Head of Contracting Activity

Summary This position is located in the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Office of the Secretary (OS), Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration (ASA), Office of Acquisition Management Services (OAMS).

The ASA provides leadership for DHHS departmental administration, including human resource policy, information technology (IT), and departmental operations. OAMS provides leadership, advice, and oversight in acquisition and acquisition policy. Responsibilities ABOUT THE POSITION The position follows the acquisition policies and oversight guidance.

The incumbent provides the DAS-A information related to the award and administration of contracts, financial assistance instruments, and requests for warrant boards to appoint Contracting Officers (CO).

The incumbent ensures assigned acquisition team members adhere to all regulations and policies related to contracting matters within HHS and the OAMS.

The responsibilities of this position include the following:

• Serves as advisor to the DAS-A in procurement planning meetings. Advises program officials of the procurement objectives to be used and assists in the preparation of the statement of work.
• Conducts continuous surveillance and evaluation of the procurement program to assure that functions, goals, priorities, and procedures of the program are being met. Maintains a continuing interchange of information in the form of reports, statistics, and commentaries and coordination of activities with the DAS-A. The incumbent represents the agency as the project's contractual authority at conferences and meetings.
• Serves as the OAMS Chief CO with unlimited signature authority, negotiator, and project coordinator responsible for the pre-award and post award contracting function involving highly specialized procurements of significance and sensitivity in support of the development and acquisition of HHS programmatic missions. Performance of the function requires knowledge of all types of contracting from fixed price through cost reimbursable contracts.
• Interprets contract provisions of contractors and agency officials, and provides appropriate advice and guidance, using mature judgment and defending all actions taken.
• Develops, within the existing legal and regulatory framework, procurement policies, procedures and operating instructions tailored to meet the specific needs of acquiring medical countermeasures.
• Manages, develops, implements, and assesses contract policies and procedures consistent with the guidelines in alignment with HHS and other Federal agencies.
• Plans, develops, and establishes the contractual strategy for project acquisitions. Develops a pre-negotiation position, determines the types of contracts, and negotiates authority to be used, and prepares justifications.
• Establishes published guidelines for use of staff and program offices, setting forth procurement lead-times for each type of requirement handled.
• Performs the necessary contract management activities consistent with Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) guidance and contractual agreements. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications As a basic requirement, applicants must demonstrate progressively responsible leadership experience that is indicative of senior executive level managerial capability and directly related to the skills and abilities outlined under the Mandatory/Technical Qualifications and Executive Core Qualifications listed below. Typically, experience of this nature will have been gained at or above the equivalent of the GS-15 grade level in the Federal service or its equivalent with state and local government, the private sector, or non-governmental organizations. Failure to meet this basic qualification requirement and all executive and technical qualification factors will automatically exclude you from further consideration. All competitive candidates for SES positions with the Federal Government must demonstrate leadership experience indicative of senior executive level management capability. To meet the minimum qualification requirements for this position, you must show in your resume that you possess the Fundamental Competencies, five Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs), and the Mandatory Technical Qualifications (MTQ's), listed below. It is recommended that your resume emphasize levels of responsibility, scope and complexity of programs managed, and program accomplishments and results.

Fundamental Competencies:
Interpersonal Skills, Oral Communication, Integrity/Honesty, Written Communication, Continual Learning, and Public Service Motivation. Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs): 1.

Leading Change:
The ability to bring about strategic change, both within and outside the organization, to meet organizational goals.

Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to establish an organizational vision and to implement it in a continuously changing environment.

2.

Leading People:
The ability to lead people toward meeting the organization's vision, mission, and goals.

Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to provide an inclusive workplace that fosters the development of others, facilitates cooperation and teamwork, and supports constructive resolution of conflicts.

3.

Results Driven:
The ability to meet organizational goals and customer expectations.

Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to make decisions that produce high-quality results by applying technical knowledge, analyzing problems, and calculating risks.

4.

Business Acumen:
The ability to manage human, financial, and information resources strategically

5 Building Coalitions:

The ability to build coalitions internally and with other Federal agencies, State and local governments, nonprofit and private sector organizations, foreign governments, or international organizations to achieve common goals.

Mandatory Technical Qualifications (MTQ's): This position also requires that you possess MTQ's that represent knowledge, skills, and abilities essential for success in this role.

The following MTQ's must be evident in your resume.

Recent and expert level knowledge, skills and abilities in both contracting and acquisition planning, including an in-depth understanding of services contracting, and the use of data in decision-making and requirements generation.

Demonstrated understanding of the development and application of relevant acquisition laws, regulations, and policies Proven expertise in formulating and implementing innovative procurement strategies and policy development to enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and mitigate risks in a large-scale acquisition environment.

Uses technology to drive transformation and enhance contract oversight efforts.

IF SELECTED, you will be required to complete an ECQ package by drafting narratives for each of the ECQs and be certified by an OPM Qualifications Review Board (QRB) in order to be placed in this position.

If you are currently serving in a career SES appointment, are eligible for reinstatement into the SES, or have successfully completed an SES Candidate Development Program approved by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), you WILL NOT need to draft the ECQs.

Education Basic Requirements:
Applicants must meet the basic requirement for this position. 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

NOTE:

To validate that you meet the educational requirement for this job series, please submit a copy of your transcript.

Failure to submit your transcript will make you ineligible for this position. 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.

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.

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR FOREIGN EDUCATION:

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a credential evaluation service that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs.

These education credentials must be deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, click here. Additional Information Salary for Senior Executive Service positions varies depending on qualifications. The annual salary range may be found at the top of this announcement. This position may be eligible for performance bonuses and performance based pay adjustments.

Probationary Period:

An individual's initial SES career appointment becomes final only after the individual successfully completes a one year probationary period.

Standards of Conduct/Financial Disclosure HHS inspires public confidence by maintaining high ethical principles, and all Federal Government employees are subject to the conflict of interest statutes and regulations, including the Standards of Ethical Conduct, that govern activities with outside organizations and reporting financial holdings.

The Ethics in Government Act, PL also requires the applicant selected for this position to submit a Public Financial Disclosure Report, OGE-278, prior to assuming the SES position, annually, and upon termination of employment.

Security and Background Requirements If not previously completed, a background security investigation will be required for all appointees. Equal Opportunity Employment Equality is held as one of the most important values at HHS. Selection for this, and any other position, will be based solely on merit.

HHS does not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, political affiliation, marital status, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, age or membership or non-membership in an employee organization, or any other non-merit factors.

If applying online poses a hardship to you, you may submit your application by contacting BreAnna Stewart . Reasonable Accommodation Policy Statement Federal agencies must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate.

Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact:
BreAnna Stewart. Requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis. Veteran's Preference Veteran's Preference does not apply to the SES.

Selective Service As a condition of employment, all male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must have registered for the selective service.

If selected for this position, the applicant must sign a statement certifying his registration, or the applicant must demonstrate exempt status under the Selective Service Law.

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