Communications Specialist

Summary

The Veterans Health Administration (VHA), Office of Healthcare Transformation (OHT) is a national office dedicated to improving the VHA and other Federal agencies.

The first 150 applications received will receive first consideration. Applications that are submitted after the initial cut-off number has been reached will not receive consideration unless otherwise requested by management.

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Overview

• Accepting applications
• Open & closing dates

10/03/2024 to 10/10/2024

• Salary

$103,409 - $167,336 per year

• Pay scale & grade

GS 13

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Locations

2 vacancies in the following locations:

• Washington, DC

• Location Negotiable After Selection

• Remote job

No

• Telework eligible

Yes-Applicant is REQUIRED to report on site 50% of work schedule per pay period.

• Travel Required

50% or less- You may be expected to travel for this position.

• Relocation expenses reimbursed

No

• Appointment type

Permanent

• Work schedule

Full-time

• Service

Competitive

• Promotion potential

None

• Job family (Series)

• 1001 General Arts And Information

• Supervisory status

No

• Security clearance

Other

• Drug test

No

• Position sensitivity and risk

Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

• Trust determination process

• Suitability/Fitness

• Financial disclosure

No

• Bargaining unit status

Yes

• Announcement number

CBZY-12564658-25-JA

• Control number

812477500

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This job is open to

• Internal to an agency

Current federal employees of this agency.

• Career transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL)

Federal employees who meet the definition of a "surplus" or "displaced" employee.

• Federal employees- Competitive service

Current or former competitive service federal employees.

• Individuals with disabilities

• Military spouses

• Veterans

Clarification from the agency

1st AOC: Current Station 134 Employees 2nd AOC: VA Wide Employees 3rd: All other Status Eligible (30% or More Disabled Veterans, Military Spouses, CTAP, ICTAP, Interchange Eligibilities, Schedule A, Reinstatement, Transfer, VEOA, etc.) THIS IS NOT A REMOTE POSITION. YOU WILL BE REQUIRED TO REPORT ON SITE

Videos

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Duties

• The position coordinates promotion of OHT and VHA program communications and products among intended audiences, utilizing a variety of platforms including social media. Responsible for creating, writing, and presenting media content for OHT and assigned program services for social media sites, including blogs, Twitter, and Facebook, and responds to comments posted by site visitors.
• Develops and disseminates a wide range of content for the OHT and VHA. Works with OHT and VHA strategic health care groups to develop content that supports project teams and programs and announcements, edits their content to enhance effective

presentation of content, ensure content is up-to-date, and analyze their needs and propose ways to use internet capabilities to do their work.

• Develops Web content, and other documents that articulate the position of the VHA and OHT and, as required, other key VHA officials on an entire spectrum of potentially sensitive issues for a wide variety of audiences and occasions.
• Interviews and confers with OHT and VHA stakeholders to obtain the most current and accurate information for use in developing Web content, articles, speeches and other informational material. Maintains files with background materials of written documents, presentations (PowerPoint) and previous articles, speeches, events and other pertinent information.
• Must have an overall and comprehensive knowledge of the public communications and have comprehensive knowledge of other VA offices in order to provide insight and guidance on matters of public information.
• Detailed plans, tasks, milestone dates and schedules to ensure proper sequencing of events and tracking of processes throughout the life cycle of the projects.
• Develops innovative strategies and recommendations for initiating and establishing goals, timetables, and procedures for expediting projects. Implements new initiatives to strengthen, facilitate, and integrate programs into the overall VA and VHA strategies and priorities.
• Articulates and communicates the assignment, program, problem to be solved, actionable events, milestones, and/or program issues under review, and deadlines and time frames for completion.
• Investigates and analyzes adverse operations, trends or conditions and initiates corrective action, and follows-through.
• Prepares reports and maintains records of work accomplishments and administrative information, as required, and coordinates the preparation, presentation and communication of work-related information.

Work Schedule: Required to work Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm.

Compressed/Flexible: Available

Telework: Available (applicant is required on site 50% of work schedule per pay period).

Virtual: The employee may work at a VA facility or other VA-leased space other than the facility that is hiring the employee and is authorized for telework up to 50%.

Position Description/PD#: Communications Specialist/PD027334-A

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Authorized

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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Requirements

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
• 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
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)
• Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/10/2024.

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.

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education 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:

1. Develops and coordinates graphic requirements, including databases, tables, and spreadsheets to complement speeches as appropriate.

2. Researches and reads written material previously used by office and office project stakeholders to develop a variety of products.

3. Interviews and confers with office and agency stakeholders to obtain the most current and accurate information for use in developing Web content, articles, speeches and other informational material.

4. Works closely with office and agency stakeholders on organizing content, identifying current and future communications needs, and other duties involved in communications management.

5. Conducts research to determine the nature of the audience and any other special considerations.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

• Applies Technology to Tasks
• Communications
• Organizational Awareness
• Project Management
• Strategic Thinking

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.

Note: 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.

Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary and does not require any special physical effort. Some work may require walking and standing in conjunction with travel and attendance at meetings and conferences away from the work site.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

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/.

Additional information

Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

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• Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

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 WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.

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 contact for an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. 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.

For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.

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.

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.