Clarification from the agency

Please be advised that federal retired annuitant candidates may only be considered as a temporary employee if the role can be filled in that capacity.

This is an Essential-Employee Position. The employee will be required to report to work during emergencies AND inclement weather situations.

Work schedule may require some occasionally mandatory overtime on holidays AND weekends.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

Performs administrative and technical supervisory functions through a diverse team engaged in restaurant program management and event operations.

Establishes performance standards, develop individual performance requirements, and conducts performance evaluations for all direct reports while ensuring mutual understanding of expectations.

Assign work assignments; oversee organizational workload; resolves complaints and grievances as delegated by higher-level supervisors; provide coaching, mentoring, and job-related training opportunities to support employee skills enrichment and professional development.

Provide leadership to ensure support for Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) goals; practices and enforces non-discriminatory and non-retaliatory employment actions; and prevents unlawful discrimination or harassment.

Managerial Responsibilities:

Provide long and short-range strategic planning across program areas; monitor organizational unit expenditures against the approved operating budget; track spending patterns and advise senior management of financial issues to ensure fiscal compliance and sound stewardship of unit resources.

Oversees and reviews invoices submitted by contractors for food service support, perform detailed analysis of contractor charges and estimates in accordance with contract provisions, including cost differentials for government subsidies and administrative fees. Certifies contractor invoices for payment upon compliance with all contract specifications. Establishes procedures to approve contract changes and prevent adverse monetary impact.

Maintain records tracking contractor costs over the life of managed contracts and validates contractor invoices based on services provided. Reviews and evaluates contractor requests for government maintenance services and maintains and reviews budget and inventory requests for government-furnished equipment.

Responsible for utilizing a thorough knowledge of and compliance with all applicable Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Office of Congressional Workplace Rights, and AOC’s safety rules and regulations to ensure that work progresses in a safe manner and to initiate or take corrective action on unsafe conditions in managed areas.

Provide or receives training, either on the job or through classroom training, to ensure that all direct reports know how to use required Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Routinely checks to verify that subordinates are using all required PPE.

Program Management:

Serves as the program manager for AOC's Senate restaurant/event support services and food service programs, managing the full lifecycle of both — from committee approval and contractor oversight through post-event close-out and operational performance management. This includes managing events held in Senate hearing rooms, conference and meeting rooms across Senate Office Buildings, and the Senate side of the Capitol, as well as overseeing a portfolio of nine food service outlets operating across the Senate Office Buildings. Administers a minimum of two food service contracts, ensuring contractor compliance, performance standards, and continuity of service. Clients include Senate Members and other congressional committees or staff members associated with the Senate, including external official delegations.

Oversees the Event Manager, AOC Material Handlers (Special Functions) and Special Event Coordinators in the setup, configuration, and strike of furniture and room arrangements to meet client specifications, safety requirements, and accessible accommodations.

Develops and implements standard operating procedures, intake processes, and service delivery guidelines for the events program to ensure consistency, quality, and compliance.

Analyzes event data and client feedback to identify trends, gaps, and opportunities; and recommends and implements improvements to service quality, operational efficiency, and client experience.

Collaborates with software engineers to develop, establish, and modify Senate event room set-up and inspection software; provides system oversight and training to subordinates; analyzes data reports to make recommendations, ensures compliance, and maintains uniformity across all event room and storage locations. Maintains, monitors, and timely close out Senate safety inspection and corrective actions.

Manage the operations of all food endeavors from inventory and daily operations of food venues to special event planning. This involves the professional planning, preparation, delivery, and service of food and beverages for the Senate and may include menu customization, on-site setups for events, and providing staff services. 

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen.
• You must be able to pass a drug test
• You must meet the definition of specialized experience.
• Your resume and question responses must demonstrate the job-related KSAs.

To be employed by the Architect of the Capitol in a paid position, an individual must meet one of the categories below:

-A citizen of the United States;

-A person who is lawfully admitted for permanent residence and is seeking citizenship as outlined in 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3)(B);

-A person who is admitted as a refugee under 8 U.S.C. 1157 or is granted asylum under 8 U.S.C. 1158 and has filed a declaration of intention to become a lawful permanent resident and then a citizen when eligible;

-A person who owes allegiance to the United States (nationals of American Samoa, Swains Island, and the Northern Mariana Islands, and nationals who meet other requirements described in 8 U.S.C. 1408); or

-A person who is currently an officer or employee of the Government of the United States.

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. Additional information on the qualification requirements is outlined in the OPM Qualifications Standards Handbook of General Schedule Positions. It is available for your review on the OPM web site at OPM qualification standards

Specialized experience is experience that has 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 position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level.

Candidates for the GS-14 grade level must have at least 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-13 grade level in the Federal service.

Specialized experience for this position is defined as having experience 7 of the 8 following: 

(1) Experience following food handling and sanitation laws, regulations, policies, industry standards and regulations governing food service preparation and delivery.

(2) Knowledge of government and state guidelines and business practices, regulations, policies and-procedures in procurement, accounting, preparation and food services.

(3) Experience managing funds for administrative costs associated with food service contracts.

(4) Experience as a Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) to manage and validate contractor invoice cost differentials, and use of contracting laws, rules and regulations.

(5) Experience with program management principles in a food service and events operations capacity.

(6) Experience in evaluating the performance of subordinate employees and initiating appropriate disciplinary action, when necessary.

(7) Experience in developing detailed estimates and initial requests for the budget and approving expenditures of department funds.

(8) Experience in supervising dining room operations and monitoring proper timing and preparation of foods so that the counters are set up and the work proceeds in an orderly manner.

How you will be evaluated

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

Review your resume and responses carefully. Your eligibility for consideration and qualifications for the position will be determined based upon a review of your detailed resume and your responses to job specific self-assessment questions.

Your resume will be evaluated based on evidence of your ability to demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) for this position, possession of any specialized experience, and how well your background and experience relates to the self-assessment questions in the job announcement.  The self-assessment questions relate to the following knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies:

Project Management - Knowledge of the principles, methods, or tools for developing, scheduling, coordinating, and managing projects and resources, including monitoring and inspecting costs, work, and contractor performance.

Financial Management - Understands the organization's financial processes. Prepares, justifies, and administers the program budget. Oversees procurement and contracting to achieve desired results. Monitors expenditures and uses cost-benefit thinking to set priorities.

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.

Food Service – Ability to follow food handling and sanitation laws, regulations, policies, industry standards and regulations governing food service preparation and delivery.

Acquisition Strategy - Knowledge of the principles and methods for developing an integrated acquisition management plan that describes the business, technical, and support strategies, including the relationship between the acquisition phases, work efforts, and key program events (for example, decision points, contract awards, test activities).

Supervision/Leadership - Influences, motivates, and challenges others; adapts leadership styles to a variety of situations.

Interpersonal Skills - Shows understanding, friendliness, courtesy, tact, empathy, concern, and politeness to others; develops and maintains effective relationships; effectively deal with difficult, hostile, or distressed individuals; relates well to people from varied backgrounds and different situations; sensitive to cultural diversity, race, gender, and disabilities.

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

Speaking - Uses correct English grammar to organize and communicate ideas in words that are appropriate to listeners and situations; uses body language appropriately.

Your responses to the self-assessment questions serve as the basis for your initial rating. You will receive a numerical score based on your responses to these questions.  Next, your responses will be evaluated by a Human Resources Specialist and/or a subject matter expert against the information provided in your resume and optional cover letter. Your resume must support your answers to the self-assessment questions.  Falsifying your background, education and/or experience is cause for non-selection or disqualification from further consideration. 

Please note that a complete application is required for consideration. (Please review the “Required Documents” section of this job announcement to see what must be included in a complete application).