Summary The Secretary (OA) position is located within the office of the Associate Director of Patient Care Services (ADPCS) at the Montgomery VA Medical Center in Central Alabama. Responsibilities Major Duties (not limited to): Provides clerical and administrative assistance to the organization by determining nature of call or business of visitors, if business requires the attention of technical or staff specialists, decides whether the importance of business such as to require personal attention of superiors or if the visitor should be referred to another appropriate organizational component. Maintains managers daily calendar, making appointments and arranging conferences and meetings without specific prior approval, based on a knowledge of the manager's schedule. Independently makes arrangements for meetings by reserving space, setting the specific time, and contacting all personnel expected to attend. Arranges for transportation and lodging. Transmits agenda and all necessary background materials to participants of meetings and conference. Gathers material for use in reports, presentations, and speeches of the manager. Uses variety of word processing applications, databases, and office software/hardware to perform daily functions. Uses variety of office automation systems and software to accomplish work such as drafting and proofreading correspondence, text editing, file creation, file maintenance and retrieval. Uses judgement in selecting spacing, arranging materials, and ensuring proper punctuation, grammar, spelling, and capitalization. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm. Work schedule subject to change based on agency needs. Telework: This position may be authorized for telework on an ad hoc basis. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Secretary (OA)/PD09306A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Physical Requirements & Work Environment: Work is sedentary. Typically the employee may sit comfortably to do the work. However, there may be some walking, standing, bending, carrying, of light items such as papers, books, small parts and driving a vehicle. No special physical demands are required to perform the work. Work is performed in an office setting. Incumbent may have to travel from one location to another to conduct meetings. Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 03/24/2026. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-08 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. 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. You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-07 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: - Provide support for inquiries and directs inquiries to the appropriate individual or department - Maintains the manager's daily schedule: makes appointments and arranges meetings and/or conferences including shifting schedules, preparing travel, and prioritizing actions - Gathers information and materials for use in reports or presentations - Knowledge of office hardware and software: Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook), fax, copier, etc - Draft and provide proofreading of correspondence and other materials for grammar, accuracy, and completeness 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. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements & Work Environment: Work is sedentary. Typically the employee may sit comfortably to do the work. However, there may be some walking, standing, bending, carrying, of light items such as papers, books, small parts and driving a vehicle. No special physical demands are required to perform the work. Work is performed in an office setting. Incumbent may have to travel from one location to another to conduct meetings. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. Education There is no educational substitution at this grade level. Additional Information Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act. Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.
