Administrative Officer

Veterans Health Care System of the Ozarks; Fayetteville (AR); Hybrid; USD 55,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

Veterans Health Care System of the Ozarks in Fayetteville, AR, is seeking an Administrative Officer (career ladder) to develop, interpret, and implement local policies for Engineering Service. You will manage personnel and budgets, guide performance and merit programs, and prepare communications for internal and external stakeholders.

The role emphasizes leadership in training, policy development, and coordination across offices, with a potential telework option and a typical Monday–Friday

Qualifications

• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Experience interpreting policies and translating them into local procedures.
• Experience with budget formulation, analysis, and maintenance of records.
• Experience overseeing recruitment, promotions, awards, and performance programs.

Responsibilities

• Interpret administrative policies and develop local policies and procedures.
• Oversee the personnel management program for Engineering Service.
• Oversee budget formulation, analyses, and maintenance of budget records.
• Develop an annual training plan for supervisors and manage related initiatives.
• Coordinate with internal and external offices on high-priority matters.

Skills

Oral and written communication

Policy interpretation

Budget management

Personnel management

Job description

Summary

This position is a career ladder to pd# 564-03146-O, Administrative Officer, GS-0341-09 dated October 15, 2020. The employee will serve in a developmental assignment to provide the individual with the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to perform the full range of routine and non-routine assignments at the Full Performance Level. This position is located in the Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Care System of the Ozarks (VHSO), Engineering Service, Fayetteville, AR.

Major Duties

The Position Description (PD) associated with this position is currently undergoing a classification consistency review in accordance with Office of Personnel Management (OPM) guidelines. This process ensures that similar positions across the VA and federal government are classified consistently based on duties and responsibilities. As a result of this review, the final job title, occupational series, and/or grade level may be adjusted, including the possibility of a lower grade if the duties support that determination. If this occurs, selections will be notified and given the opportunity to accept or decline the revised offer. If a downgrade occurs after entry on duty, prior pay may be subject to overpayment review and potential debt; you will be notified of any determination and your rights.

Duties: Interpreting administrative policies, developing and implementing local policies, defining administrative requirements. Manages, prepares, edits and guides the writing of correspondence with persons or groups within and outside the organizations. Creates an annual training plan for supervisors to develop management knowledge, skills, and abilities. Oversees the personnel management program for Engineering Service, including matters involving recruitments, promotions, awards, position classification, training, & disciplinary actions. Oversees the budget formulation and management for Engineering Service and preparation of a variety of budget analyses and maintenance of budget records. Manages use of purchase cards. Shares oversight responsibility with the Chief for performance appraisal and merit pay programs, manages Incentive Award budget with recommendations to the Chief Engineer Participates with management in defending the budget before senior level management. Manages suspense items from VACO, VISN16, and the Director's Office for high priority matters affecting health care system operations. Maintains system for recording and tracking assigned responders and due dates for replies. Monitors timekeeping exceptions, ensures corrective measures are taken, assists timekeepers or supervisors to enforce policy to ensure requirements are met. Skilled in oral and written communication to effectively deal with interactions with officials within the service and without, to include Congressional Offices.

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.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm, subject to change based on the needs of the facility. Telework: 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#: Administrative Officer/PD032770 and PD031460 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Pending Approval Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment.

You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/.

If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education.

For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Requirements

You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.

To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.

Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.

Physical Requirements: Pre-employment examination is required. Must pass pre-employment physical examination. The work is primarily sedentary, although some slight physical effort may be required. Incumbent will drive to other facilities within VHSO; current driver's license is required. Must be able to independently operate Government Vehicle. Must provide clean driving record report from the DMV during the pre-employment process.

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.

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 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, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Evaluations

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 for this position: Attention to Detail Decision Making Flexibility Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Reading Comprehension Reasoning Self-management Teamwork.

Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. 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. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. 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. During the application process you may have an option to opt‑in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. This vacancy is open to current permanent Veterans Health Care Systems of the Ozarks Employees including satellites and CTAP eligibles. 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.

What to Expect Next

Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email. After we receive application packages (including all required assessments and documents) and the vacancy announcement closes, we will review applications to ensure qualification and eligibility requirements are met. After the review is complete, a referral certificate(s) is issued, and applicants will be notified of their status by email. Referred applicants will be notified as such and may be contacted directly by the hiring office for an interview. All referred applicants receive a final notification once a selection decision has been made. 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. If initial application submission is updated and resubmitted with a new resume, only the most current resume will be reviewed for consideration. 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.

Required Documents

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes: Resume SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action Resume Requirement: Your resume must include the following information: Job title, description of duties, beginning and ending date (month/year) of employment, and average hours worked per week. 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 Other (1) Performance Appraisal Resume Separation Notice (RIF) 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