Contract Specialist, GS-1102-11/12

Summary This position is located in the Department of Homeland Security, United States Coast Guard, Operational Logistics Command, LOGCOM-95 Regional Contracting Branch – Northeast, Norfolk, VA. Responsibilities This position is located in Operational Logistics Command, LOGCOM-95 Regional Contracting Branch – Northeast under the supervision of the Section Chief. Serves as Contract Specialist responsible for all aspects of contracting transactions from initiation to recommendation of award to procurement of items or services. Being a CG civilian makes you a valuable member of the CG team. Typical work assignments include: Conducting advertised procurements: providing guidance to technical personnel; deciding contracting approach to be taken; preparing solicitation; determining sources to be solicited; conducting pre/post award conferences; determining proposal responsiveness based upon Policy and Regulation; and awarding or recommending award based on award criteria. – Participating in the development of procurements, plans the procurement action, provides guidance for the statement of work; determining most suitable type of contract; develops special clauses; determining sources to be solicited; preparing determinations and findings. – Drafting documents including contract modifications, cure or show-cause notices and other administrative documentation characteristic of the contract administration phase either independently or based on specific detailed information provided by senior contract specialists/supervisor. – Interpreting and implementing the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and applicable agency directives. – Responsible for pre-award and post-award activities to include contract closeout. Requirements Conditions of Employment U.S. Citizenship is required. You must submit official transcripts to recd consideration upon selection Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for Selective Service. A one-year probationary period may be required. This position requires a National Agency Check with Inquiries (NACI). Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting Professional within 36 mth All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement. Qualifications Applicants must meet the following basic requirements: Completed a 4-year course of study leading to a bachelors degree with a major in any field; OR Completed at least 24 semester hours in any combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management. NOTE: Applicants who have been in a GS-1102 position at a GS-12 or lower grade level since January 1, 2000 without a break in service only need to meet the additional requirements in order to qualify. IN ADDITION to meeting the basic education requirements applicants must have: Applicants at the GS-11 level must have 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 grade level in the federal service. Examples of specialized experience include performing the full range of acquisition functions (i.e., pre-award, award, post-award) to procure a variety of supplies, equipment and/or services. Duties include: analyzing procurement requests to determine requirements, recommending changes to statements of work or specifications, and determining appropriate type of contract and procurement plan; coordinating procurement plan and other contractual/procurement aspects with requestor(s), technical representative, and finance; developing procurement/contractual documents inclusive of determining terms and conditions; conducting pre-bid/proposal conferences and negotiations; analyzing bids/proposals, cost and pricing data and contractor responsibility, and recommending award; and, carrying out post-award functions (i.e., monitoring contract, evaluating performance, interpreting provisions, providing advice/guidance, negotiating contract modifications, processing terminations, conducting close-outs). OR Applicants at the GS-11 level may also meet the additional requirement through substitution of education for experience as follows:Completion of 3 full academic years of progressively higher level graduate education or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, if related OR combination of education and experience. To qualify for GS-1102 positions on the basis of graduate education, graduate education in one or a combination of the following fields is required: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management. Applicants applying at the GS-12 level must have at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 level in the Federal service. Specialized experience is experience which may have been gained in work such as procurement, purchasing, rental, or lease of supplies, services, and equipment through open-market methods, placement of purchase orders, placement of orders under blanket purchase agreements or under indefinite delivery contracts such as Federal supply schedules, or other purchase procedures pertinent to contracting. Devising techniques to cover a range of contracting actions; reviewing and evaluating the quality of buyers decision on a wide variety of contracts; and preparing oral and written communication to provide guidance and decisions to explain and defend decisions. NOTE: The Defense Acquisition University (DAU) does not grant Academic degrees; therefore, courses completed at the DAU are not creditable towards meeting the 24-semester hour requirement, in the fields identified above, unless the coursework has been evaluated by an accredited institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and appears on a college or university transcript.” Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the particular ability, skill, and knowledge to successfully perform the duties of this position and is typically in or related to this line of work. Selectee must meet position requirements for Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (FAC-C) Professional certification within 36 months as of entrance on duty. National Service Experience (i.e., volunteer experience): 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 This position does have a positive education requirement. If you are including education on your resume, report only attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. See Required Documents section for detail. FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet Federal qualification requirements if you can show that your foreign education is comparable to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence with your application. See Recognition of Foreign Qualifications click here Additional Information Applicants will be required to complete questions contained on the Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306) at the time a tentative job offer is made. Certain responses on the form could pose a problem with suitability for employment determinations. If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete/make updates to the OF-306 and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application, prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment, dismissal after beginning work, or imprisonment. DHS uses e-Verify, an Internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about e-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities at click here Selectee(s) for this position who are newly appointed to a permanent position are authorized to receive a one-time recruitment incentive of 10% of the salary, including locality for this position. Receipt of the bonus will require a 12 month service agreement. Selectee(s) for this position who are current federal employees on permanent appointments and will be moving outside of the current commuting area of their current position to accept this position are authorized to receive a one-time relocation incentive of 10% of the salary including locality for this position. Receipt of the bonus will require a 12 month service agreement. The employee must establish a residence in the new geographic area prior to payment. If selection is made below the full performance level, the incumbent may be promoted up to the target grade without further competition, if all legal and regulatory requirements are met and when recommended by the supervisor. However, promotion to the full performance level is not guaranteed and is dependent on successful performance at the lower grade level(s). All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit. The Department of Homeland Security encourages persons with disabilities to apply, to include persons with intellectual, severe physical or psychiatric disabilities, as defined by 5 CFR § 213.3102(u), and/or Disabled Veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30 percent or more as defined by 5 CFR § 315.707. Veterans, Peace Corps/VISTA volunteers, and persons with disabilities possess a wealth of unique talents, experiences, and competencies that can be invaluable to the DHS mission. If you are a member of one of these groups, you may not have to compete with the public for federal jobs. To determine your eligibility for non-competitive appointment and to understand the required documentation, click on the links above or contact the Servicing Human Resources Office listed at the bottom of this announcement. More than 1 selection may be made from this announcement if additional identical vacancies in the same title, series, grade, and unit occur within 45 days from the date the certificate was issued. If you need a reasonable accommodation for the application and hiring process, please contact 206-820-0503. Decisions on granting reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis. Visit Reasonable Accommodation