Summary OUR MISSION: To fulfill President Lincoln's promise "To care for those who have served in our nation's military and for their families, caregivers, and survivors" - by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's Veterans. Beginning September 27, 2025, Federal agencies will only accept resumes up to two pages in length to comply with the Merit Hiring Plan. Responsibilities This position serves as Secretary to the Associate Director and Assistant Director at the VA Medical Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Performs administrative and secretarial functions in support of the Associate Director and Assistant Director, and his/her staff by performing general office work auxiliary to the work of the organization. The incumbent also provides administrative and secretarial support to the Executive Director, Patient/Nursing Services (ADPCS), and the Chief of Staff in the absence of their support staff. The work of this position has as a continuing requirement: a basic foundation of administrative concepts, principles and practices sufficient to perform independently duties involving eliminating conflict and duplication of work, determining when new procedures are needed, studying and evaluating office equipment, and recommending restructuring of clerical activities in the office and subordinate offices; skill in adapting policies and procedures to emergency situations and establishing new procedures to meet new situations; skill in recognizing how and when certain policies, procedures, or guidelines would be confusing to others; a comprehensive knowledge of the supervisor's policies and views on all significant matters affecting the organization; and knowledge of civilian time and leave regulations and computerized system requirements in order to post leave and answer questions on procedures and balances. The Associate Director defines overall objectives and priorities of the work in the office and provides guidance and instructions to the secretary with some special assignments. The secretary plans and carries out the work of the office and handles problems and deviations in accordance with established instructions, priorities, policies, commitments, and program goals of the supervisor and accepted practices of the occupation. The methods used by the incumbent are almost never reviewed in detail. Completed work is evaluated for adequacy, appropriateness, and conformance to established policy. By its very nature, much of the work cannot be reviewed in detail. Work Schedule: Full-time, Monday-Friday, 8 AM-4:30 PM 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: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required. 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, 04/16/2026. 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 in at least the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression. Applicants need not meet any cumulative years of experience requirements or general or lower-level specialized experience requirements to qualify. They must, of course, meet any minimum educational, licensure, or other special qualification requirements and selective factors established for the position being filled. To be creditable, an applicant's 1-year of specialized experience must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, abilities(KSAs)/competencies necessary for successful job performance. 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. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: a basic foundation of administrative concepts, principles and practices sufficient to perform independently duties involving eliminating conflict and duplication of work, determining when new procedures are needed, studying and evaluating office equipment, and recommending restructuring of clerical activities in the office and subordinate offices; skill in adapting policies and procedures to emergency situations and establishing new procedures to meet new situations; skill in recognizing how and when certain policies, procedures, or guidelines would be confusing to others; a comprehensive knowledge of the supervisor's policies and views on all significant matters affecting the organization; and knowledge of civilian time and leave regulations and computerized system requirements in order to post leave and answer questions on procedures and balances. 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/.
