Clarification from the agency

This vacancy announcement is open ONLY to current, permanent Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) employees and current/former VA employees who are CTAP eligible.

Specific duties include:
The incumbent serves as a Product Owner, supporting the EXTRO Lead under the Digital GI Bill (DGIB) Program Lead.

The Product Owner incumbent serves as a Subject Matter Expert (SME), responsible for acting as the voice of the customer to ensure the product meets stakeholder needs and customer expectations.

The Product Owner incumbent will oversee development work and prioritize the work to be delivered in the product backlog and each program increment.

The Product Owner incumbent will also be responsible for requirements management on the DGIB program to ensure proper controls are in place to increase efficiency and drive successful DGIB program releases and implementations. The incumbent should have familiarity with Agile and SAFe methodologies.

The incumbent is responsible for Business Operations analysis, planning the human aspects of the transition from legacy systems to vendor operations to ensure claims processing productivity and accuracy is not negatively impacted.

The incumbent will work closely with the Release and Configuration Management Lead and impacted stakeholders to define new business processes.

The incumbent is responsible for DGIB Program requirements management, including defining, designing, and conducting business processes, workflows, and business processes. The incumbent will also document/define the AS-IS and TO-BE workflows, as required, for the DGIB Program. The Product Owner incumbent will identify potential process improvement opportunities,
and directly link them to business outcomes.

The incumbent will liaise with Product Management, Product Owners, business stakeholders, and other cross-functional teams to define, groom, and prioritize user stories in the requirements backlog.

The incumbent will act as the voice of the customer and define acceptance criteria to ensure the product meets stakeholder needs and customer expectations. The incumbent will prioritize requirements to be delivered through program increments and user stories, setting goals, and making refinements as needed to reflect user feedback.

The incumbent participates in development meetings and provides guidance to developers. The incumbent will also serve as a SME, advising the managed services vendor and assisting with release planning and inputs to the product roadmap.

Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. The grade progression for this position is GS-11, GS-12, GS-13.

Work Schedule: Full time, Monday through Friday
Compressed/Flexible: Available
Telework: Available
Virtual: This is a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Management and Program Analyst (Product Owner); 41449-A 41450-A 41451-A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required

Conditions of employment

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process

Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements I-9 Acceptable Documents.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement:06/05/2026.

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.

• For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09 level.
• For a GS-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11 level.
• For a GS-13 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-12 level.

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.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT: Applicants 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. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:

GS-11 Grade Level:
Specialized Experience Statement GS-11: is defined as supporting program operations, analyzing data, preparing reports, and communicating with stakeholders.

Education Substitution: GS-11: A Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree. Education must be related to the position being filled.

Combining Education and Experience: Combinations of successfully completed post-high school education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements for the grade levels specified in the table, and may be computed by first determining the applicant's total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level; then determining the applicant's education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level; and then adding the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify an applicant for that grade level. Only graduate education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level may be used to qualify applicants for positions at grade GS-11.

GS-12 Grade Level:
Specialized Experience: is defined as analyzing and supporting program activities and operations, identifying and recommending solutions to management problems and tracking program milestones.

GS-13 Grade Level:
Specialized Experience: is defined as developing, analyzing, evaluating, and improving program activities; business processes; and managing requirements and workflows.

Volunteer Experience: 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.
Full vs. Part-Time Employment: Full-time employment is considered to be at least 35 hours per week. Part-time experience will be credited on a pro-rated basis; when including part-time employment in your resume you must specify the average hours worked per week.
Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary, although some physical effort may be required to perform the duties of the position. The incumbent may sit to much of the work and extensive use of the computer is required. Some standing, walking and light lifting may be required.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://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.

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 an interview.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position.

You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):

• Accountability
• Attention to Detail
• Customer Service
• Decision Making
• Flexibility
• Influencing/Negotiating
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Learning
• Reading Comprehension
• Reasoning
• Self-Management
• Stress Tolerance
• Teamwork

• Product Evaluation - Knowledge of methods for researching and analyzing external products to determine their potential for meeting organizational standards and business needs.
• Customer Service - Works with clients and customers (that is, any individuals who use or receive the services or products that your work unit produces, including the general public, individuals who work in the agency, other agencies, or organizations outside the Government) to assess their needs, provide information or assistance, resolve their problems, or satisfy their expectations; knows about available products and services; is committed to providing quality products and services.
• Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.
• Analyze - Ability to analyze (i.e., review and evaluate), comprehend and apply decisions derived from a variety of data or complex information.
• Communication - Ability to establish and maintain effective communication (oral and written) with persons both at all organizational levels and with officials of other departments and agencies on policy, technical and administrative matters.

The USA Hire Assessments includes a cut score based on the minimum level of required proficiency in these critical general competencies. You must meet or exceed the cut score to be considered. You will not be considered for the position if you score below the cut score or fail to complete the assessment.

Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package to include the documents detailed below. Resumes may not exceed two pages and must be legible for review of eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement. Your resume and supporting documentation will be verified. Failure to submit the documents as specified may result in loss of consideration for this job announcement.

• Resume:
  • Contact Information:
    • Name and how best to contact you, including email address and phone number
  • Relevant Work Experience:
    • For each relevant work experience, make sure you include:
      • Job Title and Employer (including series and grade for any Federal positions)
      • Start and end dates with month/year (e.g., 05/2019 - 08/2022)
      • The number of hours you worked per week
    • Ensure work experience descriptions are aligned with the job announcement and address all required qualifications. Brief descriptions should demonstrate your ability to perform the tasks at the required level as stated in the job announcement
  • Education/Certification/ Licensure:
    • When relevant or required for the position, include your possession of education/ certification/license and provide any required documentation such as transcripts, and/or details (type and date) of certifications and/or licenses
      • Education information should include:
        • Name of school/institution
        • Completion date
        • Degree type
        • Cumulative Grade point average (GPA)
  • Optional Details:
    • When relevant, include:
      • Current Security Clearance
      • Job-related training
      • Language skills
      • Organizations and affiliations
      • Professional publications
      • Eligibility for special programs (e.g., military spouses, individuals with disabilities, etc.)
• A copy of your most recent NON-award SF-50. The SF-50 must indicate proof of status and should identify your position title, series, grade, step, salary, tenure and type of service (Competitive or Excepted).
• Your SF-50 reflecting when you entered your highest grade To verify you meet Time-in-Grade requirements, also submit a SF-50 reflecting when you entered your highest grade held (e.g. Promotion, Appointment, etc.).
• Current VBA Employees seeking a reassignment/change to lower grade: you must submit a copy of your most recent SF-50 (non-award) AND the SF-50 placing you into your current position.

Additional Documents accepted:

• Most recent Performance Appraisal (VA Form 0750)
• Award SF-50s
• CTAP documentation - RIF notice, SF-50 showing VA employee, and performance appraisal

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