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Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Department of Veterans Affairs
Immediate Office of the Assistant Secretary for Management
Office of Management, VHA Chief Financial Officer

Summary

This is a Detail Not to Exceed One Year, however, the detail may be made permanent without additional competition.

This position reports to the Director of VISN Financial Operations SES and aligns under the Department of Veteran Affairs' (VA) Office of Management (OM). The VISN CFO serves as the accountable financial management authority, providing enterprise-level financial stewardship to ensure resources align with Veteran care priorities, operations comply with statutory/policy requirements.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Location
5 vacancies in the following location:
Work site options
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$126,384 - $164,301 per year

The salary range listed reflects the GS base rate (not including locality). Upon selection, the salary will be adjusted to include locality.

Pay scale & grade
GS 15
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
Multiple
Occupations and job series
Supervisory status
Yes
Federal service type
This job is in the Competitive Service
Represented by a union
No
Drug test
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Position sensitivity and risk
High Risk (HR)
Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.
Background check type
Financial disclosure required
Yes
Some jobs require financial disclosure to identify conflicts of interests.
Announcement number
CCLQ-13039001-26-AMC
Control number
880695200

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Open to all current, permanent and/or acting (Acting Memorandum Required with application) Department of VA, VISN Chief Financial Officers and CTAP eligible candidates only.

Duties

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Major Duties:
Duties include, but are not limited to:

  • Provides enterprise-level financial stewardship across the VISN, ensuring resources are aligned to Veteran care priorities, operations comply with statutory and policy requirements, and leaders have timely, accurate, and actionable financial information.
  • Serves as the senior financial authority for the VISN, advising the Director of VISN Financial Operations, VISN Director, and senior leadership on affordability, resource trade-offs, multi-year financial planning, and the financial implications of proposed program and operational decisions.
  • Develops new methods and analytical frameworks for long-range financial forecasting and multi-year budget planning, applying expert-level methodologies including regression-based trend analysis, scenario modeling, activity-based costing, and sensitivity analysis to project long-range funding requirements.
  • Ensures financial governance and regulatory compliance across the VISN by overseeing funds control and internal controls. Ensuring all financial functions comply with applicable Federal law, VA regulations, VHA policy, and generally accepted accounting principles.
  • Serves as the principal financial liaison between the VISN and the VHA Office of Finance, representing the VISN in matters of financial policy, audit findings, and regulatory compliance. Coordinates responses to Office of Inspector General (OIG) reviews, external audits, and internal control assessments.
  • Leads cost-benefit analyses, outcomes assessments, and business planning support for VISN programs and initiatives. Works with VISN leaders at all levels to provide financial return-on-investment (ROI) analyses, shaping the future of services and care delivery across the network.
  • Providing direct supervision, consultation, and training for finance staff assigned to the VISN.
  • Managing organizational changes within the financial operations and exercising discretionary authority in the allocation and distribution of funds within the VISN financial organization's budget.
  • Identifying developmental and training needs of employees and arranging for needed development and training to build VISN financial management capacity and capability.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Compressed/Flexible Schedule: May be authorized.
Telework: May be authorized in accordance with agency policy.
Virtual: This position may be authorized for Virtual Work. Virtual Work eligibility is for current VA employees that are already subject to the return to in person work mandate in their current position.
Definition of Virtual Work: Employee works outside of original hiring duty station at a VA owned or leased space.
Return to Office (RTO): RTO mandates are in affect and selectees will be required to report to in person work unless they have an approved exemption already in place.
Position Description/PD#: PD00344A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Required
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
  • To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
  • Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
  • You may be required to serve a probationary period
  • 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 identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a one year probationary period or two 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 one year probationary period or two year 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, 08/21/2026.

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-15 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-14. 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 some former Federal employees applying for reinstatement, as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. See the Required Document section below for more information regarding the SF-50s needed to verify time-in-grade.

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

Individual Occupational Requirements
Basic Requirements

  1. Degree: accounting; or a degree in a related field such as business administration, finance, or public administration that included or was supplemented by 24 semester hours in accounting. The 24 hours may include up to 6 hours of credit in business law. (The term "accounting" means "accounting and/or auditing" in this standard. Similarly, "accountant" should be interpreted, generally, as "accountant and/or auditor.")
OR
  1. Combination of education and experience: at least 4 years of experience in accounting, or an equivalent combination of accounting experience, college-level education, and training that provided professional accounting knowledge. The applicant's background must also include one of the following:
    1. Twenty-four semester hours in accounting or auditing courses of appropriate type and quality. This can include up to 6 hours of business law;
    2. A certificate as Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor, obtained through written examination; or
    3. Completion of the requirements for a degree that included substantial course work in accounting or auditing, e.g., 15 semester hours, but that does not fully satisfy the 24-semester-hour requirement of paragraph A, provided that (a) the applicant has successfully worked at the full-performance level in accounting, auditing, or a related field, e.g., valuation engineering or financial institution examining; (b) a panel of at least two higher level professional accountants or auditors has determined that the applicant has demonstrated a good knowledge of accounting and of related and underlying fields that equals in breadth, depth, currency, and level of advancement that which is normally associated with successful completion of the 4-year course of study described in paragraph A; and (c) except for literal nonconformance to the requirement of 24 semester hours in accounting, the applicant's education, training, and experience fully meet the specified requirements.
AND

Specialized Experience:

For the GS-15 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-14 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is defined as:
  • Knowledge of planning and forecasting techniques for long-range financial projection and multi-year budget development
  • Knowledge of the full range of administrative laws, policies, regulations, and precedents applicable to federal financial management and VHA health care program administration, including thorough knowledge of congressional legislation, OMB guidelines and directives, and VA and VHA financial policy.
  • Knowledge of governmental accounting operations and requirements.
  • Mastery of a wide range of qualitative and quantitative methods for the assessment and improvement of financial program effectiveness, including regression-based trend analysis, scenario modeling, activity-based costing, and sensitivity analysis.
  • Ability to establish and maintain effective working relations, not only with subordinates, but with all levels of key management officials, the latter particularly requiring the exercise of tact, ingenuity and resourcefulness

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.

Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary. The position requires travel up to 25% of the time for site visits throughout the VISN geographic area and to headquarters.

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

The Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be found well qualified, applicants must meet the following qualifications:

  • Developed and defended a multi-year budget forecast for an organization with an annual operating budget of over $500 million.
  • Applied quantitative methodologies such as regression-based trend analysis and scenario modeling, identifying decisions informed by these analyses.
  • Held ownership of the forecast as the primary preparer/approver, rather than just a participant.
  • Ensured compliance with federal appropriations laws, anti-deficiency act requirements, and OMB Circulars.
  • Administered funds control and internal control processes across at least three distinct subordinate organizations or facilities.-
  • Required experience with VA/VHA financial systems or a similar large federal agency, excluding private sector experience.
  • Served as the primary point of contact for at least one audit or external regulatory examination.-
  • Drafted or approved formal management responses to audit findings and tracked corrective actions to closure.
  • Provided regular, documented financial advice to senior executives on trade-offs and resource allocations.
  • Conducted at least one cost-benefit or ROI analysis that influenced funding or restructuring decisions for programs valued over $1 million.
  • Held direct supervisory authority over a financial management staff of at least five employees, including supervisory roles.
  • Managed discretionary authority over fund allocation within a financial organization's operating budget.
  • Experience spans multiple facilities or units, not limited to single-site financial management.
  • Identified training needs and designed formal initiatives for the financial staff with documented successful outcomes.

Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

Local Commuting Area: The local commuting area for this position is defined as a radius of 50 miles of available VA office space.

Education

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

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: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office.

Additional information

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 (HRA) at The Fair Chance Act.

Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position.

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

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

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.

For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.

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.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. 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.

Note: Resume must include job title and employer name, number of hours worked per week, start and end dates (including month and year), list of duties and responsibilities for each position held. In addition, if the experience was a federal position, you must list series and grade for each position held. Failure to include this information may result in an ineligible rating. A full year of work is considered to be 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.

You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position:

  • Budget Administration
  • Compliance
  • Conflict Management
  • Financial Analysis
  • Financial Management
  • Influencing/Negotiating
  • Manages Resources
  • Partnering
  • Planning and Evaluating
  • Strategic Thinking


Supervisory Situational Judgement Test. Applicants will be required to complete a Supervisory Situational Judgment Test (SSJT) as part of the assessment process for this position. The SSJT evaluates judgment, decision-making, and leadership competencies associated with effective supervision in a Federal work environment. Assessment results may be used as part of the evaluation, ranking and referral process. This is not a timed test, however, the assessment is expected to take approximately 45 minutes or less to complete.

Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be contacted for an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

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.

Area of Consideration: Eligible applicants will be reviewed and referred in the following order:

  • All well-qualified CTAP eligible candidates.
  • All current, permanent VHA VISN Chief Financial Officers (CFO).
  • All current, acting VHA VISN Chief Financial Officers (CFO).

During the application process, you will 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.

Immediate Office of the Assistant Secretary for Management

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. How would you like to become a part of a team providing compassionate care to Veterans?

Agency contact information

Aerial Cooper
Phone
(405) 589-7297
Email
aerial.cooper@va.gov
Address
Financial Operations
810 Vermont Ave NW
Washington, DC 20240
US

Visit our careers page

Learn more about what it's like to work at Immediate Office of the Assistant Secretary for Management, what the agency does, and about the types of careers this agency offers.

http://www.va.gov/jobs

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