Skip to main content
U.S. flag
 

Acquisition & Utilization Specialist

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
Tomah VA Medical Center

Summary

Serves as the Medical Center liaison and advisor on contract related services focusing on critical clinical and healthcare services, product acquisition and support services required by project managers, program managers, upper management and stakeholders on all aspects of procurement for a wide variety of items to include specialized services.

Overview

Help
Posted today · Apply by 06/10/26
Due by 11:59 p.m. ET on June 10, 2026
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Work site options
Telework eligible
No
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$74,678 - $97,087 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 11
Promotion potential
None
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time
Travel Required
25% or less - You may be expected to travel 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
Yes
Drug test
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.
Background check type
Financial disclosure required
No
Some jobs require financial disclosure to identify conflicts of interests.
Announcement number
CAZP-12966796-26-JT
Control number
871118300

This job is open to

Help

Clarification from the agency

1. Open to current, permanent employees of the Tomah VAMC. Includes CBOCs, VCS, and CTAP. 2. Open to current, permanent employees of the VA Nationwide. Includes CBOCs, VCS, and CTAP.

Videos

Duties

Help

Major duties:

  • Renders expert contract pre-award and post award expertise to all Administrative and Clinical Service lines within the VA Healthcare System (HCS) and supported catchment area.
  • Subject matter expert in the acquisition process. Develops procedures, policies, and supporting artifacts to ensure procurement activities are consistent with Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR), VA Acquisitions Regulations (VAAR) and other federal procurement laws and regulations.
  • Coordinates with Network Contracting Activity (NCA) and VA HCS leadership, clinical service customers, Contracting Officers Representatives (CORs), logistics staff, and other stakeholders to develop and execute acquisition strategies.
  • Conducts analyses and recommends courses of actions to ensure that various clinical and administrative service requirements have addressed considerations such as construction, budgeting, supporting manpower and other factors.
  • Establishes, expedites, and reviews consolidation of, all procurement packages, including unique, emergent, and complex requirements, to meet timely and technical needs of assigned acquisitions.
  • Independently develops performance work statements and objectives, cost benefit analysis, gap analysis, sole source justifications, past performance, quality assurance surveillance plans (QASP), market research, independent government estimates, evaluation criteria, options, funding, delivery schedules, lead times, and reporting requirements.
  • Develops sole source justifications in relation to cost, limited availability or unusual nature, when the health care resource need is either unique in the medical community, or is subject to maximum utilization only through health care resources contracting, and identifies other alternative sources that exist within the local, regional or national geographical areas.
  • Establishes and maintains controls to ensure that contracts are executed in accordance with terms.
  • Advises on all phases of negotiation with the contract specialist/contracting officer for contract modifications, change orders, supplemental agreements. and delivery order processes including requirements, definition, justification, and approval for service contract extension, method of contracting, evaluation of proposals, and all phases of contract administration.
  • Troubleshoots various setbacks or delays. Keeps abreast of procurement status, and takes necessary actions to correct problems. Oversees and ensures compliance with the terms of contracts, to determine the reasonableness of contract modifications. Reviews audits to determine if changes are required for facility to ensure compliance with the terms of contracts.
  • Produces required documents for internal and or external audits of contracts by the Joint Commission, financial consultants, OIG, GAO, VISN, congressional inquiries, etc. Collaborates with stakeholders, executive leadership, and key decision makers to correct deficiencies noted by the auditors.
  • Performs other duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: Full time, Monday - Friday, 7:30am - 4:00pm
Telework: For approved ad-hoc purposes only. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Acquisition & Utilization Specialist/PD99810S
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized

Requirements

Help

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 or 2-year trial 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 or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 06/10/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-9. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:

  • GS-11 Specialized Experience: Must possess one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-9) in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the applicant 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 the position to be filled. Specialized experience for this position includes, but is not limited to: Knowledge and understanding of acquisition statues, regulation, directives and procedures; understanding of the functions and processes required to maintain healthcare, maintenance operations supply and support services to be able to perform contract liaison work; skill in written and oral communication to address contractual issues impacting the delivery of medical services, mission or funding; strong knowledge of cost and pricing data and contract proposals; ability to perform cost benefit analysis, conduct gap analysis, and understanding of cost elements; knowledge of procurement plans, and contract administration principles and practices; ability to solve a broad range of problems relating to proposals for change, claims, payments, and similar problems; comprehensive knowledge of negotiation techniques and skills in devising negotiating strategies to deal with contractors in resolving such problems as reducing costs, adjusting delivery schedules, and negotiating in sole service environments; knowledge of contract termination functions to review and analyze settlement proposals, audit reports, technical evaluations, and subcontractor claims. OR,
  • GS-11 Substitution of Education for Experience: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have OR,
  • GS-11 Combining Education and Experience: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond .
You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:
  • Attention to Detail
  • Flexibility
  • Integrity/Honesty
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Learning
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Reasoning
  • Self-Management
  • Stress Tolerance
  • Teamwork


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; religions; 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.

Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. 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.

Physical Requirements: Work is primarily sedentary in nature. Requires occasional travel to conduct inspections of contract facilities or motor vehicles providing contracts for healthcare resources to ensure joint commission and safety requirements are met.

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/.

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information

Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

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 for this position:

  • Attention to Detail
  • Flexibility
  • Integrity/Honesty
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Learning
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Reasoning
  • Self-Management
  • Stress Tolerance
  • Teamwork


Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. 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. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

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; religions; 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.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

Veterans Health Administration

OUR MISSION: To fulfill President Lincoln's promise "To care for those who have served in our nation's military and for their families, caregivers, and survivors" - by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's Veterans. How would you like to become a part of a team providing compassionate whole health care to Veterans?

VAMC Tomah (http://www.tomah.va.gov/) has been improving the health for those who have so proudly served our nation. Services are available to Veterans living in a Western/Central area of Wisconsin.

In addition to our main facility in Tomah, we offer services in four community-based outpatient clinics. These clinics are located in La Crosse, Clark County, Wausau, and Wisconsin Rapids. VAMC Tomah is one of 8 facilities that comprise Veterans Integrated Services Network 12 which is administratively headquartered at Westchester, IL, and includes facilities in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Michigan.

Agency contact information

Avian Wilkins
Phone
(901) 522-5536
Email
Avian.Wilkins@va.gov
Address
Tomah VA Medical Center
500 East Veterans Street
Tomah, WI 54660
US

Visit our careers page

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

http://www.va.gov/jobs

Your session is about to expire!

Your USAJOBS session will expire due to inactivity in 8 minutes. Any unsaved data will be lost if you allow the session to expire. Click the button below to continue your session.