Lead Contract Specialist

Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts•Washington, DC

About The Position

The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (AO), Department of Administrative Services, Acquisition Management Office (AMO), Procurement Management Division, DAS Contracting Branch is seeking a Lead Contract Specialist. AMO provides acquisition program management and oversight, policy guidance and support, and conducts procurements for the AO and federal judiciary organizations nationwide. The position performs the full range of acquisition activities with a high degree of independence, using judiciary procurement authorities and policies as well as FAR-based procedures. Procurements include a broad range of supplies and services, including complex information technology, digital, and cloud-based services. The position reports directly to the Contracting Branch Chief in the AMO. The Lead Contract Specialist performs senior-level pre-award, post-award, and contract closeout work; serves as a contracting officer; and leads and oversees a team of contract specialists. The role supports complex agency acquisitions and advises customers at the AO and courts nationwide. Applicants without FAC-C certification may apply and, if selected, must achieve certification within 24 months of appointment.

Requirements

At least one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience in or directly related to the work of the position.
Demonstrated experience leading a team of one or more contract specialists responsible for completing acquisition actions, projects, and issues.
Demonstrated experience applying contracting principles and procedures to plan, award, and manage contracting actions for a wide range of products and services.
Demonstrated experience using in-depth price/cost analysis to develop pre-negotiation and award price determination documents.
A four-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree, including or supplemented by at least 24 semester hours in any combination of accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management. Federal employees classified within the 1100 family as of January 1, 2000 are deemed to have met the basic qualification requirements for 1102 Contract Specialist positions.
Applicants without FAC-C certification who are selected must achieve certification within 24 months of appointment.
Selection is contingent on completing OF-306 and providing proof of U.S. citizenship for competitive status positions, subject to stated exceptions for non-citizens.
New AO employees must complete an FBI fingerprint-based national criminal database and records check, pass a public trust suitability check, and pass E-Verify employment verification.
New AO employees must identify a financial institution for direct deposit of pay before appointment.
A trial period is required for certain first-time federal appointees, transfers from another federal agency, or first-time supervisors.

Nice To Haves

Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting Professional Certificate (FAC-C).
Federal Acquisition Certification for Contracting Officer's Representatives (FAC-COR).
Federal Acquisition Certification for Program and Project Managers (FAC-P/PM).
Digital IT Acquisition Professional Program (DITAP) certification.
Comparable DAWIA or industry certification.

Responsibilities

Perform senior-level contract specialist pre-award, post-award, and contract closeout activities.
Lead a team of one or more contract specialists responsible for acquisition actions, projects, and issues.
Serve as a contracting officer.
Identify, distribute, and balance team tasks and workload according to priorities, workflow, and skill level to ensure timely completion.
Award, administer, and close out contracts of various types, including firm fixed price, cost, labor hours, and time and materials.
Oversee and review team work products to ensure priorities, methods, deadlines, quality standards, policies, and regulations are met.
Perform contracting functions for complex acquisitions involving diverse supplies and services, including IT services, hardware and software, telecommunications, and other electronic systems and subsystems; negotiate complex contract vehicle modifications.
Prepare pre-award and post-award documents, including solicitations, market research reports, pre-negotiation and post-negotiation memoranda, responsibility determinations, waivers, justifications and approvals, determinations and findings, protest responses, debriefings, cure notices, and terminations.
Monitor contractor performance; evaluate and negotiate change orders and contract modifications; and resolve post-award performance or payment problems.
Use in-depth price/cost analysis to develop pre-negotiation and award price determination documents.
Advise customers at the AO and courts nationwide.