Supervisory Contract Specialist (Chief of Procurement)

Located within the Office of Finance, Procurement Division (OF/PD). OF provides financial tools and guidance to help facilitate financial management and ensure that the agency achieves its mission in a fiscally sound, compliant, and reportable manner. The Division provides contracting/acquisition support to HQ and Overseas Posts through acquisition planning, managing the Acquisition Life Cycle from initiation of contracts to closeout, and procuring products and services at the best prices.

Qualifications:

Applicants must meet all qualification requirements prior to the closing date of this announcement, 06/16/2026. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience demonstrated in your resume, including volunteer work. Qualification claims are subject to verification. This vacancy is being announced at one grade level.

In order to qualify, you must meet the education and experience requirements described below:

Basic Requirement for the 1102 Job Series (FP-01/GS-15 Level):

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~

Degree: Bachelor's degree (or higher degree) from an accredited educational institution authorized to grant baccalaureate degrees, 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. *NOTE: Failure to provide transcripts will result in you being rated ineligible for this position.

~OR~

Exemption: You are exempt from the education requirements above if (A) you are a current civilian employee who occupied GS-1102 positions or contracting positions with authority to award or administer contracts above the simplified acquisition threshold in an Executive Department on or before September 30, 2000; OR (B) you are a current military member who occupied a similar occupational specialty to the GS (or equivalent)-1102 on or before September 30, 2000.

Specialized Experience at the FP-01 (GS-15) Level: To qualify for this position at the FP-01 level, you must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower level in the normal line of progression, FP-02 or GS-14. This experience must be directly related to the work of the position and must have equipped you with the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to successfully perform the duties of the role. Specialized experience includes all of the following:

• Applying procurement regulations and industry techniques in the negotiation and settlement actions involving significant Government and contractor obligations.
• Negotiation techniques to conduct contract negotiations.
• Interpreting and applying Executive Orders, regulations statues, and policies to interpret and implement procurement policies and to analyze their impact on industry and customers.
• Experience in post-award procedures sufficient to administer complex service contracts.

Education cannot be substituted for experience at this grade level.

~AND~

Selective Placement Factor:
Federal Acquisition Institute Contracting Certification (FAC-C) Professional or Senior Procurement Executive waiver. If a waiver is issued, the employee must successfully achieve the FAC-C within 12 months or demonstrate sufficient/significant progression to justify a 12-month extension of the Senior Procurement Executive issued waiver.

~AND~

Time-in-Grade Requirements: Current or former Federal employees, including Peace Corps employees, must meet applicable Time-in-Grade requirements to be eligible for this position. For positions above the FP-09 (GS-05) level, you must have completed at least one year (52 weeks) at the next lower grade in the normal line of progression for the position to which you are applying.

All current or former Federal employees, including internal employees, must provide a copy of their SF-50(s), "Notification of Personnel Action," to demonstrate that you meet Time-in-Grade requirements. For more information, refer to the "Required Documents" section below.

Please note:

• Experience that satisfies the Specialized Experience and Selective Placement Factor requirements must be clearly documented in your resume. Failure to provide this information may result in disqualification. Please review the "Required Documents" section of this announcement for further information on resume requirements.
• Specialized experience may be gained in the public sector, private sector, or through volunteer service (e.g., National Service programs such as Peace Corps or AmeriCorps, or other organizations such as professional, philanthropic, religious, spiritual, community, student, or social groups).
• One year of experience refers to full-time work. Part-time work will be credited on a prorated basis.
• For more details on qualification requirements, refer to the OPM Qualifications Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions, available on the OPM web site.

Responsibilities:

The Supervisory Contract Specialist (Chief of Procurement) performs the following major duties:

• Serves the head of all procurement activity and senior procurement executive, with full management responsibility for the agency's acquisition framework. This includes establishing, implementing, and enforcing agency-wide procurement policies, standards, and procedures governing all contracting actions, including contracts, purchase orders, leases, assisted-acquisition interagency agreements, and cooperative agreements.
• Holds a direct delegation of Contracting Officer authority from the Director and serves as the principal advisor to the Office of Finance (OF) and senior leadership on all procurement matters.
• Directs the creation and maintenance of acquisition-related Peace Corps Manual Sections, policies, instructions, and guidance applicable across Peace Corps/Washington and overseas Posts.
• Advises senior Peace Corps officials, interagency partners and private-sector representatives on complex contract and agreement issues.
• Establishes and manages the agency's assisted-acquisition portfolio, including evaluating and approving requirements appropriate for external assisted-acquisition support versus internal execution.
• Represents the agency on interagency, national, and international panels, task forces, and working groups addressing complex acquisition issues with broad organizational impact.
• Makes final Contracting Officer determinations on claims, disputes, and other matters requiring senior-level judgment. Partners with General Counsel to represent the Agency in bid protests before GAO and in contract disputes before the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals (CBCA).
• Leads and supervises a group of employees (contract specialists, management analysts, and procurement analysts) performing work at the FP-02 level or below.

Salary : $169,279