Duties

Summary

The position(s) covered by this vacancy announcement is in the Department of Defense (DoD) Acquisition Workforce Personnel Demonstration Project (AcqDemo). For more information please see: AcqDemo

This position is being filled under an Expedited Hiring Authority (EHA).
Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

As a Contract Specialist at the NH-1102-2 some of your typical work assignments may include:

• Assisting in devising negotiation approaches, modifying or extending existing guidelines in specific contractual situations (e.g., accommodating new reporting requirements), writing new clauses or provisions to cover specific situations (e.g., developing new language to eliminate various contractor objections or draft specific language to cover the contractor's proprietary rights under the Patent Rights Clause), or developing new information to establish a pricing position when historical cost data are not available.
• Serving as a point of contact for advising the MDA Deputies and Directors in areas not requiring contracting officer authorizations, such as, coordination of future procurement requirements; preparation of required procurement supporting documentation; and the resolution of specific procurement problems.
• Planning and coordinating activities performed on a variety of contracts associated with spiral development, deployment and sustainment of MDA elements and supporting services. Complexities include: Use of cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost sharing, negotiated or advertised firm fixed-price, requirements, indefinite quantity and incentive contracts; and, evaluation of unsolicited proposals; sole-source acquisitions involving highly specialized programs; Contracts that involve difficult cost projections, time schedules, unauditable data, or unknowns; Scope of research effort, test required, and level and extent of labor and skills necessary, which are difficult to define because of lack of precedent data; Frequent technological changes which are imposed by technical personnel and which incur delays or modifications to the solicitation or contract;
• Recommending forecasting labor and material costs with unknowns in the research program, locating or developing sources, developing approaches for procurement lacking precedent, accommodating technological challenges, and resolving major differences in the interpretation of the statement of work.

Travel Required

Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
3

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen
• Occasional Travel
• Work Schedule: Full-time
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service
• Suitable for Federal employment, determined by a background investigation
• May be required to successfully complete a probationary period
• Overtime: Occasionally
• Tour of Duty: Flexible
• Recruitment/relocation incentive up to $5K has been authorized
• Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA): Non-Exempt
• Financial Disclosure: Required
• Telework Eligibility: This position is telework eligible
• Must obtain/maintain Non-critical Sensitive/Secret security clearance
• This position requires Acquisition Workforce Level I Certification in Contracting. Certification prior to hiring is not essential but must be accomplished within 24 months after entry into this position.

Qualifications

To qualify at the NH-02 you must meet the Basic Education Requirements:

A bachelor's degree from an accredited educational institution authorized to grant baccalaureate degrees; AND at least 24 semester hours of study from an accredited institution of higher education in any combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management obtained within or in addition to the bachelor's degree OR graduate education in one or a combination of fields listed above. Current civilian personnel in DoD, who occupied GS-1102 positions or contracting positions with authority to award or administer contracts above the simplified acquisition threshold in an Executive Department on or before September 30, 2000, are exempt from meeting this requirement. Current civilian personnel in DoD, in any occupational series, who occupied a similar occupational specialty to the GS-1102 while serving in the military on or before September 30, 2000, are also exempt from meeting this requirement.

*NOTE: Failure to provide transcripts will result in you being rated ineligible for this position.

You must have one year of Specialized Experience equivalent to the GS-09 level in the Federal service (experience may have been gained in the private/military sector) giving 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. Specialized experience required for this position is:
Experience applying acquisition and/or contracting processes, developing policies and procedures for acquisition strategies; awarding and managing resultant contracts to meet customer's needs including cost, schedule and performance.

OR B. 3 full academic years of progressively higher level graduate education or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, OR

C. You have some specialized experience as described in A, but less than one year; and you have more than one year but less than two years of education as described in B. You have computed the percentage of the requirements that you meet, and the total is at least 100%. (To compute the percentage, divide your total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then divide your semester hours of graduate education beyond the first year by 18. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify.)

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; religious; 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.

Education

ARE YOU USING YOUR EDUCATION TO QUALIFY? You MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims. Unless otherwise stated: (1) unofficial transcripts are acceptable at time of application, or (2) If you are serviced by the office filling this position and your transcripts are on file in your official personnel folder, you are not required to submit. However, it is your responsibility to ensure transcripts are on file.

All materials must be submitted by the closing date of the announcement.

GRADUATE EDUCATION: One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours that your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: Foreign Education

Additional information

This position DOES NOT meet criteria for re-employed annuitant. The DoD criteria for hiring Re-employed Annuitants can be found at:
http://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/140025/1400.25-V300.pdf

All applicants must meet qualifications and eligibility criteria by the closing date of the announcement.

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Programs: This program applies to employees who have been involuntarily separated from a Federal service position within the competitive service or Federal service employees whose positions have been deemed surplus or no longer needed. To receive selection priority for this position, you must: 1) meet ICTAP eligibility criteria; 2) be rated well-qualified for the position with a score of 85 or above; and 3) submit the appropriate documentation to support your ICTAP eligibility. For more information:
https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/

Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service (see https://www.sss.gov/RegVer/wfRegistration.aspx

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

We will review your resume and supporting documents, to ensure you meet the basic qualification requirements. We will evaluate each applicant who meets the basic qualifications on the information provided and evaluate your relevant work experiences as it relates to fundamental competencies, identified below, required for this position.

Competencies:
Contracting/Procurement
Customer Service
Problem Solving
Attention to Detail
Oral Communication
Written Communication

Traditional rating and ranking of applications does not apply to this vacancy. Your application (resume and supporting documentation) will be evaluated to determine if you meet the minimum qualifications required as listed on the announcement under qualification requirements.

Veterans Preference: If you are entitled to veterans preference, you should indicate the type of veterans' preference you are claiming on your resume. Your veterans' preference entitlement will be verified by the employing agency.

For information on entitlement see http://www.fedshirevets.gov/job/vetpref/index.aspx

Military Spouse Preference: If you are entitled to military spouse preference, in order to receive this preference you must choose the spousal eligibility in your application package referencing MSP Military Spouse Preference. Your preference entitlement will be verified by the employing agency. If you are claiming military spouse preference and qualified for the position, your name will be placed below preference eligible veteran candidates and above non-preference candidates on a list sent to the hiring manager for employment consideration. To claim Military Spouse Preference (MSP) please complete the Military Spouse PPP Self-Certification Checklist

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Secret

Drug test required
Yes

Position sensitivity and risk
Noncritical-Sensitive (NCS)/Moderate Risk

Trust determination process
National security

Required Documents

The documents you are required to submit vary based on the authority you are using to apply (i.e., applying as a veteran, applying as a current permanent Federal employee, applying as a reinstatement, etc).

Your complete application includes your COMPLETE resume, your responses to the online questionnaire, and documents which prove your eligibility to apply. If you fail to provide these documents, you will be marked as having an incomplete application package and you will not be considered any further.

The following documents are REQUIRED
1. Your resume:

• Your resume may be submitted in any format. It must include your name and contact information and support the specialized experience described in this announcement.
• For qualifications determinations your resume must contain the number of hours worked per week and the dates of employment (i.e.," HRS per week and month/year" or "HRS per week and month/year to present").
• For additional information see: What to include in your resume.

2. Transcripts

• This position has a degree or education requirement so you are required to submit a copy of your transcript
• College transcript(s), required if qualifying based on education. We accept unofficial transcripts, as long as they contain your name, the name of the school, the date and degree that was awarded, and the lists of classes and credits earned.

3. Veteran's Documents

• If applying using veteran's preference or under a Veteran's hiring authority you must submit the following documents:
• DD214 showing character of service, SF-15 Form and VA letter showing final percentage, or certification of expected discharge or release from active duty.

PLEASE REVIEW THE BELOW LINK FOR OTHER SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS needed for proof of eligibility:
https://www.dla.mil/Portals/104/Documents/Careers/downloads/FourthEstateRequiredSupportingDocumentation.pdf?ver=2019-02-08-123333-753

If you are claiming Military Spouse Preference, you must submit supporting documents with your application package. These documents must provide acceptable information to verify: you reside within the commuting area of your sponsor's permanent duty station (PDS); proof of marriage to the active duty sponsor, proof of military member's active duty status, and other documentation required by the vacancy announcement to which you are applying; and must meet all pre-employment criteria and be eligible for immediate noncompetitive appointment to a position in the competitive service. Documentation required: Marriage Certificate or License, Signed Self-Certification Checklist, Veterans' Preference documentation (e.g., DD-214, VA Letter, Statement of Service, if applicable), Transcripts (if applicable). Additional documentation required if previously held a federal position: SF-50s (e.g., LWOP, highest grade held, overseas appointments, etc.), SF-75 Information, and documentation of performance rating of record (dated within the last 12 months)

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education .

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.