Operations Specialist (Fire Support)

U.S. Forest Service; United States; On-site; USD 65,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

U.S. Forest Service is seeking a qualified Emergency Fire Contract Administrator for Region 5 Pacific Southwest to manage interagency contracts, coordinate COR activities, and ensure contractor compliance during active firefighting operations.

This role involves training oversight, vendor evaluation, and interagency communication to support rapid incident response. The position requires thorough understanding of contracting, procurement, and incident management, with duties spanning field

Qualifications

• Contracting/Procurement experience.
• Project management skills.
• Strong written communication.

Responsibilities

• Serve as primary contact for incident management personnel and jurisdictions to resolve issues with contracted resources.
• Review statements of work and contract specs for staff vetting.
• Ensure contract compliance and provide findings to improve processes.
• Coordinate and conduct reviews of contractor training documents.

Skills

Contracting/Procurement

Project Management

Writing

Job description

Summary

This position is assigned to a Forest Service, Region 5 Pacific Southwest office. This positions serves as the Emergency Fire Contract Administrator of an Interagency Emergency Fire Equipment Contract Program, working in a variety of Incident Management assignments. For additional information about the duties of this position, please contact Brian Grabowski at [e-mail] or Deirdre Cherry at [e-mail].

Major Duties

• Serves as a primary contact for incident management personnel, dispatch, forests, and regional inquiries to resolve issues with contracted resources.
• Reviews statements of work and contract specifications to ensure they are vetted through the appropriate staff.
• Ensures contract compliance and when appropriate, provides findings and recommendations for use and improvement.
• Ensures contract compliance and when appropriate, provides findings and recommendations for use and improvement.
• Coordinates and conducts reviews of contractor personnel training documents identifying and evaluating the quality and adequacy of fire training courses, materials, and instructors.
• Identifies and analyzes emergency fire equipment contractor skills or knowledge deficiencies and developmental needs.
• Develops and conducts equipment inspection training for interagency personnel throughout the region.
• Contracting Officers Representative (COR) for Regional Emergency Incident Blanket Purchase Agreements (IBPA’s)
• Provides training and guidance of Incident Contract Project Inspectors (ICPI) performing under Virtual Incident Procurement (VIPR) agreements and National Contracts (exclusive of aviation contracts).
• Responsible for conducting field evaluations and inspections on firefighting equipment, services, materials, processes and procedures, including the period of ongoing fire suppression activities.
• Communicates contract administration efforts with appropriate signatory Contracting Officer, including agreement solicitation support, verification of vendor provided information and contract actions.

Education

See above for education that may be qualifying for the specific grade level.

Requirements

• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
• Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
• Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check.
• To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit e-verify.gov
• 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

You will be evaluated based on your qualifications for this position as evidenced by the experience, education, and training you described in your application package, as well as the responses to the Assessment Questionnaire to determine the degree to which you possess the competencies listed below: Contracting/Procurement Project Management Writing Your application, including the online Assessment Questionnaire, will be reviewed to determine if you meet (a) minimum qualification requirements and (b) the resume supports the answers provided to the job‑specific questions. Your resume must clearly support your responses to all the questions addressing experience and education relevant to this position. If you meet the qualification requirements and are determined to be among the best qualified, you will be referred to the hiring manager for consideration. Noncompetitive candidates and applicants under some special hiring authorities must meet minimum qualifications to be referred. Note: If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you inflated your qualifications and or experience, your rating may be lowered to more accurately reflect the submitted documentation. Providing inaccurate information on Federal documents could be grounds for non-selection or disciplinary action. To view the application form, visit: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13058314

What to Expect Next

Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. Log in to your USAJOBS account to check your application status. You may receive an email asking if you are still interested in the position and requesting information by a given deadline. Failure to timely respond to this email may result in non-selection. You must choose to turn on email notifications in your USAJOBS profile if you want to receive important email notifications that may impact your applicant experience (e.g. If you start an application and do not submit it prior to the closing date, USAJOBS will send an email reminder that the closing date is approaching and your application is in an incomplete status). Under the Fair Chance Act, agencies are not allowed to request information about an applicant's criminal history until a conditional offer of employment has been made, except as allowed for access to classified information; assignment to national security duties or positions; acceptance or retention in the armed forces; or recruitment of a Federal law enforcement officer. An applicant may submit a complaint, or any other information related to an organization’s alleged noncompliance with the Fair Chance Act. The complaint must be submitted within 30 calendar days of the date of the alleged noncompliance. To make a Fair Chance Act inquiry or complaint, send an email with the appropriate information to [e-mail], subject line: Fair Chance Act.

Required Documents

The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration. Resume that includes: Personal Information: name, address, contact information; Education; Work Experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); other qualifications. Resume cannot exceed 2 pages. If education is required or being used to qualify, you must submit a copy of your college transcripts. An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application if it includes your name and the necessary course information; however, if you are selected, official transcripts will be required prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university. If any education was completed at a foreign institute, you must submit with your application evidence that the institute was appropriately accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as equivalent to U.S. education standards. There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service. For a list of private organizations that evaluate education, visit the NACES website. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation. Current Forest Service employees: Most recent non‑award Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50) showing you are/were in the competitive service, highest grade held (or promotion potential) on a permanent basis, position title, series and grade AND Most recent performance appraisal (dated within 18 months) showing the official rating of record, signed by a supervisor, or statement why the performance appraisal is unavailable. A performance plan is not an acceptable substitute. Surplus or displaced employees eligible for CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP priority must provide: proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), current performance appraisal with rating of at least "Fully Successful" or equivalent, and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330. Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act: Copies of Notification of Personnel Action(s) (SF-50) showing the employee served in eligible appointment(s) for a period(s) of more than 24 mos w/o a break between appointments of two+ years. Include initial hire actions, extensions, conversions and separation Sf-50s for each period. Submit performance rating(s) showing acceptable performance for each period counted towards eligibility signed by supervisor(s). If documentation does not exist for one or more periods, submit a statement from supervisor(s) indicating acceptable performance. Applicants who do not have performance documentation for any period shall provide a reason why the documentation is not available and statement that performance for all periods was at an acceptable level.

Other Information

Position(s) will be located at the Region 5 Forest Office location listed above or at another Forest Office within Region 5. Final determination of the duty station will be made by the selecting official at the time of the job offer. Pay rates vary depending on location. The salary shown is for the Rest of the U.S. (RUS) See OPM.gov for additional information on pay rates. Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) or Reemployment Priority List (RPL): To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified (or above) based on an evaluation of the competencies listed in the How You Will Be Evaluated section. When assessed through a score-based category rating method, CTAP applicants must receive a rating of at least 85 out of a possible 100. Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA) provides current or former temporary and term employees the opportunity to compete for permanent competitive service positions. Individuals must have more than 24 months of service without a break between appointments of two or more years and the last temporary or term appointment must have been with the Forest Service. Service must be in the competitive service and have been at a successful level of performance or better. Part-time and intermittent service will be credited only for time actually worked. Non-pay status such as leave without pay is credited for up to six months in a calendar year; anything beyond six months is not credited. Applicants are responsible for providing sufficient information/documentation to determine if the 24 month criteria is met. If you are selected for a position with further promotion potential, you will be placed under a career development plan, and may be non-competitively promoted if you successfully complete the requirements and if recommended by management. However, promotion is not guaranteed. This position may be eligible to telework up to four days per week, based upon the duties of the position. This position may also be eligible for flexible work arrangements as determined by agency policy and any applicable collective bargaining agreements. This position is not eligible for telework. The Forest Service may use certain incentives and hiring flexibilities, currently offered by the Federal government, to attract highly qualified candidates. Additional Information is available on the OPM Website. Positions filled from this announcement may be a bargaining or a non-bargaining unit position represented by either NFFE, AFGE or NAGE. Forest Service daycare facilities may be available. Government Housing may be available. We may select from this announcement or any other source to fill one or more vacancies.