Contract Specialist

Summary This position is part of the Los Alamos Field Office, Department of Energy. A successful candidate in this position will serve as an Administrative Contracting Officer, with oversight of the Los Alamos National Laboratory's Management & Operating (M&O) contract; a large-scale, long-term, multi-billion dollar contract to support the nuclear security enterprise. Responsibilities As a Contract Specialist, you will: Perform complex and critical procurement and contract planning with concerned technical program offices, contracting organizations, and develop acquisition strategies for the specific requirement. Be responsible for advising senior leadership and customers on acquisition strategy, preparing acquisition documents, and defending business cases for major acquisitions. Conduct negotiations as team leader or Contracting Officer on complex, large-scale, long-term multi-million dollar contracts. Conduct contractor site visits, as necessary, to resolve contract administration problems or to attend meetings and briefings with technical representatives in order to resolve procurement related problems. Requirements Conditions of Employment Subject to Random Drug Testing Must pass a pre-employment drug test. Favorable suitability determination required. Financial Disclosure is required. Must be able to obtain/maintain a Q level Security Clearance. You must be a United States Citizen. This employer participates in the e-Verify program. Males must abide by Selective Service registration requirements. Compliance with Homeland Security Presidential Directive (HSPD-12) governing personal identity which will require that you provide two forms of identification. May be required to successfully complete a one (1) year probationary period. Employees serving on a probationary may be terminated at any time during the probationary or trial period for performance, conduct, or business-related reasons in the interest of Federal service. Please limit your resume to no more than two (2) pages. If more than two pages are submitted, you will be disqualified. Probationary periods are required for new employees appointed to competitive service positions for the first time; or reinstated employees who return to Federal service after a break in service of 30-days or more and who have not completed a probationary period will need to complete the requirement. Trial periods are required for all excepted service employees. Trial periods served in the same position and agency with no break in service will satisfy the requirement. Qualifications SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS NQ-03: A qualified candidate's online application and resume must demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower NNSA Demonstration Project pay band or GS grade level in the Federal service, i.e., NQ-02 or GS-12. Specialized experience is defined as: Experience supporting or conducting contract administration and contractor oversight activities for complex programs, including performance monitoring, stakeholder coordination, and review of contract or subcontract actions. Examples of qualifying experience include, but are not limited to: Experience conducting performance oversight of contractors or subcontractors, including monitoring deliverables, evaluating compliance with contract terms, and identifying areas requiring corrective action. Experience reviewing contract/subcontract solicitations, awards, acquisition plans, award memoranda, modifications, and/or contract actions for adequacy, completeness, and compliance with organizational or federal acquisition requirements. Experience coordinating with internal and external stakeholders (e.g., program offices, county agencies, fire departments, safety organizations) to ensure mission needs are met. Experience participating in or supporting contractor performance evaluations, acceptance of work, surveillance activities, or management reviews for a major contractor or business unit. Experience using a variety of contract administration approaches, monitoring tools, or oversight strategies to enhance accountability and operational efficiency. NQ-04: A qualified candidate's online application and resume must demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower NNSA Demonstration Project pay band or GS grade level in the Federal service, i.e., NQ-03 or GS-14. Specialized experience for this position is defined as: Experience in negotiation of complex terms and conditions, reviewing contract/subcontract actions, and contract administration; working with program offices to establish mission needs in a politically complex environment. Examples of qualifying experience include but are not limited to: Experience in Contract Administration including administration of policy and procedures sufficient to oversee placement and/or monitoring of contractor performance on complex contracts covering major systems or extensive programs. Experience in business and industry practices sufficient to evaluate, monitor, and maintain uniform management controls over a prime M&O contractor's performance, and to provide direction and leadership to the Government's principal pre-award and post-award representatives. Experience in cost and pricing techniques to negotiate and act on a variety of pricing and special agreements, including final overhead rate agreements, including as necessary, to ensure implementation and administration of cost accounting standards. Knowledge and broad experience in understanding and executing of Nuclear Security Enterprise interrelationships between program goals, objectives, priorities, and funding to accomplish NNSA mission objectives. Skill in negotiation and persuasion adequate to obtain cooperation and understanding from DOE/NNSA and its M&O partners. "Experience" refers to paid and unpaid experience. Examples of qualifying unpaid experience may include: volunteer work done through National Service programs (such as Peace Corps and AmeriCorps); as well as work for other community-based philanthropic and social organizations. 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. CTAP/ICTAP candidates: To be considered "well qualified" you must meet all of the requirements as described in this section. If you are eligible for career transition assistance plans such as ICTAP or CTAP, you must meet the definition of "well qualified" which is defined as having a score of 85 or better. You must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of this announcement. Education Basic Requirements for GS-13 and Above 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 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. 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. 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. If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements: EDUCATION: Education must be obtained from an accredited institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Applicants who have completed part or all of their education outside of the U.S. must have their foreign education evaluated by an accredited organization to ensure that the foreign education is comparable to education received in accredited educational institutions in the U.S. A written evaluation of any foreign education must be provided with your application in response to this vacancy announcement or be received by the closing date of this announcement. Failure to provide this evaluation will result in you being found unqualified for the position. For special instructions pertaining to foreign education, see the Department of Education website, and for a list of organizations that can evaluate foreign education, visit The National Association of Credential Evaluation Services. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.**If you are selected, official transcripts will be required.**FOREIGN EDUCATION: Applicants who have completed part or all of their education outside of the U.S. must have their foreign education evaluated by an accredited organization to ensure that the foreign education is comparable to education received in accredited educational institutions in the U.S. A written evaluation of any foreign education must be provided with your application in response to this vacancy announcement or be received by the closing date of this announcement. Failure to provide this evaluation will result in you being found unqualified for the position. For special instructions pertaining to foreign education, see the Department of Education website, and for a list of organizations that can evaluate foreign education, visit The National Association of Credential Evaluation Services. Please Note: If your foreign education has already been accepted by an accredited U.S. educational institution as part of a degree program with that institution, you do not need to provide an evaluation of foreign education but must submit a copy of the transcripts listing the degree from the U.S. accredited institution that accepted your foreign education. Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating. Additional Information Veterans and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply. For more information, please visit the links at the bottom of this page or visit the FedsHireVets website. If you believe that you are eligible for the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP), please visit the OPM ICTAP/CTAP website for more information. In order to be considered under the ICTAP program, your application must score within the pre-established "well qualified" category as stated in the Qualifications section. More than one selection may be made from this vacancy announcement. All positions require successful completion of a background investigation. All males born after December 31,1959 must abide by laws regarding Selective Service registration. To learn more about this law, visit the Selective Service web page, Who Must Register. If you are not registered and don't have an approved exemption, you will not be eligible for employment with the Federal government. A Recruitment/Relocation Incentive may be authorized for a highly qualified applicant in accordance with agency policy and applicable regulations. In accordance with Executive Order 14170, applicants are encouraged to respond to the four short, free-response, essay questions in the questionnaire. Answers to these questions are not scored or rated. Your answers will be reviewed by the hiring manager and agency leadership if you are referred for selection consideration. EEO Policy: Click HERE. Reasonable Accommodation Policy: Click HERE. Veterans Information: Click HERE. Telework: Click HERE. Selective Service Registration: Click HERE. Information about the NNSA Demonstration project can be found by clicking HERE.