Administrative Officer

Summary

The position serves as the Administrative Officer (AO) in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Health Administration (VHA), Mid-Atlantic Care Network (VISN 6), Durham VA Medical Center (VAMC), within the Surgical Care Service in Durham, NC and has full administrative management responsibility for a wide range of functional program staff that are assigned, matrixed, or deployed to Surgical Care Service.

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Duties

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The Administrative Officer provides high level analysis, administrative support, and recommendations to the ACOS for Surgical Care Service and facility leadership. Provides administrative support and oversight to eleven subspecialities within Surgical Service, including Vascular Surgery, Otolaryngology (ENT), Orthopedic Surgery, Gynecologic Surgery, Thoracic Surgery, General Surgery, Cardiac Surgery, Neurosurgery, Urology, Podiatry, and Plastic Surgery. Ensures efficient coordination within each service, compliance with VA regulations, and effective operations across a diverse range of clinical areas, while working closely with the ACOS for Surgical Care and each Section Chief to deliver high-quality surgical care..

Duties:

Surgical Administration, Operations, and Oversight

• Serves as principal AO and operations manager for Surgical Care Service, providing comprehensive administrative oversight for a large, complex service line consisting of 11 surgical specialties across multiple care sites, including the Durham VAMC, Garner, Clayton, and Greenville locations.
• Serves as the primary advisor to the ACOS on all administrative management matters related to program operations, policy development, and organizational performance.
• Collaborates with the ACOS, Section Chiefs, Nursing Leadership, and interdisciplinary partners to develop, implement, and evaluate programs and processes that support organizational mission, performance expectations, and strategic goals.
• Directs and evaluates administrative operations, including workflow design, manpower utilization, and distribution of work assignments, to ensure efficient and effective service delivery.
• Provides leadership with analyzed data and objectively based information for making decisions on the administrative and programmatic aspects of Surgical Service operations and management.
• Leads the development, coordination, and implementation of long- and short-range operational plans and policies for Surgical Care.

Surgical Operations

• Serves as the primary liaison with Human Resources, Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO), and labor partners, and will participate in the resolution of employee relations issues, grievances, and complaints. Research and investigates new or improved processes or practices for potential application to Surgical Service operations.
• Collaborate with human resources management and operations for Surgical Care, ensuring alignment with organizational goals, regulations, and workforce needs.
• Manage all HR tasks such as posting vacancies, processing personnel actions, managing appointments and leaves, coordinating promotions and awards, maintaining employee records, and preparing position descriptions.
• Analyze organizational efficiency and suggest improvements in staffing and work methods.???????
• Manage clinic operations, including scheduling, workload tracking, and adherence to access and productivity standards.
• Evaluate clinic processes to ensure efficiency and proper controls and oversee clinical labor mapping to ensure accurate staffing and time allocation

Resource Management

• Collaborates with the financial and resource management program, ensuring effective stewardship of funds, contracts, staffing resources, and material assets.
• Serves as the primary advisor to the ACOS on all budgetary and financial matters, including formulation, justification, execution, and monitoring of the service budget???????
• Develop and present budget plans based on workload projections, program requirements, and strategic priorities
• Oversee procurement and contracting activities, including preparation of procurement requests, evaluation of proposals, and management of contracts and agreements. The incumbent will serve as a Contracting Officer's Representative (COR), or equivalent, ensuring contractor performance and compliance with contract requirements.

Supervision

• Provides technical and administrative supervision for two (2) positions that consist of one (1) Clinical Administrative Specialist and one (1) Management and Program Analyst.
• Sets and adjusts short-term priorities and assigns wok to meet organizational goals and deadlines.

Performs other related duties as assigned

Work Schedule: Mon - Fri 0800-1630

Telework: May be authorized with Supervisor Approval - Ad Hoc only.

Virtual: This is not a virtual position

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Position Description/PD#: Administrative Officer/ PD502650

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required.
• 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 identification 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, 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, 09/04/2026.

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-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: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-09 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Creating reports, coordinating and scheduling meetings, and submitting requests/work orders using a personal computer and office automation programs (such as word processing, spreadsheets, etc.); maintaining and updating department or service-level databases and shared computer drives; accurately preparing timecards for submission and processing; resolving timekeeping issues related to overtime, holiday pay, unscheduled hours, and various types of extended leave; managing and balancing financial aspects of general fund control points and purchase procedures; and preparing and submitting requests for recruitment, promotion, reassignment, and disciplinary actions. NOTE: 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. OR,
• Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have completed a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree, or an LL.M. in a field related to this position that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with application. Education cannot be credited without documentation.. 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 combinations of successfully completed graduate level education (in excess of the first two years or 36 semester hours) and specialized experience to meet total experience requirements. NOTE: If using education combined with specialized experience to qualify, a copy of your transcript is required.
• 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

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.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.