Food Services Specialist

** Food Services Specialist**

**Department of Veterans Affairs**

**Location**

1 vacancy in the following location:

** Relocation expenses reimbursed**

No

** Telework eligible**

No

**Duties**

** Summary**

The Battle Creek VA Medical Center is recruiting for a Food Service Specialist-Chef. The Food Service Specialist-Chef will function in Nutrition and Food Service.

**Responsibilities**

The Food Service Specialist/Chef position is located in the Nutrition and Food Service of the Battle Creek VA Medical Center is responsible for culinary technical standards by ensuring that efficient, safe, and high-quality food services are provided to the Veteran, both inpatient and outpatient. As Food Service Specialist, the incumbent is fully responsible for the culinary technical standard ensuring that efficient, safe and high-quality food services are provided to the Veteran, both inpatient and outpatient. The incumbent reports to the Supervisory Dietitian, working independently, in conformance with established practices and prescribed procedures. Makes recommendation to update established practices and procedures.

Major duties and responsibilities will include, but are limited to:

- Serves as the technical and quality expert of culinary standards

- Analyzes and performs quality improvement tasks for menus and food service arrangements

- Oversees and continually improves food service operations

- Identifies and resolves difficult issues and challenges in a complex environment

- Applies advanced culinary techniques which minimize the use of restricted nutrients to develop refined and patient pleasing flavors, textures and presentations

- Plans future advancement in food services, new techniques, procurement, and production needs

- Identifies culinary and food service developmental and training needs of employees

- Develops culinary performance, technical standards, and quality improvement initiatives for food service operations

- Ensures compliance with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Food Code, Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points principles, Joint Commission Standards and food safety principles

- Provides budgetary input on food service operations and culinary program advancements

- Serves as Contracting Officer Representative (COR) for food service, food distribution, and purchase and maintenance of equipment contracts and oversees subsistence/supply ordering

- Conducts studies and investigations to include problem analysis and development of logical/documented recommendations on corrective actions

- Performing related duties as required.

**Work Schedule:** Monday - Friday, 08:00 AM - 04:30 PM

**Position Description/PD#: Food Services Specialist/**PD99847S

**Relocation/Recruitment Incentives:** Not Authorized

**Financial Disclosure Report:** Not required

**Travel Required**

Not required

** Supervisory status**

No

** Promotion Potential**

None

**Requirements**

** Conditions of Employment**

+ You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job

+ Designated and/or random drug testing may be required

+ Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959

+ You may be required to serve a probationary period

+ Subject to background/security investigation

+ Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process ** Qualifications**

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 07/23/2021.

**BASIC QUALFICATIONS**:

Applicant must have at least one (1) year of specialized experience that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of this position. To be creditable, experience must have been equivalent the next lower grade level (GS-9) in the Federal service. Specialized experience includes: overseeing food service operations; identifying and resolving issues; knowledge of culinary procedures; maintaining inventory; knowledge of food service production equipment; assisting with inspecting food for quality; using a computer to perform administrative duties; and providing courteous and efficient customer service. NOTE: Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must clearly indicate the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.

OR

Applicant must have successfully completed a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree.

OR

Have three (3) full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree in a related field. This education must include courses that demonstrate the knowledges, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. This education must include courses that demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. Education must have been obtained in an accredited college, or university.

OR

Have equivalent combinations of successfully completed graduate level education (beyond a master's degree) and specialized experience as described above to meet total experience requirements.

**NOTE**: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation.

**Time-In-Grade Requirement**: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS-09 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-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 will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

+ Quality Management

+ Food Service

+ Technical Competence

+ Administrative and Management 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:** The work requires physical exertion such as lifting, bending, pushing, frequent walking,

standing, stooping, reaching, stretching. Also unpacking and/or tagging supplies and equipment and carrying moderately heavy items such as personal computers, equipment, subsistence, supplies and chemical supplies.

**Work Environment:** The work involves regular and recurring exposure to moderate risks and discomforts

associated with production areas, such as exposure to heat, odors or fumes used in work processes; working near operating kitchen equipment (knives, slicers, ovens, stoves, kettles, etc.)