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Health System Specialist

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
Veterans Health Administration

Summary

This position is located at the Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Mid-Atlantic Health Care Network, Salisbury VA Medical Center, in the Associate Director, Operations Service. The Salisbury VA Health Care System, is a complexity level 1A health care system comprised of the W.G. (Bill) Hefner VA Medical Center, Charlotte Health Care Center, Kernersville Health Care Center, and one Community-Based Outpatient Clinic.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Work site options
Telework eligible
Yes—ADHOC - as determined by the agency policy.
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$76,343 - $99,252 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
Not required
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
CBTA-13054550-26-MB
Control number
883732900

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Duties

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The position serves as an Executive Administrator and functions as a senior administrative advisor and management analyst to the Associate Director, Operations (AD) who oversees administrative and operational services across the health care system. In this capacity, the position operates with a high degree of independence to analyze, evaluate, and improve complex administrative and operational programs that directly impact facility-wide performance, resource utilization, access to care, and Veteran outcomes.

Duties of the Health Systems Specialist includes but is not limited to:

  • The position serves as a senior Health System Specialist and principal administrative advisor to the AD. Independently performs complex analytical, evaluative, and advisory functions that directly influence executive decision-making, organizational performance, and the effective delivery of healthcare services.
  • The position independently plans, develops, and executes administrative management initiatives that affect multiple services and programs across the health care system.
  • Serves as the lead analyst for evaluating the effectiveness, efficiency, and productivity of administrative and operational programs, including workload, staffing models, access, resource utilization, and service performance.
  • Conducts complex management studies and organizational assessments involving multiple services, identifying systemic issues, operational risks, and performance gaps; develops and presents data-driven recommendations to Executive Leadership. Interprets and applies VHA, VISN, and facility policies, determining local impact and developing implementation strategies, business rules, and internal controls to ensure compliance and operational effectiveness.
  • Functions as an extension of executive leadership, providing high-level analysis and coordination of issues requiring senior-level attention.
  • Serves as a principal advisor to the AD on a wide range of administrative, operational, and programmatic issues, providing independent analysis, recommendations, and decision support.
  • Reviews, analyzes, and synthesizes information from multiple sources to develop executive-level briefings, issue papers, decision memos, and correspondence for internal and external stakeholders, including VISN and VHA leadership.
  • Represents the AD in meetings, committees, and workgroups, providing authoritative input and ensuring alignment with executive priorities. Coordinates high-visibility and time-sensitive requests (e.g., data calls, issue briefs, congressional inquiries, and external reviews), ensuring accuracy, completeness, and timely submission.
  • The position serves as a subject matter expert in organizational analysis and performance improvement, applying advanced analytical methods to improve healthcare operations. Plans and conducts complex analytical studies related to workflow, workload distribution, staffing efficiency, access to care, and operational performance. Utilizes data from multiple systems (e.g., dashboards, databases, and reporting tools) to identify trends, evaluate program effectiveness, and support executive decision-making.
  • Develops and implements performance monitoring systems and reporting mechanisms to track progress, measure outcomes, and identify
    opportunities for improvement. Applies process improvement methodologies and systems thinking to redesign workflows, reduce inefficiencies, and improve quality, safety, and access. Prepares comprehensive analytical reports and presentations for Executive Leadership, translating complex data into actionable insights. Provides leadership and guidance to workgroups and service lines on performance improvement initiatives and data-driven decision-making.
  • The position performs independent financial and resource analysis to support effective allocation and utilization of organizational resources. Analyzes budget execution, funding requirements, and resource utilization, identifying trends, risks, and opportunities for improved efficiency.
  • Conducts cost-benefit analyses and program evaluations to support decisions regarding staffing, equipment, contracts, and program investments. Advises leadership on resource allocation strategies, ensuring alignment with organizational priorities and operational needs.
  • Monitors and evaluates the financial impact of programs and initiatives, recommending adjustments as necessary to optimize outcomes. Collaborates with fiscal, contracting, and service line leadership to ensure sound financial management and compliance with applicable regulations.
  • Performs other related duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8am - 4:30pm
Telework: ADHOC - As Determined by Agency Policy
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Health System Specialist/PD502670
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved
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
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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, 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, 09/16/2026.

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.

Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR): is a basic requirement that must be met in order to qualify for entry into this job series, and it is something that can't be waived. The Individual Occupational Requirement for the Health System Specialist position is:

Minimum Qualification Requirements:

  • Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Possess an undergraduate or graduate degree with a major in hospital administration, public health administration, or related fields such as business or public administration with course work in health care administration. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED); OR
  • Specialized Experience: Possess progressively responsible analytical or administrative, or clinical management or supervisory experience in the health care field. This work may have been performed in an operating health care facility or a higher organizational echelon with advisory or directional authority over such facilities. Work must have involved a close working relationship with facility managers and analysis and/or coordination of administrative, clinical, or other service activities, and provided knowledge of the following:
    • Missions, organizations, programs, and requirements of health care delivery systems;
    • Regulations and standards of various regulatory and credentialing groups; and
    • Government-wide, agency, and facility systems and requirements in various administrative areas such as budget, personnel, and procurement.; OR
  • Special Provision for Inservice Placement: Successfully completed an agency-sponsored on-the-job training program which included a formal individualized training plan. Such a training program must have been conducted in an operating health care system and included:
    • Assignments providing a knowledge of basic health system administration philosophies, practices, and procedures, and basic government administrative policies and requirements;
    • Practical assignments providing an opportunity to apply health system administration skills and principles (as the individual progresses, work assignments must be characteristic of the grade level to which he or she is assigned); and
    • Oversight by an experienced health system administrator with periodic evaluation of the individual's progress and appropriate adjustment of the training program.
You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:
  • Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-9 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Solving problems/issues quickly and effectively, involving a methodical step-by-step approach to thinking; breaks down
    complex problems into single and manageable components and considering each part in detail; Makes a systematic comparison of various alternatives; Notices discrepancies and inconsistencies in available information; Identifies a set of features, parameters, or considerations to take into account. Develops new insights into situations and applies innovative solutions to make organizational improvements; designs and implements new or cutting-edge programs/processes. 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 presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately. Knowledge of the principles and practices of budget administration and analysis; including preparing, justifying, reporting on, and executing the budget; and the relationships among program, budget, accounting, and reporting systems. Knowledge of change management principles, strategies, and techniques required for effectively planning, implementing, and evaluating change in the organization. OR,
  • Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree OR three (3) full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree, Or LL.M in the related field of the position to be filled (i.e., hospital administration, public health administration, or related fields such as business or public administration with course work in health care administration). The education portion must include courses that demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. Education must have been obtained in an accredited college, or university. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation.
    . OR,
  • Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an equivalent combination of successfully completed graduate level (beyond a master's degree) and specialized experience as described above to meet total experience requirements. The education portion must include graduate courses that demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do to the work of this position (i.e., hospital administration, public health administration, or related fields such as business or public administration with course work in health care administration). NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation.
Experience must be clearly indicated in your resume.

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

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.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.

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

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and 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 well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. 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/.

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
  • Customer Service
  • Decision Making
  • Flexibility
  • Integrity/Honesty
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Learning
  • 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?

Agency contact information

Monica Busanet
Email
Monica.Busanet@va.gov
Address
WG Bill Hefner Salisbury VA Medical Center
1601 Brenner Avenue
Salisbury, NC 28144
US

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