Summary The position is within the Office of Finance and Management (AFN), Acquisition and Contracting (AAQ). Responsibilities Are you ready to take on a pivotal role in modernizing and maintaining the nation's air traffic management system? The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is looking for skilled contracting professionals to join our team and help us increase flight capacity, meet future air traffic demands, and uphold our mission of providing the safest and most efficient air travel system in the world. We are seeking a Senior Contract Specialist to serve as a warranted Contracting Officer in the FAA’s Air Traffic Control (ATC) Communications and Datacom Branch (AAQ-320) within the Acquisition and Contracting organization. This branch is crucial for supporting mission-critical operations, particularly those enabling National Airspace System (NAS) communication and NAS Security and Enterprise Operations (NASEO). The incumbent may also provide acquisition support to other FAA organizations as needed. AAQ-320 branch personnel are responsible for approximately 67 procurements and contracts and 18 agreements with a cumulative value of $24.7 billion. Ref: NAS Storyboard (faa.gov) – System view, Communications which outlines the programs supported by AAQ-320. In this role, you will award and administer contracts and agreements that deliver essential services, including engineering, telecommunication, information management, radio and voice communication, and cloud services to the NAS. Every day, approximately 44,000 flights and 2.7 million airline passengers travel across more than 29 million square miles of airspace. Ensuring a safe and efficient flight operation involves the coordination of various people, technologies, and services. Our team supports both NAS and non-NAS telecommunications networks and systems through the engineering, acquisition, and management of telecommunications services, networks, and equipment. Join us in this challenging and rewarding role where your expertise will directly contribute to the continued excellence and innovation of the FAA's air traffic management system. 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. Analyze and anticipate business needs and proactively formulate acquisition strategies. 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. Determines allowability for incurred costs, determines claims, withholding, and liquidated damage amounts, approves invoices, requests for property, materials or travel. Analyzes performance, financial, property and other reports, performs all other post award functions necessary to ensure proper contractor performance. Responsible for Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests as well as determining or processing any contract termination or excusable delays. Works with the Quality Reliability Officers team on overseeing quality assurance activities of the COR and contractors. 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-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 includes: Experience as a senior contract official awarding and administering complex contracts. Experience applying innovative and advanced contracting skills to major system and support service acquisitions which have characteristics 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. Some, all or none of the applicants may be interviewed. 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 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. Links to Important Information: Locality Pay, COLA