Program Specialist

Summary

This position is in the VA Regional Office. The incumbent is assigned to the Office of the Human Resources Supervisor. The incumbent serves as a Program Specialist responsible for providing performance management and technical support for the regional office Human Resources program.

Duties

Specific duties include: The Human Resource Liaison (HRL) works as a member of the HR team in support of areas such as staffing, recruitment, on-boarding, benefits, recognition, appraisals, labor and management relations, performance and leave of absences. Assists the staff and managers to understand, develop and implement HR policies, procedures, and guidelines which institute processes for work to run as effectively and efficiently as possible. Studies and advises managers and supervisors on staffing requirements, resources, and problems in assigned offices involving a high degree of complexity. Assists with guidance on merit system principles, prohibited personnel practices, the development and use of valid selection criteria, and other approaches that may help in staffing the organization and in improving employee productivity, morale, and retention. Tracks any lag time with recruitment or classification actions. Provides solutions to management on how to improve processing times for recruitment actions. Aids and advice on hiring and classification actions during weekly meeting staff meetings. Serves as a SME in employee recognition programs and performance evaluations. Ensures plans are in place reward high performers and assist those who have performance deficits. May takes care of administrative duties such as timekeeping, email, organizing new employee orientation, ensuring accuracy of paperwork for HR functions (such as benefits, insurance, awards, employment actions, etc). Assists in coordination of staff development, leadership development and ongoing training efforts of the RO. Reviews classification standards, guides, to assist and coordinate classification assignments. Provides advice and assistance in the areas of discipline, adverse actions, grievances, performance management and recognition, employee counseling, and related functions. HRLs must always work as a member of a team while exercising good judgement and professionalism with co-workers, Veterans, and all stakeholders even in stressful situations. HRLs must hold reasonable computer skills and can effectively navigate various programs such as but not limited to the Microsoft Office Suite (Outlook, Word, Excel & PowerPoint). Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. The grade progression for this position is GS-09, GS-11, and GS-12. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 4:30pm Compressed/Flexible: Compressed. Telework: Yes- This position is eligible for situational (ad hoc) telework only. The selectee is required to report to the official duty station each scheduled workday. Telework may be approved only on a case-by-case basis with supervisory approval. Routine or recurring telework is not authorized for this position. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Program Specialist; PD39565A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized. Financial Disclosure Report: Not required.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement:10/06/2026. TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENT: As a current Federal, GS employee you must meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07 level. If you are a current VBA employee requesting reassignment or change to lower grade via this vacancy announcement, you must currently hold the GS- 07 or higher and the promotion potential of your current position must be at least 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. MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT: You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-09 Grade Level: Specialized Experience: : You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-7 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience at this level would typically include, but are not limited to: applying a wide range of methods, principles, and practices commonly used in the staffing, recruitment and placement process; evaluating applications and resumes; advising management on various types of appointments, the procedural and regulatory requirements governing the merit promotion process; preparing vacancy announcements; and using a variety of standardized recruitment strategies to aid in strategic recruitment planning. OR, Education Substitution: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D., if related. (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED). OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and education beyond one year of graduate level education. (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED) Combining Education & Experience: If you do not fully meet the length of experience and education described for a specific grade level (e.g. have six months of experience and some coursework but not a degree), the two can be combined to total 100% of the requirement. Click here for more information. Volunteer Experience: 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. Full vs. Part-Time Employment: Full-time employment is considered to be at least 35 hours per week. Part-time experience will be credited on a pro-rated basis; when including part-time employment in your resume you must specify the average hours worked per week. Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary. Some work may require walking in offices and similar areas for meetings and to conduct HR work. Work may also require walking and standing in conjunction with travel to and attendance at meetings and conferences away from the worksite. The work does not require any special physical effort. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

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/accre