Summary The Program Specialist - Business Manager is responsible for managing and overseeing staff and resources assigned to the care line to accomplish the goals and objectives of the facility and Associate Chief of Staff (ACOS), Mental Health Care Line. The worked performed by the incumbent and staff ultimately affects the plans, goals and effectiveness of the Wilmington Veterans Affairs Medical Center's operations in providing complex Veterans services. Responsibilities The Program Specialist - Business Manager responsibilities reside in the Mental Health Care Line, which provides inpatient and outpatient clinical services to enrolled patients. These service areas include oversight of the Mental Health Outpatient, Substance Use Disorder Program, Primary Care Integrated Mental Health Program, and Mental Health Recovery Program. Duties and Responsibilities include, but aren't limited to: Program Oversight, Evaluation & Strategic Planning 75% Provides executive level support, analysis and report preparation to the ACOS. Makes recommendations for change and manages their areas of responsibility long and short-range facility space plans to meet the needs of the Veterans served at the VMAC and staff. Develops management improvement programs or revises policy and procedure requirements for more effective application of various administrative and clinical management systems such as reports management, information management, etc. Formulates recommendations to include specific plans to address/correct deficiencies and/or to increase positive accomplishments of administrative/clinical practices. Supports the Care Line Leader and secondarily to other management officials by analyzing, involving, advising on and/or coordination health care delivery systems and operations at the health care system. Assists in the developing of all information required for policies, procedures, programs, education, research, and other special requirements. Evaluates programs against short and long-range agency objectives, prepares and contributes to reports and other presentations on program planning and evaluation, and acts as a liaison or handles communications with persons and/or groups within and outside the Care Line, Medical Center and VISN. Analyzes and evaluates on a quantitative or qualitative basis the efficiency and effectiveness of programs or operations in meeting established goals and objectives. Interprets VHA and VISN policy and translates it to the Care Line, and medical center level in the form of medical center policy. Reviews correspondence on behalf of their Care Line Leader and responds to inquiries on behalf of the Medical Center Leadership. and reviews proposed programmatic and policy changes involving service line, analyzing and evaluating functionality and other aspects of programs and policies for the Care Line Leader. Coordinates and tracks staff recruitment efforts for services under their Care Line Leader. Performs analytical and evaluative work associated with maintaining daily clinical operations and managing other areas under their Care Line's responsibility. Assumes and performs all duties associated with Contract Officer Representative to include: purchase cards, travel costs, travel card expense reports, invoice and purchase orders, collections, expense reviews, and all other financially related business functions in the care line. Identifies barriers to providing exceptional customer service by using customer feedback in planning and providing products and services to enhance the overall customer service experience of all Veterans, staff and visitors. Administration and Acquisition 25% Knowledge of Joint Commission, CARF and other external accreditation source rules and regulations. Oversees all acquisition processes within the Mental Health Care Line and is the liaison with contractors to assure all components of the contracts are being met via monitoring all contracting processes and fiscal oversight performance reviews. Services as functional matter expert on the provisions of contracts and contract manuals Performs other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Full-Time, Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm EST. Compressed/Flexible: Not Authorized Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Program Specialist - Business Manager/PD023940 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: 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 identification 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, 08/24/2026. 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-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09. 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 and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-09 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Makes recommendations for change and manages their areas of responsibility long and short-range facility space plans to meet the needs of the Veterans served at the VMAC and staff, develops management improvement programs or revises policy and procedure requirements for more effective application of various administrative and clinical management systems such as reports management, information management, etc.; formulates recommendations to include specific plans to address/correct deficiencies and/or to increase positive accomplishments of administrative/clinical practices; and direct responsibility for seeking and finding practical solutions that may be achieved through short or long-range planning. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a PhD. or 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D., if related.. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond a graduate education. 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 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/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. 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. Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. 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/.
