Contracts Assistant

DecisionPoint | Cortek•Washington, DC

5h•Onsite

About The Position

DecisionPoint Corporation is seeking a Contracts Assistant with a Secret Clearance in Washington, DC to support our government customer. This position is onsite.

Requirements

Active Secret Security Clearance.
High School Graduate or equivalent.
Minimum Years’ Experience: 4 years or more.
Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite.
Possess strong multi-tasking and organizational skills.
Strong interpersonal and customer service skills.
Demonstrated written and oral communications skills.
Ability to handle complexity and highly detailed responsibilities.
Experience and ability to work and interact with others and provide excellent customer service.
Ability to prioritize work and make decisions.
Skill and ability in managing multiple concurrent activities of varying complexity, including changing priorities and short turn-around times.

Responsibilities

Assist the Contracting Officer Representative (COR) in the administrative coordination of contract task orders from proposal stage to project close-out in accordance with relevant regulations.
Organize Contracts Management folders in SharePoint.
Review invoices through the online Invoice Processing Platform (IPP).
Periodically audit invoices and billing for compliance with existing contracts and follow up and resolve all differences.
Develop and maintain a Compliance Calendar or tracking system of contractual reporting due dates in Excel, including contract renewals, registrations, action items and other areas as necessary, etc.
Assist the program office in market research including product, equipment and supplier research and guidance.
Maintain complete and accurate contract files in accordance with all applicable regulations to facilitate internal administration and audits through eFiling in ILMS.
Remain current with procurement policy, such as end-of-year funding action deadlines as they relate to contracting actions and maintain familiarity with customer contract policies and Acquisition Manuals.
Maintain liaison with operations and funding experts in functional areas.
Inform Bureau of African Affairs (AF) staff and recommend strategies and approaches to best use foreign assistance resources for the assigned portfolio at the country, regional, and global level.
Research, and provide oral and written briefings, memos, talking points, and analytical products for AF leadership, other Department offices, practitioners in U.S. embassies, State Department Public Diplomacy Officers, and interagency representatives on best practices, challenges and opportunities, programming needs and gaps, and potential for interagency program co-ordination.
Identify, recommend, and support the development of new programs aligned with AF’s strategic objectives.
Identify and implement innovative approaches for working with U.S. embassies and contract and/or grant recipients to improve the efficiency of AF/A and A/EX program management and to minimize administrative burdens.
Assist AF/A and AF/EX in the development of SOPs for project management life cycle of projects including initiation, planning (e.g., Statements of Work (SOW), execution, and closure.
Track and analyze new political, economic, humanitarian, and security developments in sub-Saharan Africa that may affect current and future programming and use this to inform and support strategy development and the strategic alignment of AF program and activities with the Department and Bureau’s highest priorities.
Use technical expertise in assigned area to support the budget planning for AF including the preparation of foreign assistance materials (Congressional notifications, allocation requests, and operational plans).
Organize and participate in strategy and portfolio reviews to understand the impact and performance of AF programs.
Develop and support U.S. Government and international coordination mechanisms and strategic program planning.
Advise AF/A and AF/EX on synchronizing programs with other U.S. Government and international efforts, developing recommended strategies to create more efficient planning and program management and oversight with U.S overseas missions, implementers, and relevant third countries and nongovernmental organizations.
Coordinate with other program practitioners to develop whole-of-government approaches to promoting immediate, medium-term, and long-term objectives.
Travel periodically to sub-Saharan Africa to enhance program coordination with U.S. embassy representatives and conduct site visits to oversee ongoing programming.
Use relevant State Department and interagency databases to track funding to inform decision making for foreign assistance for AF.