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Supervisory Contract Specialist

Department of Commerce
Patent and Trademark Office
Office of the Chief Financial Officer, Office of Procurement

Summary

Do you want to be a procurement innovator supporting the USPTO's dynamic mission? The USPTO's Office of Procurement is seeking talented acquisition leaders committed to delivering innovative, effective, efficient, and compliant procurement solutions to our strategic business partners and agency stakeholders. Join the USPTO, America's Innovation Agency supporting a diverse, nationwide workforce who work every day with innovators to protect their ideas and hard work!

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
02/25/2026 to 03/09/2026
This job will close when we have received 100 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Salary
$169,279 to - $197,200 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 15
Location
2 vacancies in the following location:
Alexandria County, VA
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—Situational Telework Program
Travel Required
25% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
15
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
Yes
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
High Risk (HR)
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
Yes
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
TMCO-OCFO-26-12886183-MP
Control number
858851500

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Duties

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The physical worksite for this position is located in Alexandria, Virginia. Presence at the Alexandria, VA campus is required for this role, as it includes on site functions that must be performed in person. Position may be eligible for situational telework in accordance with agency policy/business unit discretion. The agency currently allows for 52 hours of telework per calendar year.

*If selected for an interview, applicants are encouraged to discuss telework options and eligibility specific to the position in which they applied with the hiring manager.

This position serves as a Supervisory Contract Specialist within the Office of Procurement and reports to the Deputy Director of Procurement for the USPTO and assists the Office of Procurement Director in carrying out the functions and duties of the office.

This role is your next ideal career goal for you if:

  • You're committed to being responsible for continuous review of procurement operation procedures to determine which areas need improvement to ensure adherence to prescribed regulations and/or to expedite the processing of procurements; and provides overall technical advice and counseling to USPTO procurement personnel.
  • You have strong writing skills to assist with the overall Office of Procurement policies and objectives, developing procedures necessary for successful accomplishment of the procurement mission, and managing all functions of the office, including planning and assigning work and managing staff and financial resources.
  • You're an expert in serving as a principal advisor on acquisition strategic planning, procurement management, performance-based contracting, and implementation of e-Government for procurement activities.
  • You have expert knowledge and experience in being responsible for meeting the Small Business Administration's socio-economic goals for procurement activities, maintaining a low ratio of efficiency, and adhering to procurement action lead-time standards.
  • You're excited to lead and provide management guidance to subordinate staff; resolves major problem areas; keeping subordinates informed of procurement operation goals; areas of emphasis, procurement trends and work priorities; and establishes office policy to assist the supervisors in the exercise of proper personnel management.
  • You have strong oral communication skills to be responsible for maintaining liaison with the Department of Commerce acquisition offices for the purpose of keeping abreast of statutes, policies and regulations that may affect significant procurement decisions.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Applications will only be accepted from United States Citizens and Nationals.
  • Your resume and question responses must demonstrate the job-related competencies.
  • You must meet the definition of specialized experience.
  • Required to pass a background investigation and fingerprint check.
  • Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (www.sss.gov).
  • If selected, you may be required to complete a one year probationary period.
  • Time-in-grade/band requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.
  • Suitable for Federal Employment
  • This position requires the completion of OGE-450 Financial Disclosure.
  • DAWIA Level 3 and FAC-C Professional or FAC-C Level 3 REQUIRED
  • You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.

Qualifications

You must meet the United States Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) qualification requirements (including specialized experience and/or educational requirements) for the advertised position. You must meet all eligibility and qualifications requirements by the closing date of the job announcement. OPM Qualifications Standards are available at OPM Website - Contracting Series, 1102.

CANDIDATES FOR GS-15 GRADE LEVEL MUST MEET THE FOLLOWING BASIC 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 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 four (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: Employee in GS-1102 position 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.

Applicants currently holding a FAC-C/DAWIA Level III certification are considered to have met all mandatory training requirements for this announcement. You must submit your certification with application package. IN ADDITION to meeting the basic requirements in paragraphs A and B, candidates must meet Specialized Experience requirements.

Specialized Experienceis experience that has equipped applicants with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the federal service.

For this position, the next lower grade level is a GS-14. Specialized experience for this position includes:

  • Experience with IT and non-IT acquisition and contracting, supporting program management;
  • Experience providing guidance, advice, and information, pertaining to contracting procedures, policy and processes, including negotiations and source selection;
  • Experience with various contracting methods and contract types sufficient to procure and administer contractor support services; and
  • Experience overseeing or leading, and developing, a procurement operations staff with various grade levels, skills, and abilities.
The incumbent must possess the following supervisory competencies to be successful in this position:

Accountability: Holds self and others accountable for measurable high-quality, timely, and cost effective results. Determines objectives, sets priorities, and delegates work. Accepts responsibility for mistakes. Complies with established control systems and rules.

Customer Service: Anticipates and meets the needs of both internal and external customers. Delivers high-quality products and services; is committed to continuous improvement.

Decisiveness: Makes well-informed, effective, and timely decisions, even when data are limited or solutions produce unpleasant consequences; perceives the impact and implications of decisions.

Flexibility: Is open to change and new information; rapidly adapts to new information, changing conditions, or unexpected obstacles.

Integrity/Honesty: Behaves in an honest, fair, and ethical manner. Shows consistency in words and actions. Models high standards of ethics.

Interpersonal Skills: Treats others with courtesy, sensitivity, and respect. Considers and responds appropriately to the needs and feelings of different people in different situations.

Oral Communication: Makes clear and convincing oral presentations. Listens effectively; clarifies information as needed.

Problem Solving: Identifies and analyzes problems; weighs relevance and accuracy of information; generates and evaluates alternative solutions; makes recommendations.

Resilience: Deals effectively with pressure; remains optimistic and persistent, even under adversity. Recovers quickly from setbacks.

Written Communication: Writes in a clear, concise, organized, and convincing manner for the intended audience.

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.

Education

Education may not be substituted for specialized experience at the GS-15 grade level.

If this position requires proof of higher education, or you are substituting education for experience, you must submit an unofficial transcript or a list of courses that includes the following information: name of accredited institution, grades earned, completion dates, and quarter and semester hours earned. Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. Please refer to http://www.opm.gov/qualifications/policy/ApplicationOfStds-04.asp for more information. You are not required to submit official documents at this time; copies are sufficient.

Special Instructions for Foreign Education: Qualifying education from colleges and universities in foreign countries must be evaluated in terms of equivalency to that acquired in U.S. colleges and universities. Applicants educated in whole or in part in foreign countries must submit sufficient evidence, including transcripts, to an accredited private organization for an equivalency evaluation of course work and degree. A listing of services that can perform this evaluation is available at the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) website. You must provide a copy of the letter containing the results of the equivalency evaluation with a course by course listing along with your application. Failure to provide such documentation when requested will result in lost consideration.

Additional information

Time-in-grade/band requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement unless eligible for special hiring authority, reinstatement eligible, non-current Federal employee applying as a VEOA eligible which do not require time-in-grade/band.

If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System. If you are exempt from registration under Selective Service Law, you must provide appropriate proof of exemption. Please visit the Selective Service System website for more information.

This is a Non Bargaining Unit position.

If selected for this position, you may be required to complete the Fair Credit Act Memo, which gives consent so that one or more consumer credit reports may be obtained for employment purposes.

This is a Public Trust position and has a risk level designation of "High".

Financial disclosure statement (OGE Form 450) is required for this position. For more information, please visit www.OGE.gov.

Background Investigation - If selected for this position, you may be required to complete a Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306), which includes a fingerprint and credit check, to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background investigation.

The USPTO participates in E-Verify. For more information on E-Verify, please visit the Department of Homeland Security Website.

Supervisory Probationary Period-If selected, you may be required to complete an initial one-year supervisory probationary period.

All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choice.

Relocation Expenses are not authorized and will not be paid.

CTAP and ICTAP candidates will be eligible for selection priority if it is determined that they have exceeded the minimum qualifications for the position by attaining at least a "well qualified" 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: OPM CTAP/ICTAP. CTAP/ICTAP documentation requirements are listed in the 'Required Documents' section of this announcement.

More than one selection may be made from this announcement if additional identical vacancies in the same title, series, grade, and unit occur within 90 days from the date the certificate was issued.

All application materials become the property of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
USPTO Job Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should request accommodation(s) from the USPTO at http://www.uspto.gov/accommodation.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factors. If you believe that you have been discriminated against and would like to file an EEO complaint, you must do so within 45 days of the date of the alleged discriminatory act. Claims of employment discrimination must be submitted to the attention of the USPTO's Office of Equal Employment Opportunity & Diversity via email (oeeod@uspto.gov) or phone (571-272-8292).

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.

How you will be evaluated

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

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position.

You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):

  • Acquisition and Procurement
  • Procurement Strategies
  • Oral and Written Communication
  • Supervision

Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

The best qualified candidates will be identified for referral to the hiring manager and may be invited for an interview. If referred all relevant documents submitted with your application package will be forwarded to the selecting official, due weight shall be given to performance appraisals and awards in accordance with 5 CFR § 335.103(b)(3), during the interview/selection process conducted by the hiring manager. Falsifying your background, education, and/or experience is cause for not hiring you or for changing your scored responses to questions you've answered, which may affect your overall final score.

Your resume will be evaluated, using a Structure Resume Review, for evidence of your ability to demonstrate possession of any specialized experience and how well your background and experience relate to the job announcement, required by this position. Any experience claimed in a cover letter should be substantiated by information contained in your resume. A HR Representative will validate the qualifications of those candidates eligible to be referred to the hiring official.

To preview the application questionnaire, click the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12886183

The United States Patent and Trademark Office is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including sexual orientation), national origin, political affiliation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, retaliation for engaging in protected activity, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factors. If you believe that you have been discriminated against and would like to file an EEO complaint, you must do so within 45 days of the date of the alleged discriminatory act. Claims of employment discrimination must be submitted to the attention of the USPTO's Office of Equal Employment Opportunity via email (oeeo@uspto.gov) or phone (571-272-8292).

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