Health System Specialist (Strategic Planner) (Detail not to exceed 120 Days)

Clarification from the agency

Current and permanent employees of the Department of Veteran Affairs/VHA Only. A current Non-Award SF-50 must be submitted with application to meet the Area of Consideration requirement.

***THIS IS A TEMPORARY DETAIL OPPORTUNITY ONLY NOT-TO-EXCEED 120 DAYS. Supervisor approval must be obtained "prior" to applying for this detail opportunity. Detail authorization is discretionary.***

Major duties include but are not limited to the following:

• Provides specialized staff support in the monitoring and analysis of changes in mission, goals, new legislation, and technological advances to assess the impact of these changes on work methods/procedures and to develop new systems which address these changes providing full staff assistance on strategic matters affecting the Network healthcare delivery system
• Recommend new VISN policies and procedures and/or revision to those in existence and assist in their development that may ultimately affect operations, and patent care or clinical services
• Has full program management responsibility and oversight for initiating, leading and monitoring the execution of the VISN strategic management framework and process which includes the development of a Network Strategic Plan aligned with the VHA/VA Strategic goals and priorities
• Serves as the primary resource and expert for Network strategic planning activities, incorporating national strategic planning guidance
• Assists or initiates development or revision of administrative policies that will ultimately affect patient care or clinical services
• Serves as the primary point of contact for VA Central Office officials for VISN 21 planning activities and initiatives and ensures all reporting requirements and suspense items are completed in a timely and proactive manner

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday. 8:00am - 4:30pm PST
Telework: This position is eligible for telework.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Location: Negotiable after selection. Maybe required to work from your current position of record.
Position Description Title/PD#: Health System Specialist (Strategic Planner) (Detail not to exceed 120 Days)/PD011335
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not authorized.
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Pre-employment physical required
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary period or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 07/08/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-14 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-13. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade.

Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

Preferred Experience:
Project Management Professional (PMP) certified or equivalent project management experience.

Candidates must meet the following Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR)/Basic Requirement: Candidates must meet the following minimum qualifications of the 0671 Health System Administration Series.

• Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Major study -- hospital administration, public health administration, or related fields such as business or public administration with course work in health care administration. OR,

Specialized Experience(for positions above GS-5): Progressively responsible analytical or administrative, or clinical management or supervisory experience in the health care field. This work may have been performed in an operating health care facility or a higher organizational echelon with advisory or directional authority over such facilities. Work must have involved a close working relationship with facility managers and analysis and/or coordination of administrative, clinical, or other service activities, and provided knowledge of the following:

• Missions, organizations, programs, and requirements of health care delivery systems;
• Regulations and standards of various regulatory and credentialing groups; and
• Government-wide, agency, and facility systems and requirements in various administrative areas such as budget, personnel, and procurement. OR,
• Special Provision for in-service placement: Successful completion of an agency-sponsored on-the-job training program may be substituted for qualifying experience, provided it included a formal individualized training plan. Such a training program must have been conducted in an operating health care system and included:
• Assignments providing a knowledge of basic health system administration philosophies, practices, and procedures, and basic government administrative policies and requirements;
• Practical assignments providing an opportunity to apply health system administration skills and principles (as the individual progresses, work assignments must be characteristic of the grade level to which he or she is assigned); and
• Oversight by an experienced health system administrator with periodic evaluation of the individual's progress and appropriate adjustment of the training program.

Recommended Skills and Characteristics

• Extensive knowledge of VHA and the sites within the network
• Ability to quickly prioritize issues with cross-functional enterprise impact
• Organized, with a natural inclination for planning strategy and tactics
• Continuous improvement mindset to support VA mission and vision across workstreams
• Excellent active listening skills
• Flexible and adaptable; able to work in ambiguous situations
• Problem-solving and root cause identification skills
• Ability to work effectively at all levels in an organization
• Communication and project support experience
• Knowledge of enterprise EHRM and integrated non-EHRM systems
• Ability to deliver strategic program communications and EHRM updates
• Previous experience leading large-scale EHR implementations and/or deployment efforts across multiple facilities preferred
• Experience and knowledge of project management principles
• Trained as a change practitioner, with experience and knowledge of change management principles, methodologies, and tools
• Exceptional communication skills, both written and verbal
• Mastery and advanced knowledge and professional experience in the principles and techniques of strategic planning and analysis, and a sophisticated understanding of facility Network, VHA, and VA missions, organizations, programs and requirements of health care delivery systems
• Specific knowledge of the unique characteristics of the VA Sierra Pacific Network to develop and manage an integrated Network strategic planning program
• Mastery of assessment tools for identifying current status, actual and potential problem areas, identifying and interpreting trends and significant factors, as well as knowledge of social, economic, and other conditions affecting performance of health care delivery systems, including population, demographics (veterans and community), economics and budget
• Skill in collecting, analyzing, planning, organizing, developing and coordinating, integrating, and interpreting a wide variety of data and reporting results in a concise, usable manner
• Utilizes current theories, trends and relevant data to identify, analyze and resolve critical planning issues throughout the Network
• Knowledge and understanding of the relationship between capital planning, clinical program development, resource management, consumer affairs, and internal/external review programs; and their relationship to planning to advise the VISN executive leadership on comprehensive management/planning issues
• Demonstrated skill in effective written and oral communications, and ability to use a broad spectrum of computer-based programs for communication, report generation, and presentations
• Organized and detail oriented; approachable, knowledgeable, and responsible
• Authorized decisional authority and is comfortable leveraging it to ensure staff are engaged and participative

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

• Analysis and Problem Solving
• Leadership
• Organizational Stewardship
• Strategic Thinking

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; religions; 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.

Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.

Physical Requirements: Work is generally performed in an office setting with significant time involved on computer systems. Some travel is required and will be principally local in nature; however, more extended travel is possible and may be required on short notice. Work requires short deadline projects so work hours may be extra long as the project requires. Minimal lifting is required. Standing to make presentations before groups is required.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

How you will be evaluated

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

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.

Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or contact for an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.

Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:

• Resume
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action

The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please make sure you have included other documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), documentation to support Veterans Preference claims, or ICTAP/CTAP documentation (for displaced Federal employees). You will not be contacted for additional information.

• Cover Letter
• DD-214/ Statement of Service
• Disability Letter (Schedule A)
• License
• Other (1)
• Professional Certification
• Resume
• Separation Notice (RIF)
• SF-15
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action (if applicable for Time in Grade and/or Eligibility):

• Most recent SF-50 if you are a current or former Federal employee
• An SF-50 showing your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade
• Award 50's do not provide sufficient information and will not be accepted for the purpose of verifying time-in-grade.
• Examples of appropriate SF-50's include:
  • Within grade increases at the highest grade held; or
  • Promotions with an effective date more than one year old; or
  • SF-50's at the highest grade held with an effective date more than one year old.

Veterans' Preference: When applying for Federal Jobs, eligible Veterans should claim preference for 5pt (TP), 10pt (CP/CPS/XP), or for Sole Survivor Preference (SSP) in the questionnaire. You must provide a legible copy of your DD214(s) which shows dates and character of service (honorable, general, etc.). If you are currently serving on active duty and expect to be released or discharged within 120 days you must submit documentation related to your active duty service which reflects the dates of service, character of service (honorable, general, etc.), and dates of impending separation. Additionally, disabled veterans and others eligible for 10-point preference (such as widows or mothers of eligible Veterans) must also submit an SF-15 "Application for 10 Point Veteran Preference" with required proof as stated on the form. Documentation is required to award preference. For more information on Veterans' Preference, please visit Feds Hire Vets - Veterans - Job Seekers - Veterans' Preference.

Next steps