Clarification from the agency

ALL US CITIZENS DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY: This position is being filled using Direct-Hire Authority (5 CFR 337.201) for this occupation.

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OIT Mission: The mission of the Office of Information and Technology (OIT) is to collaborate with our business partners to create the best experience for all Veterans.

OIT Vision: To become a world-class organization that provides a seamless, unified Veteran experience through the delivery of state-of-the-art technology.

Major Duties :

• Monitors the development and implementation of strategic plans to ensure they are in accordance with management priorities and objectives.
• Handle administrative personnel duties for their assigned division and provides leadership and project planning guidance to division analysts.
• Participates in the development of the IT Service annual strategic planning report and other ad hoc reports, as required to develop new policies and structures for diverse teams.
• Provide direct supervision to all staff of the office to include team leaders.
• Monitor and/or oversee appropriate performance measures and indicators to assess the overall success of the office.
• Review and evaluate the performance of subordinates on assigned projects.
• Oversee engineering, implementation, evaluation, debugging, support and continuous improvement of processes and technology in accordance with management priorities and objectives.
• Facilitate the effective exchange of information between stakeholders at all levels by sponsoring regular meetings, to ensure all critical parties are informed and involved in decision making activities and maintenance events.
• Evaluate the impact of changes in business needs, evaluates feasibility, identifies solutions, and presents recommendations to senior management.
• Direct and manage technical teams in the daily operations and maintenance of diverse software systems.
• Provide operational oversight of the change control and configuration management processes within their assigned division.
• Document statistics on information assets documents and maintain information flow and asset prioritization.
• Develop and maintain a document library of VistA-connected and/or Electronic Health Record (EHR) linked applications. Maintain a library of problem-solving solutions to support VistA connected and/or Electronic Health Record (EHR) linked COTS Interface applications.

This position is primarily aligned to the following NICE Cybersecurity Workforce Framework work roles:
Cybersecurity Code: 451 - System Administrator: Oversee development, implementation, evaluation and continuous improvement of processes and technology in accordance with management priorities and objectives.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm
Compressed /Flexible: Compressed and Flexible schedule may be authorized at management discretion
Telework: Adhoc telework may be authorized at management discretion
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description Title/PD#: COTS Interface, Division Chief /17591A
Relocation /Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized
Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary in nature. No special physical demands are required.

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.
• Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required.
• 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 dentification 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 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

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement , August 25, 2026

You must meet the Basic Requirements Experience , Specialized Experience and Selective placement Factors to qualify for the series as described below:

Basic Requirements Experience: Experience must be IT related; the experience may be demonstrated by paid or unpaid experience and/or completion of specific, intensive training (for example, IT certification), as appropriate. For all positions individuals must have IT-related experience demonstrating each of the five competencies listed below. The employing agency is responsible for identifying the specific level of proficiency required for each competency at each grade level based on the requirements of the position being filled.

• Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.
• Customer Service - Works with clients and customers (that is, any individuals who use or receive the services or products that your work unit produces, including the general public, individuals who work in the agency, other agencies, or organizations outside the Government) to assess their needs, provide information or assistance, resolve their problems, or satisfy their expectations; knows about available products and services; is committed to providing quality products and services.
• Oral Communication - Expresses information (for example, ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information (for example, technical, sensitive, controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately.
• Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.

AND

Specialized Experience: In addition to the minimum qualifications described above, you must meet the following requirements to be considered for the position: Directing and managing technical teams in the preparation, installation, maintenance and support of systems servers, hardware, software interface and interoperability problems; Providing operational oversight of the change control and configuration management processes to ensure technology meets and is aligned with business needs; Reviewing and evaluating work performance of team members; Fostering organizational relationships, negotiating, obtaining or committing resources, and gaining compliance with policies, regulations, or contracts.

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.

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/.



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.

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.

USA Hire Assessments include a cut score based on the minimum level of required proficiency in these critical general competencies. You must meet or exceed the cut score to be considered. You will not be considered for the position if you score below the cut score or fail to complete the assessment.

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 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.