Purchasing Agent

Veterans Health Administration • Louisville, KY

17d • Onsite

About The Position

This position serves as a Purchasing Agent for the Logistics Service within the VA Health Care System. The role acquires supplies, services, and construction by purchase, rental, or lease through delivery orders and small-purchase procedures. It requires knowledge of policies and procedures for delivery orders and small purchases, as well as commercial supply sources and common business practices related to sales, prices, discounts, units of measurement, deliveries, stocks, and shipments. The Purchasing Agent is responsible for work leading to purchases of a wide variety of complex and highly specialized services, supplies, equipment, and systems that support the organization’s programs and activities.

The position is onsite and follows a Monday-through-Friday schedule from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Work is performed in an office setting with everyday risks or discomforts and normal safety precautions. Some standing, sitting, walking, or bending may be required; there are no special physical demands. The role is not virtual.

Applicants must be U.S. citizens and meet the stated qualification requirements. For the GS-6 level, applicants need at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to GS-5 in the Federal service. No educational substitution is available at this grade level. The position requires a background/security investigation, seasonal influenza vaccination, and a one-year probationary period or two-year trial period, as applicable. Recruitment and relocation incentives and permanent change of station are not authorized; the Critical Skills Incentive is not approved.

Requirements

• U.S. citizenship.
• For GS-6, at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to GS-5 in the Federal service, typically in or related to the work of the position.
• Specialized experience must include clerical or assistant duties supporting purchasing and procurement; procuring supplies and services by purchase, rental, or lease; working with medical staff to determine procurement needs and priorities; resolving shipment, payment, or other procurement discrepancies; purchasing equipment, supplies, and services using a purchase card; and assembling or summarizing information from files and documents to create reports using automated computerized supply or inventory management systems and Microsoft Office programs such as Word and Excel.
• Current Federal employees and certain former Federal employees applying for reinstatement or under VEOA must meet the time-in-grade requirement: 52 weeks at GS-5 for a GS-6 position, supported by an SF-50.
• Complete the application, questionnaire, and required online assessment.
• Submit to a background/security investigation and complete online onboarding and acceptable identity verification requirements.
• Participate in the seasonal influenza vaccination program as a condition of employment.
• Serve a one-year probationary period or two-year trial period, as applicable.
• Demonstrate the competencies assessed for the position: Attention to Detail, Flexibility, Integrity/Honesty, Interpersonal Skills, Reading Comprehension, Self-Management, Stress Tolerance, and Teamwork.
• There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

Responsibilities

• Conduct purchases under the micro-purchase threshold, review and edit purchase requests, and resolve issues so requests and bills are processed accurately and promptly.
• Identify needs or problems and determine corrective action.
• Use federal and agency acquisition regulations to identify potential sources and other relevant purchasing information.
• Track obligations and commitments, monitor expenditures for recurring budget forecasts, and identify potential fraud, waste, and abuse based on procurement history and purchase trends.
• Procure supplies and services to meet organizational purchase, rental, or lease needs, and develop unique selection criteria for each purchase.
• Prepare and issue contract modifications for delivery-schedule changes and send formal correspondence to customers, including inventory management specialists, service-line contacts, and contracting officers, for auditing documents, processing receiving reports, and payments.
• Conduct open-market research and sole-source small purchases for highly specialized medical items with critical product requirements.
• Serve as the first point of contact for medical staff and customers regarding procured items.
• Develop reports and spreadsheets, and obtain, organize, file, and retrieve reports for briefings and presentations.
• Perform receptionist, timekeeping, record-keeping, and miscellaneous duties in the medical facility.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Benefits

• Federal employees and their families have access to a range of federal employee benefits; specific eligibility depends on position type, and applicants are directed to contact the hiring agency for details.
• VA may offer newly appointed federal employees credit for job-related non-federal experience or active-duty uniformed military service when determining annual leave accrual; this must be requested and approved before appointment and is not guaranteed.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed