Job Summary

This announcement is issued under the Direct Hire Authority (DHA) to recruit for positions for which there is a critical hiring need. Selectee(s) will receive a career or career-conditional appointment in the competitive service and may be required to serve a one year probationary period.

Job Description

Do NOT copy and paste the duties, specialized experience, or occupational assessment questionnaire from this announcement into your resume as that will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position. Your resume must describe your work and experience, in your own words. To be considered minimally qualified for this position, you must demonstrate that you have the required education and/or experience for the respective grade level in which you are applying. BASIC REQUIREMENTS: Basic Qualification for the GS-13 and GS-14 A. Completion of all mandatory training prescribed by the head of the agency for progression to GS-13 or higher-level contracting positions, including at least 4-years' experience in contracting or related positions. At least 1 year of that experience must have been specialized experience at or equivalent to work at the next lower level of the position, and must have provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the work of the position. AND B. A 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree, that included or was supplemented by 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. OR C. Exceptions: Employees in GS-1102 positions will be considered to have met the standard for positions they occupy on January 1, 2000. This also applies to positions at the same grade in the same agency or other agencies if the specialized experience requirements are met. However, they will have to meet the basic requirements and specialized experience requirements in order to qualify for promotion to a higher grade, unless granted a waiver under Paragraph D. OR D. Waiver: When filling a specific vacant position, the senior procurement executive of the selecting agency, at his or her discretion, may waive any or all of the requirements of Paragraphs A and B above if the senior procurement executive certifies that the applicant possesses significant potential for advancement to levels of greater responsibility and authority, based on demonstrated analytical and decision-making capabilities, job performance, and qualifying experience. With respect to each waiver granted under this Paragraph D, the senior procurement executive must document for the record the basis of the waiver. If an individual is placed in a position in an agency on the basis of a waiver, the agency may later reassign that individual to another position at the same grade within that agency without additional waiver action. IN ADDITION TO MEETING THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS ABOVE, YOU MUST ALSO MEET THE FOLLOWING MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: Specialized Experience GS-13: In addition to the basic qualification above, applicants must demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level in the Federal service obtained in either the public or private sectors. Specialized experience is defined as: 1) Serving as lead contract specialist responsible for pre-award and/or post-award; 2) Ensuring acquisitions, procurements, and outsourcing efforts address information security requirements consistent with organizational goals; 3) Certifying supply chain, system, network, and cybersecurity requirements are included in contract language and delivered; AND 4) Working with contract officers or heads of contracting activity to ensure requirements are delivered. Specialized Experience:GS-14: In addition to the basic qualification above, applicants must demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-13 grade level in the Federal service obtained in either the public or private sectors. Specialized experience is defined as: 1) Serving as a contracting offer authorized to solicit contract proposals, negotiate, execute, administer, and/or terminate public contracts; 2) Managing complex and important procurement programs and initiatives that serve as a guide for procurement activities; 3) Certifying supply chain, system, network, and cybersecurity requirements are included in contract language and delivered; AND 4) Developing statements of work and procurement strategies, evaluation plans, pricing mythologies and contract administration plans. Certification Requirement: This position will require Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (FAC-C) Professional which is mandated by DHS policy for Contract Specialist series 1102 positions. Applicants seeking to meet the training requirements for GS-13 and above in accordance with the OPM Contracting Series 1102, Hiring Qualifications are required to provide ONE of the following: 1. FAC-C Professional 2. Legacy FAC-C Certification (Levels I, II, or III) 3. Legacy Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) Contracting Certification (Levels I, II, or III) 4. Department of Defense (DoD) Contracting Professional Certification Waiver: GS 1102 vacant position for a GS-13 and above, the Senior Procurement Executive of DHS, at his or her discretion, may waive any or all of the requirements of paragraphs A and B of the OPM Contracting Series 1102 Hiring Qualifications, found at Contracting Series, 1102, if the Senior Procurement Executive certifies that the applicant possesses significant potential for advancement to levels of greater responsibility and authority, based on demonstrated analytical and decision making capabilities, job performance, and qualifying experience. With respect to each waiver, the Senior Procurement Executive must document for the record the basis of the waiver. If an individual is placed in a position at DHS based on a waiver, DHS may later reassign that individual to another position at the same grade within that agency without additional waiver action. 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. All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.