specialist

Department of Commerce
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Acquisition and Grants Office (AGO)
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This is a Direct Hire Public Notice. Please read this Public Notice in its entirety prior to submitting your application for consideration.

Salary listed above is the base salary for this position; The salary range indicated will be adjusted to include locality payment for the selectee's duty station.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open date: 10/02/2024
Closed date: 10/03/2024
This job will close when we have received 175 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Location
5 vacancies in the following location:
Work site options
Telework eligible
Not applicable, this is a remote position.
Remote job
Yes
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$104,604 - $135,987 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 14
Promotion potential
None
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time
Travel Required
25% or less - Up to 25% of domestic or foreign travel may be required for this position.
Appointment type
Permanent
Occupations and job series
Supervisory status
No
Federal service type
This job is in the Competitive Service
Represented by a union
No
Drug test
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Position sensitivity and risk
Noncritical-Sensitive (NCS)/Moderate Risk
Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.
Background check type
Financial disclosure required
Yes
Some jobs require financial disclosure to identify conflicts of interests.
Announcement number
AGO-24-12564066-DHA
Control number
812239600

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Duties

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This position is located in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Acquisition and Grants Office (AGO), in the Satellite and Information Acquisition Division (SIAD), Western Acquisition Division (WAD), Eastern Acquisition Division (EAD), Policy and Oversight Division (POD), or Corporate Services Acquisition Division (CSAD) with five vacancies in a remote location.

As a Contract Specialist, you will perform the following duties:

  • Plan, negotiate, lead, and/or administer complex procurements of goods, systems or services with specialized, state-of-the-art, critical or scarce requirements and characterized by a lack of any previous cost data. Use of a wide variety of cost and fixed- price contracts, multi-year contracts and extensive use of subcontractors, frequent changes in terms, conditions or funding arrangements, and similar difficulties.
  • Develop and/or review complex contractual pricing arrangements and incentives characterized by multiple incentives requiring sophisticated contracting techniques. Share arrangements such as cost-plus-incentive-fees or fixed-price-incentive-fees where the agency and the contractor share cost risk, or economic price adjustment clauses for adjusting labor and material costs where price cannot be reasonably predicted at the time of negotiation.
  • Audit or review major acquisitions of similar complexity, presents findings, recommend corrective actions and policy, or procedure improvements.
  • Review, advise on, develop and recommend operating unit-wide or agency-wide procurement processes and systems, procedures and policies; or equivalent assignment.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

NOTE:
* A one year probationary period may be required.
* Payment of relocation expenses is not authorized.
* This position is not in the bargaining unit.

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:

  • This position requires the submission of a Financial Disclosure Form, OGE Form 450.

Key Requirements:

  1. Applicants must be U.S. Citizens.
  2. Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by background investigation.
  3. Selectee may be subject to serving a one-year probationary period.
  4. More requirements are listed under Qualifications and Other Information.
  5. Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (ww.sss.gov)

Are There Any Special Requirements For This Position?

  • This vacancy is limited to the first 175 applications received and will close at midnight Eastern Time on the day this application limit is reached regardless of the closing date specified in this vacancy announcement. Any application received prior to midnight Eastern Time of the day the application limit is reached will be accepted and considered. You are strongly encouraged to submit all required supporting documents at the time of application should the vacancy close earlier than stated in this announcement due to the applicant limit being reached. Supporting documents will not be accepted once the vacancy announcement closes.
  • A background investigation will be required for this position. Continued employment will be subject to the applicant's successful completion of a background security investigation and favorable adjudication. Failure to successfully meet these requirements will be grounds for termination.
  • Throughout the recruitment and hiring process we will be communicating with you via email; therefore, it is imperative that the email address you provide when applying for this vacancy remains active. Should your email address change, please notify the point of contact identified in the vacancy announcement as soon as possible so that we can update our system.

Qualifications

(Continued Requirements)

POSITION REQUIREMENTS:

  • This position requires that within 24 months of employment applicants complete all prescribed mandatory training to become certified FAC-C Level III. FAC-C/DAWIA Level II or III are considered to have met all mandatory training requirements for this position. Within 24 months of employment employees must complete all prescribed mandatory training to become certified FAC-C Level III to continue to occupy this position. - Commerce Acquisition Manual (CAM) 1301.6 Section. NOTE - Copies of training certificates and certifications are required with your application package.

QUALIFICATIONS:

Qualification requirements in the vacancy announcements are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook, which contains federal qualification standards. This handbook is available on the Office of Personnel Management's website located at: https://www.opm.gov/policy.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS: This position requires applicants to meet a Basic Education Requirement in addition to at least one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience in order to be found minimally qualified. Transcripts must be submitted with your application package. You MUST meet one of the following basic education requirements:

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 of 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.

OR

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.

OR

D. Waiver: When filling a specific vacant position, Department of Commerce's senior procurement executive, 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. NOTE: Applicants that are missing either the 24 hours of business credit and/or the mandatory training certification, but are determined to be otherwise eligible, can be placed on a waiver certification by the NOAA Human Resources Staffing Specialist. *FAC-C Certification Exceptions: All employees in the GS-1102 Series must be FAC-C certified at the appropriate level for their career path. Individuals in the 1102 series who are promoted into a new career path shall have 24 months to meet the FAC-C training requirements for the new career path. (NOTE: Employee must meet the OPM 1102 Qualification Standards for education and experience in order to be hired.)

-AND-

Specialized Experience:
To qualify at the GS-14 level:
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: In addition to meeting the Basic Requirements above, applicants must possess one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-13 in the Federal service. Specialized experience MUST include all of the following:
  • Implementing, evaluating, and administering pre-award and post-award activities utilizing types of contracts associated with the acquisition of goods or services; and
  • Providing guidance to management and contractors on the delivery of goods and services.

Education

College Transcript: If you are qualifying based on education, submit a copy of your college transcript that lists college courses detailing each course by the number and department (i.e., bio 101, math 210, etc.), course title, number of credit hours and grade earned. You must submit evidence that any education completed in a foreign institution is equivalent to U.S. education standards with your resume. You may submit an unofficial copy of the transcript at the initial phase of the application process. If course content cannot be easily identified from the title of the course as listed on your transcript, you must submit an official course description from the college/university that reflects the content at the time the course was taken.

Note: Your college transcript is used to verify successful completion of degree, or college course work. An official college transcript will be required before you can report to duty.

  • Education completed in colleges or universities outside the United States may be used to meet the above requirements. You must provide acceptable documentation that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. For more information on how foreign education is evaluated, visit: OPM Foreign Education Evaluation

Additional information

CTAP and ICTAP candidates will be eligible if it is determined that they have exceeded the minimum qualifications for the position by attaining at least a rating of 85 out of 100. Information about CTAP and ICTAP eligibility is on the Office of Personnel Management's Career Transition Resources website at: http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

CTAP applicants MUST submit the following documents:

  1. A copy of your specific RIF notice; notice of proposed removal for failure to relocate; a Certificate of Expected Separation (CES); or certification that you are in a surplus organization or occupation (this could be a position abolishment letter, a notice eligibility for discontinued service retirement, or similar notice).
  2. A copy of your SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action", noting current position, grade level, and duty location;
  3. A copy of your latest performance appraisal including your rating; and
  4. Any documentation from your agency that shows your current promotion potential.

ICTAP applicants MUST submit the following documents:

  1. A copy of your RIF separation notice; notice of proposed removal for failure to relocate; notice of disability annuity termination; certification from your former agency that it cannot place you after your recovery from a compensable injury; or certification from the National Guard Bureau or Military Department that you are eligible for disability retirement;
  2. A copy of your SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action" documenting your RIF separation, noting your positions, grade level, and duty location, and/or Agency certification of inability to place you through RPL, etc;
  3. A copy of your latest performance appraisal including your rating; and
  4. Any documentation from your agency that shows your current promotion potential.

NOAA uses E-Verify to confirm the employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, please visit www.dhs.gov/E-Verify.

The Department of the Commerce (DOC) places a high value on diversity of experience and cultural perspectives and encourages applications from all interested eligible candidates. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) are fundamental principles that guide the Department and allow us to successfully achieve our mission.

THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.

How you will be evaluated

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

We will review your resume, optional cover letter and supporting documentation to determine if you meet the minimum qualifications for the position.

Veteran's Preference does not apply to direct hire recruitment procedures.

Any selections made under this notice will be processed as new appointments to the civil service. Therefore, Current Federal employees would be given new appointments to the civil service and may have to serve a new probationary period under CFR 315.802 (b).

NOTE: A one year probationary period will be required under the Direct Hire Authority unless you are a current Department of Commerce employee and are in the same line of work and with no more than a 30 day break in service.

To preview the announcement questionnaire, click here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12564066

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Agency contact information

Applicant Inquiries
Email
noaa.applicantinquiries@noaa.gov
Address
NOAA Office of Human Capital Services (OHCS)
1315 East West Hwy
SSMC4
Silver Spring, MD 20910
US

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Learn more about what it's like to work at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, what the agency does, and about the types of careers this agency offers.

http://www.noaa.gov

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