Acquisition & Utilization Specialist

Full Job Description

The Acquisition Utilization Specialist serve as the medical center liaison and advisor on contract related services focusing on critical clinical and healthcare services, product acquisition and support services required by project managers, program managers, upper management and stakeholders on all aspects of procurement for a wide variety of items to include specialized services.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 02/11/2026.

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.

Incidental operator: An employee, other than one occupying a position officially classified as a motor vehicle operator, who is required to operate a Government-owned or -leased motor vehicle to properly carry out his or her assigned duties.

As an incidental Operator, you are required to possess a a valid driver's license.

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: Specialized experience includes: handling contract related services, product acquisition, and procurement packages with unique, emergent and complex requirements including development of requirement documents (e.g.

performance, market research, etc.); developing sole source justifications; developing and analyzing reports to make recommendations on acquisition and contracting issues; participating in negotiations with other officials throughout all phases of contract administration; and monitoring expenditures and reporting on deviations from contract terms.

OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have one of the following: Ph.D.

or equivalent doctoral degree (Transcript Required) or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree (Transcript Required) or LL.M., if related (Transcript Required) OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level.

You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond graduate level as stated above, which meets the total qualification requirement for GS 11 grade level.

NOTE: If you select this options, a copy of your transcript (s) is required.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Attention to Detail Communication Contracting/Procurement Control of Funds Flexibility Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Negotiation Reading Comprehension Reasoning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork Technical Competence 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. Note: 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.

Note: One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study.

If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement.

Physical Requirements: Work is primarily sedentary in nature.

Requires occasional travel to conduct inspections of contract facilities or motor vehicles providing contracts for healthcare resources to ensure joint commission and safety requirements are met.

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/.

Major Duties:

Major duties and responsibilities include: Serves as the medical center liaison and advisor on contract related services focusing on critical clinical and healthcare services, product acquisition and support services required by project managers, program managers, upper management and stakeholders on all aspects of procurement for a wide variety of items to include specialized services.

Develops procurement for a wide variety of items to include specialized services.

Develops procedures, policies, and supporting artifacts to ensure procurement activities are consistent with Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR), VA Acquisitions Regulations (VAAR) and other federal procurement laws and regulations.

Develops and implements processes and procedures as changes are made to the VHA Procurement Manual.

Reviews procurement documents for accuracy, adequacy and completeness, and assists service line managers as needed to ensure the final documents are acceptable.

Establishes and maintains controls to ensure that contracts are executed in accordance with terms. Establishes and maintains controls to ensure that contracts are executed in accordance with terms.

Recommends contract termination and need to exercise option years of the contract based on contract performance monitors, funds availability, and the need for continuation of services being rendered.

Oversees and ensures compliance with the terms of contracts to determine modifications.

Develops sole source justifications in relation to cost, limited availability or unusual nature based on health care resource needs.

Negotiates performance requirements among multiple sites and service lines in order to obtain agreement, standardize enterprise equipment, supply, and/or service requirements in support of VISN strategic acquisition plans.

Obtains agreement on previously determined goals and objectives by negotiation, persuasion, and advocacy.

Develops and analyzes reports and makes recommendations to senior management officials regarding the contracting support of the facility.

Monitors quality assurance surveillance plans to ensure that contracted services meet the expectations and needs of the facility.

Recommends subsequent modifications/changes, settlement of claims and disputes, and termination for convenience.

Provides advice regarding procurement regulations for negotiations and resolves problems.

Conducts analyses and recommends courses of actions to ensure that various clinical and administrative service requirements have addressed considerations such as construction, budgeting, supporting manpower and other factors.

Develops and analyzes reports and makes recommendations to senior management officials regarding the contracting support of the facility.

Monitors quality assurance surveillance plans to ensure that contracted services meet the expectations and needs of the facility.

Researches and analyzes guidelines to develop, recommend, and implement solutions.

Analyzes and develops procedures to resolve gaps specificity or conflicts in guidelines consistent with supply program objectives and recommends/implements changes to current processes and procedures to improve the effectiveness of supply distribution.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am to 4:30pm Compressed/Flexible: Not 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.

Position Description/PD#: Acquisition & Utilization Specialist/PD99810S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized