Acquisition & Utilization Specialist

Full Job Description

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.

These duties include work associated with contract planning, implementation, oversight and close outs and may include Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) responsibilities.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 04/06/2026.

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-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. For a GS-11 position, you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09.

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.

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience for GS-09: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-07 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Knowledge and understanding of acquisition statutes, regulation, directives, and procedures.

Knowledge and understanding of the functions and processes required to maintain healthcare, maintenance operations, supply, and support services.

Knowledge of Federal, departmental, and agency contracting laws, regulations, principles, and procedures, contracts and provisions, financing, and methods of contracting.

OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience.

To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have Master's or equivalent graduate degree, or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B or J.D.

if related. Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work. (Transcripts 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.

(Transcripts required).

Specialized Experience for GS-11: 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.

Specialized experience includes: handling contract related services, product acquisition, and procurement of items in a healthcare environment; overseeing contracts including pre-award and post-award; preparing procurement packages with unique, emergent and complex requirements including development of requirement documents (e.g.

performance work statements and objectives, cost benefit analysis, gap analysis, sole source justifications, past 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 Ph.D.

or equivalent doctorial degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level education leading to such degree or LL.M., if related. (Transcripts 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 education in excess of 18 semester hours. (Transcripts required).

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Attention to Detail Communication Contracting/Procurement Control of Funds Customer Service 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.

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.

Work is performed primarily in an office setting with adequate lighting, heating, and ventilation.

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:

Duties include, but are not limited to: Contract Liaison: Coordinates with Network Contracting Activity (NCA) and VA HCS leadership, clinical service customers, Contracting Officers Representatives (CORs), logistics staff, and other stakeholders to develop and execute acquisition strategies 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 local policies, procedures, SOPs, and associated training materials ensuring they align with federal procurement laws and regulations Provides training to the facility CORs on procurement policies and new processes procedures related to procurement within the Federal government Establishes, expedites, and reviews consolidation of, all procurement packages, including unique, emergent, and complex requirements, to meet timely and technical needs of assigned acquisitions Independently develops performance work statements and objectives, cost benefit analysis, gap analysis, sole source justifications, past performance, quality assurance surveillance plans (QASP), market research, independent government estimates, evaluation criteria, options, funding, delivery schedules, lead times, and reporting requirements Contract Administration: Establishes and maintains controls to ensure that contracts are executed in accordance with terms Works independently with various personnel to resolve problems occurring in the administration of the contract Monitors the procurement process from pre-award to final delivery of requirements Monitors quality assurance surveillance plans to ensure that contracted services meet the expectations and needs of the facility Ensures that all per procedure contracts meet VHA standards of resident supervision in terms of qualifications of the contract physician to supervise residents during their physical presence in clinical settings Conducts discussion as necessary with contractors and assists project managers with their discussion of contract issues Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met.

Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Acquisition & Utilization Specialist/PD99492S and PD99810S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized