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***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION***

Major Duties and Responsibilities:
The Director of Research Operations (DRO) is responsible for planning, developing and directing the administrative activities and implementation of policies for the Research Service to enhance the effectiveness of the overall Research Program. This includes monitoring research and laboratory space for adherence to federal, state, and local safety and security statues and regulations.

• Oversee the development of administrative, standard operating procedures and for the implementation of operating policy in all phases of administrative management.
• Assesses the impact of proposed programmatic plans on budget and operations; analyzes the changes for consistency and integration with goals and objectives; and plans or executes changes in these areas to maintain strategic goals.
• Manages resources, space, facilities, equipment, and employees for a range of programs within Research Service and outside to the broader Research Program.
• Ensures compliance in initiating and maintaining agreements and contracts with internal and external entities, including federal-wide assurance, animal welfare assurance, affiliate memoranda of understanding and federal contracts.
• Serves as the Director of Research Administration and is responsible for the organization and management of the Research Service Administrative Staff, including personnel management issues, time/effort allocation and issues, staff resource allocation, coordination of staff functions, and staff performance factors.
• Executes approved funding programs and reprograms funding within authority levels, the implementation of the overall budgetary and financial system directives and guidance.
• Provides technical and administrative supervision to the entire Research Administration staff through direct oversight and providing administrative supervision to the individual research laboratory technical staff through the principal investigators for those laboratories.
• Oversee the daily operation of the Research Service, ensuring that agency policies and priorities are being followed; developing performance standards; and evaluating work performance of the subordinates.
• Performs all duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: M-F (8am - 4:30pm)
Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• 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 dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)

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

Individual Occupational Requirements: Basic Education Requirements
Possess at least a Bachelor's or graduate/higher level degree: major study in an academic field related to the medical field, health sciences or allied sciences appropriate to the work of the position. This degree must be from an educational program from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education at the time the degree was obtained. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED)

INSTRUCTIONS: In addition to meeting the basic education requirements above, you must possess the minimum qualification below to qualify for this position.

For GS-12:
Possess at least one (1) full year of specialized experience that equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of this position. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level of (GS-11) in Federal service. Specialized experience is planning, developing and directing the administrative activities and implementation of policies for the research service to enhance the effectiveness of the overall research program; overseeing the daily operation of the research service and ensuring policies and priorities are being followed.

OR

Possess a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree that primarily involves scientific inquiry or investigation, or research-type exploratory development of a creative or advanced scientific nature, where the knowledge required to perform the work successfully is typically and primarily acquired through graduate study (Ph.D. or equivalent for GS-12). (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED)

OR

Possess an equivalent combination of experience and education as (stated above) to meet the total experience requirements at the (GS-12) grade level. NOTE: To calculate the combination of experience and education, determine the amount of experience you have as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level. Then determine the amount of education you have as a percentage of the education required for the grade level. Add the two percentages; the total percentage must equal at least 100% to qualify for the grade level. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED)

In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), No person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. You must be proficient in basic written and spoken English in order to meet the requirements of this position.

You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position:

• Interpersonal Skills
• Leadership
• Problem Solving
• Project Management
• Strategic Thinking

IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.

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.

Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary and involves no special physical exertion.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

How you will be evaluated

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

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s).

Your responses to the assessment questionnaire will be reviewed along with the information provided in your resume and supporting documentation to determine if you are qualified for the position. If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your rating may be lowered and/or you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

Candidates who apply under All U.S. Citizens announcements will be rated and ranked using Category Rating procedures. Qualified candidates will be assigned to a quality category. The categories are defined as follows:

• Best qualified - applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are highly proficient in all requirements of the job and can perform effectively in the position;
• Highly qualified - applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the requirements of the job;
• Well qualified - applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in some, but not all, of the requirements of the job; and
• Qualified - applicants possessing experience and/or education that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors.

Application of Veterans' Preference: Category rating and selection procedures place those with veteran's preference above non-preference eligibles within each category. Preference eligible applicants that meet the eligibility and qualification requirements and who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent are listed in the highest quality category (except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-09 grade level or higher).

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.