Supervisory Contract Specialist

About the role

This position serves as a Supervisory Contract Specialist within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Office of Procurement, Acquisition and Logistics (OPAL), Enterprise Procurement Office (EPO). The incumbent supervises staff, leads complex acquisitions, develops procurement strategies, oversees contract awards and administration, and advises senior leaders.

The position ensures compliance with federal acquisition regulations and supports VA programs and other Government agencies.

What you will do

• Perform reviews of solicitations, amendments/modifications, proposed awards, delivery orders, task orders, purchase orders, and other contractual documents and vehicles.
• Use qualitative and/or quantitative methods to assess management processes, systems, and mission support programs that affect the agency's acquisition and procurement environment.
• Present appropriate acquisition training to meet departmental needs and support agency acquisition training program initiatives.
• Oversee and coordinate the successful operation of contractual requirements through subordinate staff, provide advice on policy, technical training, expert troubleshooting, and address the full range of professional matters to ensure the effective and efficient operation of national contracting activities.
• Write standard operating procedures for use in field offices to address deviations from current published procurement policies.
• Work Schedule: Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm Compressed/Flexible: Available Telework: This position may be authorized for telework.
• Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.
• Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
• Return to Office (RTO): RTO mandates are in effect and selectees will be required to report to in-person work unless they are approved for an exception or an exemption.
• Any approval for an RTO exception, exemption, or extension will happen after a tentative job offer, but before a final job offer.
• Position Description/PD#: Supervisory Contract Specialist/PD20690A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

• 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: Subject position is primarily of an administrative nature in an office setting, however where travel to work sites is required there may be light physical work required, such as walking over uneven surfaces, or assisting technical personnel in taking measurements or elevations.
• Government travel for training, meetings, or customer interactions will be required in this position.
• 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 (***).
• 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.

Education

There is no educational substitution at this grade level, however this series has Individual Occupation Requirements. 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: ***

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: ***

How you will be evaluated

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: Accountability Acquisition Strategy Contracting/Procurement Customer Service Decisiveness Flexibility Interpersonal Skills Lead or Supervise Oral Communication Problem Solving Resilience Written Communication 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.

Documents you must provide

• Cover Letter DD-214/ Statement of Service Disability Letter (VA) Other (1) PCS Orders Performance Appraisal Professional Certification Proof of Marriage Status Resume Separation Notice (RIF) SF-15 SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action Transcript Please review the above list(s) to ensure you have included all necessary documents required for your application.
• Not every applicant will require the same documents, therefore it is the applicants responsibility to ensure that their application package includes all necessary documents to determine qualifications and eligibility for appointment, such as a copy of your SF-50, transcript, ICTAP/CTAP documentation (for displaced Federal employees).
• Applicants will be deemed ineligible if supporting documentation is not submitted.
• You will not be contacted for additional information.
• Veterans' Preference: Since the Direct-Hire Recruitment Authority is being used, traditional Veterans' Preference rules do not apply.
• Qualified veterans will, however, be given full consideration for this position.
• It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.
• 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.
• Beginning September 27, 2025, Federal agencies will only accept resumes up to two pages in length to comply with the Merit Hiring Plan.
• Resumes longer than two pages will result in ineligibility for further consideration for the position.
• USAJOBS will not allow you to upload or build resumes longer than two pages, and you will need to update the resumes in your profile before applying for a job.
• Resumes should include information relevant to the knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies of the position to which you are applying.
• VA is unable to make assumptions about qualifications if not clearly listed.
• Resumes must be legible so they can be reviewed for eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement.
• Your resume must be 5MB or less.
• We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages.
• We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX).
• We do not accept PDF portfolio files.
• We recommend using a sans-serif font size like Lato, if available.
• Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans.
• Make your page margins 0.5 inches.
• Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume.
• The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started.
• 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.

What to expect next

Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email. After we receive application packages (including all required assessments and documents) and the vacancy announcement closes, we will review applications to ensure qualification and eligibility requirements are met.

After the review is complete, a referral certificate(s) is issued, and applicants will be notified of their status by email. Referred applicants will be notified as such and may be contacted directly by the hiring office for an interview. All referred applicants receive a final notification once a selection decision has been made.

If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or contact 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.

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.

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. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service.

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.

Special Employment Consideration: VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply, including those eligible for hiring under 5 CFR 213.3102(u), Schedule A, Appointment of persons with disabilities [i.e., intellectual disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities], and/or Disabled veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more.

Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.