Mid-Level Contract Specialist

U.S. Federal Solutions, Inc. (USFS) is a management consulting firm with offices and staff in the DC metro area. USFS was founded in 2010 and provides financial management, acquisition management, program management, and data analytic support services to federal and state governments.

Mid-Level Contract Support Specialist

Department of Veterans Affairs – Network Contracting Office 23 (NCO 23)

Position Overview

US Federal Solutions is seeking an experienced Mid-Level Contract Support Specialist to provide acquisition and contract administration support to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Network Contracting Office 23.

This position will support Contracting Officers, Contract Specialists, program offices, technical personnel, and other acquisition stakeholders throughout the federal acquisition lifecycle. The successful candidate will bring hands-on experience supporting both pre-award and post-award contracting activities and a strong working knowledge of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Veterans Affairs Acquisition Regulation (VAAR), and other applicable federal acquisition policies and procedures.

This is an excellent opportunity for an acquisition professional who enjoys working directly with government customers, solving complex contracting issues, analyzing procurement and pricing information, and supporting acquisition actions from initial requirement development through contract administration and modification.

Key Responsibilities

• Support Contracting Officers and Contract Specialists throughout the full federal acquisition lifecycle, including acquisition planning, solicitation development, evaluation, award, administration, modification, and contract closeout activities.
• Review procurement requirements and acquisition packages for completeness, accuracy, and compliance with applicable federal and VA acquisition regulations, policies, and procedures.
• Assist program offices and requiring activities with developing clear, comprehensive, and acquisition-ready requirements documentation.
• Conduct research and analysis of federal acquisition regulations, policies, directives, market information, technical documentation, and historical procurement data to support acquisition decisions.
• Provide acquisition guidance and business advice to Contracting Officers, Contract Specialists, technical experts, program managers, requiring activities, and other stakeholders.
• Assist with the preparation, review, and maintenance of acquisition plans, acquisition strategies, procurement documentation, and program acquisition tracking tools.
• Support the development and analysis of Independent Government Cost Estimates (IGCEs), including evaluating labor, material, and other cost elements.
• Analyze contractor cost and pricing data, market information, historical pricing, and other supporting information to assist in developing price reasonableness recommendations.
• Support cost-benefit analyses and other financial or acquisition analyses required to evaluate procurement alternatives and inform contracting decisions.
• Coordinate with technical personnel and Contracting Officers to ensure project milestones, performance requirements, deliverables, and schedules are accurately reflected in contractual documents and acquisition plans.
• Assist with developing and maintaining acquisition schedules, milestones, action trackers, and program controls to ensure procurement activities remain on schedule.
• Monitor contract performance and assist with identifying and resolving issues involving contractor performance, payments, changes, claims, deliverables, funding, and contract terms and conditions.
• Review contract documentation to ensure contractor and government actions comply with applicable contractual requirements, terms, conditions, and established acquisition controls.
• Prepare and draft contract modifications and supporting documentation involving administrative changes, funding actions, changes in requirements, periods of performance, and other contractual actions.
• Support Contracting Officers and Contract Specialists with contract modifications, change orders, supplemental agreements, delivery orders, and other post-award acquisition actions.
• Assist with developing documentation supporting service contract extensions, acquisition approaches, methods of contracting, proposal evaluations, justification and approval requirements, and contract administration decisions.
• Coordinate with VA leadership, contracting personnel, program offices, technical experts, and other stakeholders to analyze acquisition challenges and recommend appropriate courses of action.
• Plan, coordinate, and execute acquisition-related administrative and logistical activities necessary to support organizational and program mission requirements.
• Maintain complete, accurate, organized, and audit-ready acquisition documentation throughout the contracting lifecycle.

What We Are Looking For

The ideal candidate is a knowledgeable federal acquisition professional who can independently analyze contracting issues while working collaboratively with government acquisition teams. This individual should be comfortable researching acquisition regulations, reviewing complex procurement documentation, developing acquisition products, analyzing pricing information, and supporting multiple contract actions simultaneously.

Success in this position requires strong attention to detail, sound professional judgment, excellent written communication skills, and the ability to translate federal acquisition requirements into practical recommendations that help Contracting Officers and their customers move procurements forward efficiently and compliantly.

Work Schedule, Location, and Travel:

• Remote

Requirements

Required Qualifications

• Minimum of three (3) recent years of relevant federal acquisition experience within the last five years providing comprehensive acquisition or contract support services.
• Demonstrated experience supporting both pre-award and post-award federal acquisition activities.
• Working knowledge of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Veterans Affairs Acquisition Regulation (VAAR), and applicable federal procurement policies and procedures.
• Strong understanding of the federal acquisition lifecycle and associated acquisition documentation.
• Experience researching and interpreting federal acquisition regulations, policies, guidance, and directives.
• Experience reviewing or developing procurement requirements and acquisition packages.
• Ability to conduct detailed research and analysis of technical, cost, and pricing information.
• Experience assisting with the development or analysis of Independent Government Cost Estimates (IGCEs).
• Ability to evaluate pricing information and support the preparation of price reasonableness analyses and recommendations.
• Experience supporting contract administration activities, including contract modifications, change orders, supplemental agreements, delivery orders, or similar contractual actions.
• Ability to communicate effectively with Contracting Officers, Contract Specialists, program managers, technical personnel, leadership, contractors, and other stakeholders.
• Strong analytical, organizational, research, writing, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to manage multiple acquisition actions, deadlines, and priorities in a federal contracting environment.

Education Requirements

Candidates must meet the applicable education and experience requirements, which may include:

• Bachelor's degree in any field; or
• At least 24 semester hours of coursework in one or more of the following disciplines: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management.

Preferred Experience

• Previous acquisition or contracting support experience with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
• Direct experience supporting a VA Network Contracting Office or comparable federal contracting organization.
• Experience developing acquisition plans, procurement packages, IGCEs, price analyses, contract modifications, and contract administration documentation.
• Experience supporting healthcare, professional services, supplies, equipment, construction, or other VA-related acquisitions.
• Experience working directly with warranted Contracting Officers and federal program offices in a high-volume acquisition environment.

Benefits

• Employer-provided paid Medical / Dental / Vision insurance.
• Employer matching 401K plan.
• PTO
• 11 Federal Holidays
• Additionally voluntary benefits to include Short / Long Term Disability, Term Life, and AD&D Insurance.

Originally posted on Himalayas