Clarification from the agency

All US Citizens

• Agency programs include: Disability Program; Telecommunications Infrastructure, Software Services and Support Initiatives, and OMB 300 acquisitions;
• Health Information Technology; improving effectiveness of acquisition practices and results achieved from contracts and grants;
• implementation and oversight of federally mandated control audits and Governmentwide initiatives governing agency acquisition operations;
• and managing the development of the acquisition workforce via strategic development and implementation of acquisition career management plans and programs.
• Directs the acquisition improvement initiative for agency acquisition operations.
• Directs the evaluation of agency grant activity including Government-wide streamlining and simplification activities for agency grants and cooperative agreements.
• Directs the strategic planning for timely and effective implementation of Administration initiatives.
• Provides advice and guidance to the Head on a wide variety of policies, procedures, and issues having a major impact on the agency’s acquisition management processes.

Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship required. If you are a male born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt under the Selective Service Law. See www.sss.gov.
• Fingerprinting and background and/or security investigation may be required. Job offers are contingent on fingerprinting and background/security investigation results.
• You may be required to serve a 1 year probationary period
• Relocation expenses will not be paid
• All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement
• Resumes exceeding two pages in length will not be considered. Visit the 'Required Documents' section below for more information.
• Travel to other federal/state agencies or private sector organizations may be required.
• This position is temporary, Not To Exceed 2 Years.

Qualifications

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
To qualify for this GS-15 Contract Specialist (Senior Technical Advisor) position you must demonstrate:
(1) the Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR) for the federal 1102 series and
(2) at least 52 weeks of Specialized Experience

(1) INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENT (IOR)

A. Successful completion of a 4-year course of study resulting in 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.

AND

B. Successful 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 (described below) 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. (*SSA does not currently have mandatory training requirements for progression to GS-13 or higher contracting positions.)

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.

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, 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.

(2) SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE must have been gained in a federal position at or above GS-14 OR (if your position and/or experience is in another federal pay scale OR outside of federal service) by performing duties at a level equivalent to GS-14 or above.

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE is work that primarily consists of providing coordinative, analytical, consultative and advisory services on complex acquisition matters, including contract placement principles, contract management and oversight principles and specialized aspects of contracting.

SAMPLE DUTIES THAT DEMONSTRATE SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE INCLUDE:

(a) solicitation and evaluation of competitive proposals and evaluations of prices and cost;

(b) partial/progress payments, deliverables management, negotiation of contract modifications, contract closeouts and other contract administrative challenges; and

(c) utilizing cost reimbursement contracting and performance-based contracting.

See EDUCATION, HOW YOU WILL BE EVALUATED and REQUIRED DOCUMENTS for more information on submitting your application.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS (IOR and Specialized Experience) must be met by the closing date of this announcement. (Applicants who do not meet the qualification requirements may be considered for a waiver in accordance with the standard.)

How you will be evaluated

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

The evaluation you receive is based on your responses to the questionnaire. Your resume and supporting documents will be compared to your responses to the occupational questionnaire, which is designed to capture the desired competencies for this position. These competencies include:

-- Knowledge of federal contracting and grants laws, regulations, principles, policies and procedures

-- Ability to communicate both orally and in writing

-- Ability to research, analyze, evaluate and interpret regulations, policies and procedures

Be sure to answer all questions and follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your evaluation. The questionnaire takes approximately 15 minutes to complete. To preview the questions, click the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12916454

Your application will be ranked under Category Rating, based on your responses to the Assessment Questions. If you meet the basic requirements for the position, your application will be placed into one of three groups:

1 - Qualified -- Candidates who meet Minimum Qualifications
2 - Well Qualified -- Candidates who meet Minimum Qualification and demonstrate a satisfactory level of knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the duties of the position.
3 - Best Qualified -- Candidates who meet Minimum Qualification and demonstrate a high level of knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the duties of the position.

PRIORITY SELECTION:
Eligible well-qualified ICTAPapplicants will receive the first consideration ONLY IF appropriate supporting documents are provided (see Career Transition Guide and REQUIRED DOCUMENTS section).

Qualified Veterans' Preference Eligibles will be placed ahead of others in the category for which they are ranked.

Qualified Preference Eligibles who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent will automatically be placed in the Best Qualified Category.