Supervisory Dietitian (Food Operations)

Clarification from the agency

NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below. Current permanent employees of the Veterans Administration including permanent Veterans Health Administration, Veterans Benefits Administration, National Cemeteries, Veterans Canteen Service employees, current permanent full-time Hybrid Title 38 with one year in the excepted service and permanent full-time Title 38 employees. Others apply to JOA#CBTD-13003082-26-EIW

This position will serve as GS-13 Supervisory Dietitian within the Nutrition & Food Service.

Duties include, but are not limited to:

• Provides food-operations-specific leadership, serving as professional and technical advisor to staff and other health care professionals.
• Has oversight over HR staffing, employee relations and labor relations in Food Service Operations.
• Exercises a full range of supervisory and personnel management authorities and responsibilities in planning, directing, and assessing work of subordinate staff.
• Establishes a training plan for the food operations section.
• Develops and leads food operations.
• Establishes strategic goals and ensures priorities align with the strategic plan of the NFS department, VISN and national programs.
• Leads the continuous quality improvement effort in Food Service Operations
• Identifies and prioritizes problems, sets long and short-term goals, develops action plans and analyses data to evaluate progress to improve outcomes.
• Develops and updates policies and procedures and establishes and oversees a system for regulatory compliance.
• Coordinates foodservice operation policies and procedures with clinical nutrition management, nursing and other services, as applicable.
• Manages the budget and other resources, anticipating future trends and inflation, new service opportunities, recommendations for growth, efficiencies and strategic efforts are factored into resource requests and brought to the Chief.
• Directs staff in management of contracts, subsistence, supply purchasing for NFS and submits reports to the NFS Chief.
• Solicits support and/or negotiates with facility managers to influence decisions to support food operations section success.
• Works closely with the Supervisory Dietitians to support the department, cover the work within NFS and execute the activities of the department.
• May perform other related duties as assigned which are appropriate for this grade and assignment

Work Schedule: Full-Time 40HRS Week, Monday - Friday, 9:00AM- 5: 30PM, EST
Telework: Per Supervisory Discretion.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 99515-S
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized.


NOTE:

• This position is at the full performance grade level, GS-13.
• This position is in the Excepted Service.
• EDRP is Not authorized.
• Position is not in a Bargaining Union
• Salary Covered by OPM LPS Pay Scale Hartford-East Hartford, CT-MA
• Interchange Agreements with Other Merit System: Employees who occupy medical or medical-related positions and were appointed under 38 U.S.C. 4701(1) or (3) [formerly 38 U.S.C. 4104 (1) and (3)] must be serving in a full-time position without time limit and have served continuously for at least one year in the other merit system to be eligible to convert to the Title 5 System. Some exceptions to this rule may apply if you have previously acquired tenure under a Title 5 appointment.
• Current and former Federal employees must submit copies of their most recent SF-50, (Notice of Personnel Action). The SF-50 must identify the position title, series, grade, step, tenure and type of service (Competitive or Excepted). In some cases, more than one SF-50 may be required to show a higher grade previously held.

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.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• 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 identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical evaluation.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

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

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• English Language Proficiency: Dietitians must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d).

Education and Supervised Practice:(1) The individual must have earned a bachelor's degree from a U.S. regionally accredited college or university or foreign equivalent and fulfilled each of the following criteria:

(a) Completed a didactic program in dietetics accredited by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND), formerly known as the Commission on Accreditation for Dietetic Education (CADE).

(b) Completed an ACEND accredited or approved supervised practice program. Supervised practice programs are post-baccalaureate degree programs that provide supervised practice experiences which meet the eligibility requirements and accreditation standards of ACEND, formally known as CADE. Completion of a coordinated program in dietetics fulfills the requirements of a supervised practice program. Time spent in a dietetic internship or supervised practice program does not qualify as creditable experience.

Registration/Certification: All applicants must be registered with the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) the credentialing branch of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics formerly known as the American Dietetic Association (ADA). Advanced Level Practice Dietitians must possess a minimum of one advanced practice credential relevant to the area of practice, (e.g. Certified Nutrition Support Clinician (CNSC), Board Certified Specialist in Renal Nutrition (CSR), Board Certified Specialist in Gerontological Nutrition (CSG), Certified Diabetes Educator (CDE), or Board Certified Specialist in Oncology Nutrition (CSO)).

May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).

Grade Determinations:

GS-13 Dietitian (Full Performance Level):Experience: One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level GS-12.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
(1) Knowledge of business administration practices such as budget planning, contracting and food and supply purchasing to operate a food service program successfully.
(2) Skill in written communication including policy development and standard operating procedures.
(3) Skill in strategic planning to develop goals, objectives and action plans.
(4) Skill in analyzing data to monitor progress towards improving and sustaining outcomes.
(5) Ability to supervise subordinate staff (i.e., plan, organize, delegate, direct, control and review activities and performance).(6) Ability to negotiate.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

Physical Requirements: The essential duties of a Clinical Dietitian works efficiently and without hazard to themselves and others and include use of fingers, walking (1-2 hours), hearing (aid permitted); mental and emotional stability, working closely with others, exposure to TB and other diseases.

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 MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

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.

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.

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:

• Registration/Certification: Registered with the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR)
• Resume
• Transcript

Special Note for Applications: To complete your application, please use the following link https://vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Resume.docx to download the standard Clinical Resume Document. This one-page document does not need to be modified and must be uploaded into the two-page restricted 'Resume' document upload field.

• Cover Letter
• License
• Other Clinical Resume
• Registration/Certification: Registered with the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR)
• Performance Appraisal
• Professional Certification
• Resume
• Separation Notice (RIF)
• SF-15
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Your full resume/CV may be uploaded without page limitation into the 'Other' document upload field.

The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please ensure you have included all documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), etc.

SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action (for Eligibility and/or Time-in-Grade):If you are a current federal employee, you must attach your most recent, non-award SF-50.This SF-50 should not be more than a year old and must show your current position, grade and step. Award SF-50's typically do not provide sufficient information and will not be accepted if they do not include Grade and Step. In order to clearly demonstrate you possess the time-in-grade as required by the announcement, additional SF-50s should be attached which clearly demonstrate the minimum time-in-grade requirement.

Examples of appropriate SF-50's include:

• Within grade increases at the highest grade held.
• Promotions with an effective date more than one year old.
• SF-50's at the highest grade held with an effective date more than one year old.

Veterans' Preference does not apply for internal or other current permanent Federal agency employees.

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