Summary The Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) contracting professionals are key partners in modernizing and maintaining the nation's air traffic management system, to increase flight capacity, meet future air traffic demands, and continue FAA's mission in providing the safest and most efficient air travel system in the world. Responsibilities The Senior Contract Specialist will serve as a warranted Contracting Officer in the FAA’s Systems Operations Contracting Division (AAQ-300). We provide acquisition and contracting services for a variety of major National Airspace System (NAS) Air Traffic Control technical training & power systems, communication systems, weather information systems, Satellite and ground-based navigation, and Systems Engineering programs/projects Approximately 44,000 flights and 2.7 million airline passengers travel across more than 29 million square miles of airspace each day. The process of an aircraft preparing to leave the runway, taking off, traveling through the sky, and landing at its destination requires various people, technologies, and services to ensure a safe and efficient flight operation. The Systems Operations Contracting Division and its Branches partner with FAA organizations to provide needed Air Traffic Control (ATC) products and services. Contracts professionals are currently needed in multiple branches within the Systems Operations Contracting Division, AAQ-300. The incumbent will support one of several specialty areas in the Acquisitions Organization in contract development and management for the agency. This includes complete contract management for all agency wide acquisition programs, NextGen initiatives, National Airspace System (NAS) support and automation, regional acquisitions, services, and other agency priorities. The incumbent must be aware of conditions and processes such as, design to cost, effective competition, acquisition life cycle, exploration, demonstration, full production, and full-scale development contracts. Applying principles of program management, quality assurance, reliability, scheduling, work breakdown structures and validations, the incumbent will plan, develop, and implement acquisition strategies utilizing the flexibilities found in the AMS. As the principle specialist, the incumbent will be responsible for drafting, reviewing, editing documents as well as leading the execution and implementation of major milestones throughout the acquisition process. This includes, but is not limited to all the key contractual roles identified above as well as analysis of contractor Cost Accounting System (CAS) Disclosure Statements, analysis of Earned Value Management (EVM) data, analysis of compliance with terms and conditions, using tools to determine root causes for issues that arise as well as formulating the course of action to remedy issues. The negotiated contracts and awards will be made to commercial organizations, educational institutions, nonprofit organizations and State, local or foreign government entities. Duties include but are not limited to: Pre-Award - Use all appropriate laws, regulation, agency directives, etc., to perform all pre-award contract duties. Acquisition Planning and Strategy – Lead the development and implementation of strategies to assure that supplies and services are available when needed to meet mission requirements. Act as a trusted advisor on acquisition issues and educate the customers and acquisition team members on full range of procurement options and contract types. Post-Award - Contract Management. Perform complex contract administration functions and provide guidance and direction on complex contractual actions to acquisition partners and junior level contract professionals. Requirements Conditions of Employment We are not accepting applications from noncitizens. Qualifications To view the complete OPM qualification standard, please refer to: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/1100/contracting-series-1102/ Basic Requirements for Pay Bands FV-I: (1) 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; and (2) 4 years of 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 pay band or grade of the position, and must have provided the knowledge skills, and abilities to perform successfully the work of the position; and (3) Completion of training for Level I, II or III certification. Training courses reflect a government-wide standard and each level of certification must be met to qualify for the next level. Applicants must document successful completion of core course work or evidence of certification. SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENT: To qualify for this position you must demonstrate in your application that you possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to FV-H, FG/GS 12 in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. Specialized experience must include: Experience as a contract official awarding and administering varied contracts. This experience will include applying innovative and advanced contracting skills to major system and support service acquisitions, which have characteristics such as technically complex, mission essential, high visibility, and high dollar value. Basic Requirements for Pay Bands FV-J: (1) 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; and (2) 4 years of 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 pay band or grade of the position, and must have provided the knowledge skills, and abilities to perform successfully the work of the position; and (3) Completion of training for Level I, II or III certification. Training courses reflect a government-wide standard and each level of certification must be met to qualify for the next level. Applicants must document successful completion of core course work or evidence of certification. SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENT: To qualify for this position you must demonstrate in your application that you possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to FV-I, FG/GS 13 in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. Specialized experience must include: Experience as a senior contract official awarding and administering complex contracts. This experience will include applying innovative and advanced contracting skills to major system and support service acquisitions, which have characteristics such as technically complex, mission essential, high visibility, and high dollar value. Employees in 1102 series positions will be considered to have met the basic requirements for positions they occupy on January 1, 2000, if specialized experience requirements are met. This applies to other positions at the same pay band/grade in the FAA or other Federal agencies. To qualify for a position at a higher pay band or grade, he/she must meet the requirements and specialized experience as stated. Qualifications must be met by the closing date of this vacancy announcement. Eligible applicants meeting the minimum qualification requirements and selective factor(s), if applicable, may be further evaluated on the Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA); listed in the announcement. Based on this evaluation, applicants will be placed in one of the following categories: score order, category grouping, or alphabetical order and referred to the selecting official for consideration. Please ensure you answer all questions and follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may impact your rating or may result in you not being considered for the job. If the Agency decides to interview any qualified employee on the selection list, then all on the list who are qualified must be interviewed. If the selection list is shortened to a best qualified list through a comparative process, then the best qualified list shall be considered to be the selection list. Education This position has a positive education requirement: Applicants must submit a copy of their college or university transcripts(s) and certificates by the closing date of announcement to verify qualifications. If selected, an official transcript will be required prior to appointment. You may upload these documents with your application in USAJOBS or fax it to fax number provided in the announcement (please include announcement number on each page). Failure to do so will result in loss of consideration. Schools must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Accreditation may be verified at the following website: www.ed.gov/accreditation. Foreign education must be evaluated by a private professional organization specializing in interpretation of foreign education credentials or an accredited U.S. educational institution in terms of equivalence to a degree acquired at an American college or university. A copy of the evaluation results must be included, otherwise your foreign education will not be considered. Additional Information We may use this vacancy to fill other similar vacant positions. Position may be subject to a background investigation. A one-year probationary period may be required. The person selected for this position may be required to file a financial disclosure statement within 30 days of entry on duty. FAA policy limits certain outside employment and financial investments in aviation-related companies. www.faa.gov/jobs/workinghere/financial-disclosure-requirements The U.S. Department of Transportation strives to ensure that equity, transparency, accountability, collaboration, and communication permeate all that we do for the betterment of the Department, the traveling public, and our nation. As such, DOT values a highly diverse workforce of persons who promote a culture of belonging by respecting the personal dignity and worth of each individual and fostering a positive environment where all feel safe and welcome. If these commitments coincide with your personal ideals and professional aspirations, please consider joining the DOT family. As a part of the Federal-Wide Hiring Reform Initiative (streamlining the hiring process), the FAA is committed to eliminating the use of the Knowledge, Skills and Ability (KSA) narratives from the initial application in the hiring process for all announcements. Therefore, as an applicant for this announcement, you are NOT required to provide a narrative response in the text box listed below each KSA. In lieu of providing a KSA narrative response in the text box listed below each KSA in your work history, please include information that provides specific examples of how you meet the response level or answer you chose for each KSA. Your work history examples should be specific and clearly reflect the highest level of ability. Your KSA answers will be evaluated further to validate whether the level that you selected is appropriate based on the work history and experience you provided. Your answers may be adjusted by a Human Resource Specialist as appropriate. Current/Former federal employees MUST submit an SF-50. Employees are expected to report to the FAA facility at least four days a pay period. The reporting requirement is subject to change as per policy. This position is being filled at the FV-I or FV-J. Identification of multi-grades in the vacancy announcement does not constitute a commitment or an obligation on the part of management to promote the employee selected as some future date. Promotion will depend upon the selectee meeting training, qualification requirements, and recommendation by supervisor and organizational approval. This is a bargaining unit position. This position is represented by NATCA: Multi-Unit. Links to Important Information: Locality Pay , COLA