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Contract Specialist

Smithsonian Institution
This job announcement has closed

Summary

The Smithsonian Institution is the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex, with 21 museums and the National Zoo. This position is located in A/E & Construction Contracting, Procurement, Office of Contracting and Personal Property Management (OCon&PPM), Under Secretary for Administration, Smithsonian Institution (SI).



Overview

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Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
05/31/2024 to 06/07/2024
Salary
$117,962 to - $153,354 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 13
Location
Washington, DC
FEW vacancies
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - Requires availability for occasional domestic and overseas travel.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent - Federal
Work schedule
Full-time - Full-Time, Permanent
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
13
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
24R-JS-310706-MPA-OCPPM
Control number
793654900

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Current Smithsonian Institution Internal Employees/Agency Employees Only may apply including current Smithsonian Institution employees with Federal career/career-conditional status or eligibility. More than one selection may be made from this announcement.

Duties

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OCon&PPM is responsible for the overall planning, management and execution of the Si’s contracting, simplified purchasing, personal property and policy programs. This position is responsible for all elements of procurement projects assigned.

In this position, you will:

  • Draft, solicit, negotiate and award contracts for unique services, often with innovative financial arrangements; contracts for technical and non-technical services; and other items to support Smithsonian programs. 

  • Provide contracting advice and guidance during contract administration concerning contract change orders, resolving contract claims and disputes, terminations for default and convenience and other contracting issues which may arise.

  • Prepare all the necessary contract documents assuring the inclusion of all provisions required by law, regulation, and policy.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Requires career/career-conditional status or eligibility.
  • Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered with Selective Service.

Conditions of Employment

Qualification requirements, including one year time-in-grade at the next lower grade level for promotion candidates, must be met within 30 days of the job announcement closing date. See the 'Required Documents' section for additional information.

For information on qualification requirements, see Qualification Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions viewable on OPM Website.

Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

  1. 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

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

Experience: You qualify for this position if you have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-12 level in the Federal Service.  For this position, specialized experience is defined as drafting, soliciting, negotiating, and awarding complex high dollar contracts for construction, architect-engineering, consulting contracts.


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; religious; 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.

Part-time and/or unpaid experience related to this position will be considered to determine the total number of years and months of experience. Be sure to note the number of paid or unpaid hours worked each week.

Special Instructions for Foreign Education: If you are qualifying by education and/or you have education completed in a foreign college/university described above, it is your responsibility to provide transcripts and proof of U.S. accreditation for foreign study. For instructions on where to fax these documents, see the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

Or a Combination: Education and experience may be combined to meet the basic qualifications; For a full explanation of this option please see the Qualification Standards.

Additional information

  • This position is not included in the bargaining unit.

Current or Former Political Appointees: Beginning January 1, 2010, agencies must seek prior approval from OPM before they can appoint a current or recent political appointee to a competitive or non-political excepted service position at any level under the provisions of title 5, United States Code. If you are currently or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Non-career SES employee in the executive branch, you MUST disclose that to the Office of Human Resources. Submit a copy of your applicable SF-50, along with a statement that provides the following information regarding your most recent political appointment:

  • Position title;
  • Type of appointment (Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES, or Presidential Appointee);
  • Agency; and,
  • Beginning and ending dates of appointment.

Recruitment Incentive: Recruitment incentive(s) may be authorized for this position.  However, approval for incentives are contingent upon various availability. If authorized, certain incentives will require the incumbent to sign a service agreement to remain in the Federal government for a certain time period.

Note: This statement does not imply nor guarantee an incentive will be offered and paid.

Selections may be made for vacancies across the Smithsonian Institution (SI). By applying to this position, you agree to allow your application and other personal information to be shared with one or more SI hiring officials for employment consideration for same/similar positions within the location(s) identified in this announcement.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Your application will be evaluated first for the basic qualifications described above. The applications that meet the basic qualifications will be evaluated further against the following criteria:

  1. Skill in drafting, soliciting, negotiating, and awarding Federal and/or commercial contracts in areas such as:  general goods and services; new construction; restoration and renovation of historic buildings; architecture and engineering studies and design; technical services, construction support services.
  2. Knowledge of contract administration procedures including change orders, contract terminations, contractor claims or disputes and execution of settlement agreements. 

  3. Knowledge of Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR), contracting laws, regulations, GAO principles, and practices, both federal and commercial.

Important Note:

Your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses to the occupational questionnaire or other assessment tool for consistency. If a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your resume, you will be assigned a rating commensurate to your described experience. Your resume should provide detailed information regarding how your education and experience relate to this position, including the major duties and qualifications criteria listed.


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