DIRECTOR CONTRACTS MANAGEMENT OFFICER Job in Arlington, VA

Vacancy No. DARPA-26-12890154-SES Department Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
Salary $135,468.00 to $203,700.00 Grade 00 to 00
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 2/23/2026 Close Date 3/9/2026
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Arlington, VA


Summary

The Contract Management Office (CMO) plans, negotiates, executes, and awards procurement contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, and Other Transactions for selected new-start technology projects, consortium projects, and other cooperative projects where innovative or special contractual arrangements are desired.

This job is open to

The public

U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Federal employees - Competitive service

Current federal employees whose agencies follow the U.S. Office of Personnel Management's hiring rules and pay scales.

Federal employees - Excepted service

Current federal employees whose agencies have their own hiring rules, pay scales and evaluation criteria.

Senior executives

Individuals looking for an executive-level job and who meet the five Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs).

Clarification from the agency

This announcement is open to all qualified candidates.

Duties

As a Director, Contracts Management Office, you will be responsible for the following duties:

  • Assist and advise the Director on acquisition and assistance issues, including those issues pertaining to grants, cooperative agreements, and other forms of non-procurement, such as other transactions, and innovative acquisition strategies and methods.
  • Serve as the Senior Procurement Executive and approves justifications for other than full and open competition for proposed contracts over $100 million; and certify, assign, and appoint members of the Department of Defense Acquisition Corps and workforce.
  • Exercise, by delegation, authorities as Head of the Contracting Activity.
  • Prescribe and publish Agency acquisition regulations, policies, and procedures; appoint all contracting officers.
  • Oversee the maintenance of Agency acquisition systems and make modifications/revisions as appropriate.
  • Manage and enhance career development of the Agency acquisition workforce and Agency members of the Department of Defense Acquisition Corps.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

  • Work Schedule: Full Time
  • Must be a U.S. citizen
  • Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service
  • Resume and supporting documents (See How To Apply)
  • Suitable for Federal employment, determined by a background investigation
  • Veteran preference is not applicable to the Senior Executive Service
  • Must be able to obtain/maintain Special Sensitive/Top Secret SCI clearance
  • Designated and/or random drug testing is required
  • Mobility Agreement: All newly appointed Career SES leaders must sign the Reassignment Rights obligations Agreement as a condition of appointment into the SES.
  • Probationary Period: You will serve a one-year Senior Executive Service (SES) probationary period unless you previously completed the probationary period in the SES.
  • Financial Disclosure: Senior Executives are required to comply with the provisions of the Ethics in Government Act, PL 95-521, which requires the submission of a financial disclosure statement (OGE-278), upon assuming an SES position.
  • Senior Executives are required to complete a "Declaration of Federal Employment," (OF 306), prior to being appointed to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background check.
  • Overtime: None
  • Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
  • Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA): Exempt
  • Tour of Duty: Maxiflex
  • Telework: Situational telework eligible
  • This position is designated a Critical Acquisition Position (CAP) with further designation as a Key Leadership Position (KLP).

Qualifications

EXECUTIVE CORE QUALIFICATIONS (ECQs) and TECHNICAL QUALIFICATIONS (TQs):

There is NO requirement to prepare a narrative statement specifically addressing the Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) or the Technical Qualifications (TQs). However, to meet the minimum qualification requirements for this position, you must show that you possess the ECQS and TQS within your resume - NOT TO EXCEED 2 PAGES. Resumes over the 2-page limit, will be disqualified.

EXECUTIVE CORE QUALIFICATIONS (ECQs):

ECQ 1 - Commitment to the Rule of Law and the Principles of the American Founding: This core qualification requires a demonstrated knowledge of the American system of government, commitment to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law, and commitment to serve the American people.

ECQ 2 - Driving Efficiency: This core qualification involves the demonstrated ability to strategically and efficiently manage resources, budget effectively, cut wasteful spending, and pursue efficiency through process and technological upgrades.

ECQ 3 - Merit and Competence: This core qualification involves the demonstrated knowledge, ability and technical competence to effectively and reliably produce work that is of exceptional quality.

ECQ 4 - Leading People: This core qualification involves the demonstrated ability to lead and inspire a group toward meeting the organization's vision, mission, and goals, and to drive a high-performance, high-accountability culture. This includes, when necessary, the ability to lead people through change and to hold individuals accountable.

ECQ 5 - Achieving Results: This core qualification involves the demonstrated ability to achieve both individual and organizational results, and to align results to stated goals from superiors.

TECHNICAL QUALIFICATIONS (TQs):

1. Demonstrated ability to manage a contracting function for research and development
efforts to include in-depth knowledge of Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) related statutes, and DoW implementing directives across all phases of traditional government contract procedures, other transactions, grants and cooperative agreements, and the ability to establish agency policy concerning acquisition and contracting functions.

2. Demonstrated experience in leading significant organizational change initiatives, where change management practices were successfully applied, specifically articulating the steps to implement the changes, any challenges encountered, how coalitions were built, how various communication strategies were leveraged, and measurable outcomes were achieved.

DoD Joint Enterprise-Wide Experience Statement:


In addition, DoD requires an Enterprise Perspective. This individual must have the ability to apply a broad point of view and an awareness and understanding of individual or organizational responsibilities in relation to DoD or government-wide strategic priorities is required. Executives must demonstrate the ability to work with internal and external partners to support national security objectives. This perspective is typically gained through a variety of diverse work experiences. A separate narrative statement is not required. This information should be within the resume.

CRITICAL ACQUISITION POSITION (CAP). Selectee for this position will be required to sign a written agreement to remain, for a minimum of three years, in the federal service in this critical acquisition position. This position is designated a Critical Acquisition Position (CAP) with further designation as a Key Leadership Position (KLP). As a KLP, the incumbent will be required to sign a Tenure Agreement which requires the incumbent to remain in this position for a minimum of 3 years.

This position requires the Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) Contracting Professional certification at time of assignment and requires selectee to sign a CAP service agreement to remain assigned to the position for three years. The selectee must have 10 years of acquisition experience in an Acquisition Workforce position, at least 4 years of which was performed while assigned to a CAP.

Incumbent must be a member of the Defense Acquisition Corps upon entry into the position.

Education

A 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree with a major in any field; or at least 24 hours in any combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management.

Additional information

REEMPLOYED ANNUITANTS: The DoD criteria for hiring Reemployed Annuitants can be found at: DoDI 1400.25-V300.

ACQUISITION POSITION: This position requires a Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) CONTRACTING PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATION upon entry to the position. For information regarding the DAWIA Back to Basics please visit: Home (dau.edu) or Back to Basics - Helpful Resources (dau.edu)

  • DAWIA (Back to Basics) Certification: CAP-KLP: Position is a DoD Acquisition Key Leadership Position & requires DoD Acquisition CONTRACTING PROFESSIONAL certification prior to appointment. Selectee must also achieve 80 hours of Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) every 2-years and sign a written agreement to remain in Federal service in the position for at least three years. Click here for more details and Resources. Must complete DAU Program Manager's Courses within six months of assuming Program Management KLP position.
Financial Disclosure: Senior Executives are required to comply with the provisions of the Ethics in Government Act, PL 95-521, which requires the submission of a financial disclosure statement (OGE-278), upon assuming an SES position. This must be submitted annually and upon termination of employment.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How you will be evaluated

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

We will review your resume and supporting documents, for the quality and extent of your total accomplishments, experience and education as it relates to the fundamental competencies, identified below. Your application will be evaluated by an Executive Evaluation Panel rating and ranking panel, and highly qualified candidates may be contacted for an interview and to provide reference checks. The Office of the Secretary of Defense Executive Resources Board will review results and make recommendations on final selections to the appointing authority.

Required Documents

1. Your resume:

  • IMPORTANT UPDATE: Your resume must not exceed two (2) pages. If your resume exceeds the two-page limit, you will be removed from consideration for this announcement. The resume and required supporting documentation should provide the minimum qualifications and relevant experience for the announced position. Must include the work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment, and duties performed. If multiple resumes are submitted by an applicant, only the last resume submitted will be reviewed for qualifications and referred for selection consideration, if eligible. The resume must not be more than 5MB and should be saved and uploaded as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. Page margins should be 0.5 inches, and font styles must be legible. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text. We recommend using a font like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans.
  • Additional guidance on writing a federal resume can be found at: USAJOBS Help Center - How do I write a resume for a federal job? The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started.
2. Transcripts:
  • This position has a degree or education requirement so you are required to submit a copy of your transcripts.
3. SF50
  • All current and former civilian Federal employees must submit a copy of your MOST RECENT SF50 (Notification of Personnel Action) showing your tenure, grade and step, salary, and type of position occupied (i.e., Excepted or Competitive); or similar Notification of Personnel Action documentation, i.e., Transcript of Service, Form 1150, etc. This is also a requirement to verify your Time in Grade (TIG).

PLEASE REVIEW THE BELOW LINK FOR OTHER SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS needed for proof of eligibility:
https://www.dla.mil/Portals/104/Documents/Careers/downloads/DODCustomersRequiredSupportingDocumentation.pdf


DO NOT submit additional information (i.e. awards, appraisals, pages in excess of the limit for the resume).

How to Apply

To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below.

The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date to receive consideration.

  • To begin, click Apply Online to access an online application. Follow the prompts to select your USAJOBS resume and/or other supporting documents. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account or you may need to create a new account.
  • You will be taken to an online application. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation, and submit the application. NOTE: Resumes up to a total of two pages will be accepted. Resumes exceeding two pages will be removed from consideration.
  • You will receive an email notification when your application has been received for the announcement.
  • To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account, https://www.usajobs.gov, select the Application Status link and then select the More Information link for this position. The Application Status page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and your responses submitted to the online application. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
To preview the questionnaire, please go to https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12890154

Please review the General Application Information and Definitions at:
https://www.dla.mil/Portals/104/Documents/Careers/downloads/DoDGenAppInfo%2012-1-2020.pdf?ver=ECNbdsHtGilTd3OENN4A0Q%3d%3d

Agency contact information

DE Applicant Inquires
Phone
614-692-0420
Email
DEApplicantInquiries@dla.mil
Address
DARPA
675 N. Randolph Street
Arlington, VA 22203
US

Next steps

Once you successfully complete the application process, you will receive a notification of receipt. Your application package will be reviewed to ensure you meet the basic eligibility and qualifications requirements, and you will receive a notification. A review will be made of your online questionnaire and the documentation you submitted to support your responses. A list of qualified applicants will be created and sent to the selecting official. All applicants reviewed and/or referred will receive a notification letter.

A list of qualified applicants will be created and sent to the selecting official. All applicants reviewed and/or referred will receive a notification letter. The selecting official may choose to conduct interviews, and once the selection is made, you will receive a notification of the decision.