Clarification from the agency

Please be advised this vacancy is opened to Current and Permanent Lexington VA Healthcare System employees and CBOCs that are aligned with Station # 596. If you are unsure of if your current duty station falls under the correct Station # to be considered for this position, you can verify your Station # by referring to Box 40 on your most recent SF-50. The first 3 alphanumeric values should read 596 in order to be considered for this position.

This position functions independently in identifying and resolving management issues within the Assistant Director service lines and actively participates in day-to-day policy making as well as in long-range planning and development of strategic plans, goals, and objectives. This requires an in-depth knowledge of VA regulations, applicable statutes, and overall health care and market trends. Duties require the ability to apply the specialized principles and practices of healthcare management in directing or supporting a health care system. The core duties of this position include but are not limited to:

• Demonstrates tact, diplomacy, discretion, and courtesy when engaging with contacts at all organizational levels, including Congressional offices, VSOs, veterans, and their families.
• Communicates sensitive and complex issues - including those of Congressional or media interest - with accuracy and sound judgment to protect the integrity of the organization's position.
• Assures compliance with all applicable policies related to online communication tools, internal management processes, and correspondence management systems.
• Serves as the primary liaison and conduit for information flow between multiple staff offices, analyzing incoming actions for appropriate distribution and ensuring closeout with the inquiring office.
• Develops position papers, decision documents, briefing materials, and proposals for presentation at conferences, meetings, hearings, and other external activities on behalf of senior leadership.
• Briefs and advises senior management on agenda issues in preparation for internal and external activities, and may represent the office at those meetings.
• Independently manages and coordinates events hosted by senior officials - including town halls and committee meetings - completing all steps from agenda development through logistics, contracts, and execution.
• Tracks both routine and uncommon deadlines initiated by OIG, GAO, and internal reviewing officials, ensuring timely submission of all responses and actions without supervisory prompting.
• Manages and coordinates all online communication tools including assigned intranet websites and SharePoint collections, ensuring development and maintenance of internal management processes.
• Conducts analytical studies on operational processes, issue topics, and special projects requiring study planning, statistical measurement, data analysis, and report preparation, leading projects from initiation through completion.
• Works in coordination with internal reviewing services on complex audits and internal/external reviews of national concern, including those conducted by the OIG and GAO, analyzing findings and coordinating response.
• Analyzes completed actions and responses for completeness and accuracy against known policies and procedures, ensuring all actions are properly closed out with the inquiring office or official.
• Identifies substantive issues across incoming actions and requests, establishes relative priorities, and determines which issues require escalation or tracking by Assistant Director.
• Addresses novel situations and conflicting program goals by rendering sound judgments on courses of action, resolving areas of uncertainty affecting the administration and delivery of healthcare services.
• Investigates complex issues, analyzes problems, and presents written and oral recommendations that account for the wide range of factors affecting the management of the healthcare delivery system.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: Monday through Friday; 7:30am-4:00pm
Telework: ADHOC. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Health Systems Specialist- Executive Assistant to the Executive Leadership Team- Assistant Director/PD30454-0
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
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Subject to background/security investigation
• 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 dentification 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, 05/04/2026.

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-13 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-12.

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.

Applicants must submit documentation verifying that they meet time-in-grade requirements in accordance with federal regulations. Human Resources will not review or access official personnel records to determine eligibility if supporting documentation is not provided. Failure to submit required documentation will result in an ineligible rating.

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.

INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENT:

1. Education: Undergraduate or graduate education with a major study in hospital administration, public health administration, or related fields such as business or public administration with course work in health care administration.

OR

2. 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
• Government-wide, agency, and facility systems and requirements in various administrative areas such as budget, personnel, and procurement.

Special Provision for In-service Placement: Successful completion of an agency-sponsored on-the-job training program that included a formal individualized training plan that was conducted in an operating health care system. 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.

NOTE: CANDIDATES USING EDUCATION TO MEET THE INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENT MUST SUBMIT AN UNOFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT OF CONFERRED DEGREE BY THE ANNOUNCEMENT CLOSING. LATE SUBMISSIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

In addition to the Individual Occupational Requirement and Time-in-Grade requirement, applicants must have the specialized experience as described below:


You may qualify based on your experience as described below:

• Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to:
  • continuous quality improvement;
  • data analysis;
  • healthcare principles,
  • theories and practices;
  • budgeting, planning, administration, and
  • labor/union relationships, or other key administrative support functions;
  • sufficient to analyze and evaluate broad and difficult problems,
  • apply extensive qualitative and/or quantitative methods for program improvement,
  • make recommendations for complicated solutions;
  • apply health care management principles to complex problem-solving situations.
  • apply advanced qualitative and quantitative techniques in order to perform thorough management analysis of current and projected diagnostic service programs.
  • Understand the unique characteristics of the specific health care delivery system served, the
    missions, organizations, programs, and requirements of health care delivery systems, intra- and interdepartmental relationships, and agency operations and programs sufficient to interact effectively with healthcare facilities and to seek out and secure more detailed, technical information for task accomplishment when needed.

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

• Analytical Reasoning
• Communications
• Integrity/Honesty
• Problem Solving
• Self-Direction

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.

Permanent Employee Status: If you are unsure if you have permanent employee status to be considered for this position, you can verify your status by referring to Box 24 on your most recent SF-50. The box must have a 1 or 2 in order to be considered for this position.

Basis for Selection: Selections for positions will be based on the objective evaluation of the candidates' total qualifications for the position. "Qualifications" means the combination of experience, training, education, skills, knowledge, abilities, personal characteristics, and merit factors deemed to be pertinent to successful performance.

Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary, although some slight physical effort may be required such as walking, bending, standing, carrying items and assisting personnel in wheelchairs. Most work can be done while seated, at a desk and computer keyboard. Frequent walking may be required for frequent and routine point of care rounding. Incumbent may travel to all sites of care within the L VAHCS for employee education and training programs, as well as employee and community Town Hall meetings.

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

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
• 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.

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