Acquisition & Utilization Specialist

Summary 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. Responsibilities Major duties: Renders expert contract pre-award and post award expertise to all Administrative and Clinical Service lines within the VA Healthcare System (HCS) and supported catchment area. Subject matter expert in the acquisition process. 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. 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. 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. Develops sole source justifications in relation to cost, limited availability or unusual nature, when the health care resource need is either unique in the medical community, or is subject to maximum utilization only through health care resources contracting, and identifies other alternative sources that exist within the local, regional or national geographical areas. Establishes and maintains controls to ensure that contracts are executed in accordance with terms. Advises on all phases of negotiation with the contract specialist/contracting officer for contract modifications, change orders, supplemental agreements. and delivery order processes including requirements, definition, justification, and approval for service contract extension, method of contracting, evaluation of proposals, and all phases of contract administration. Troubleshoots various setbacks or delays. Keeps abreast of procurement status, and takes necessary actions to correct problems. Oversees and ensures compliance with the terms of contracts, to determine the reasonableness of contract modifications. Reviews audits to determine if changes are required for facility to ensure compliance with the terms of contracts. Produces required documents for internal and or external audits of contracts by the Joint Commission, financial consultants, OIG, GAO, VISN, congressional inquiries, etc. Collaborates with stakeholders, executive leadership, and key decision makers to correct deficiencies noted by the auditors. Performs other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Full time, Monday - Friday, 7:30am - 4:00pm Telework: For approved ad-hoc purposes only. 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 Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements ( Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 06/10/2026. 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. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-11 Specialized Experience: Must possess one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-9) in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. Specialized experience for this position includes, but is not limited to: Knowledge and understanding of acquisition statues, regulation, directives and procedures; understanding of the functions and processes required to maintain healthcare, maintenance operations supply and support services to be able to perform contract liaison work; skill in written and oral communication to address contractual issues impacting the delivery of medical services, mission or funding; strong knowledge of cost and pricing data and contract proposals; ability to perform cost benefit analysis, conduct gap analysis, and understanding of cost elements; knowledge of procurement plans, and contract administration principles and practices; ability to solve a broad range of problems relating to proposals for change, claims, payments, and similar problems; comprehensive knowledge of negotiation techniques and skills in devising negotiating strategies to deal with contractors in resolving such problems as reducing costs, adjusting delivery schedules, and negotiating in sole service environments; knowledge of contract termination functions to review and analyze settlement proposals, audit reports, technical evaluations, and subcontractor claims. OR, GS-11 Substitution of Education for Experience: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have OR, GS-11 Combining Education and Experience: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond . You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Attention to Detail Flexibility Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Reading Comprehension Reasoning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork 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. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at Education A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: Additional Information Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.