Health System Specialist (Strategic Planner)

Veterans Health Administration; Tucson (AZ); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

The Veterans Health Administration in Tucson, AZ seeks an experienced executive-analytic leader to shape organizational strategy, analyze market demography, and drive strategic initiatives across the network.

You will coordinate capital planning, space optimization, and cross‑agency partnerships, report to an ELT member, and mentor multidisciplinary teams to deliver high‑impact recommendations under tight deadlines.

Qualifications

• Experience in VA/DoD joint strategic planning and partnerships.
• Strong analytical capabilities including statistical modeling and market analysis.
• Ability to brief executive leadership and translate data into recommendations.

Responsibilities

• Develop VA HCS's organizational strategy and initiatives.
• Coordinate long-range capital and facility planning and space optimization.
• Lead multidisciplinary planning teams and deliver high‑quality products under tight deadlines.

Skills

Strategic planning

Data analysis

Stakeholder engagement

Project management

Multidisciplinary teams

Tools

HCPM

SCIP

Job description

The incumbent reports directly to an Executive Leadership Team (ELT) Member, and is a member of the management team, responsible for areas including development of VA HCS's organizational strategy, analysis of demography and epidemiology of the market area, focused studies on strategic issues, development of new organizational initiatives, coordination with long-range capital and facility planning and space optimization.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/25/2026.

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. 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

Experience in VA/DoD joint strategic planning, including Resource Sharing Agreements, Joint Market Opportunities, and Joint Incentive Fund programs. Ability to serve as a DoD liaison and build partnerships with military, academic, and community stakeholders. Proficiency with VA enterprise planning tools such as HCPM, SCIP, and related analytics platforms. Demonstrated skill leading multidisciplinary planning teams, managing complex initiatives, and delivering high quality products under tight deadlines. Strong analytical capabilities, including statistical modeling, financial assessments, market analysis, and long range capital planning. Exceptional communication and political acumen, with the ability to brief executive leadership and translate complex data into actionable recommendations. Deep understanding of VA and federal health care planning processes.

Specialized Experience

Have specialized experience that is progressively responsible for analytical or administrative, or clinical management, or supervisory experience in the health care field performed in an operating health care facility or a higher organizational echelon with advisory or directional authority over such facilities where I forged close working relationships with facility managers and analysis/coordination of administrative, clinical, or other service activities which provided knowledge in the following areas:

• 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

Have successfully completed an agency-sponsored on-the-job training program, which included a formal individualized training plan. The training program was performed 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)
• Oversight by an experienced health system administrator with periodic evaluation of the individual's progress and appropriate adjustment of the training program

In addition to meeting the IOR above, you must meet the experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-12 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Research and data analysis, process design, stakeholder engagement, project management, quality improvement and system redesign activities, and demonstrated skill leading multidisciplinary te