USFS is an ISO 9001 management consulting firm with headquarters in the National Capital Region and offices and staff in 12 US states. USFS staff average 10+ years of professional experience, over 80 percent of our staff have bachelor’s degrees, and over half have advanced degrees in business and technology. USFS was founded in 2010 and provides financial management, acquisition management, program management, and data analytic support services to federal and state governments.
Contract Specialist
The Contract Specialist will support VA acquisition activities across pre-award, solicitation, evaluation, award, and post-award phases. The successful candidate will work closely with contracting officers, program officials, vendors, and other stakeholders to help ensure procurement actions are accurate, timely, well-documented, and compliant with federal acquisition requirements.
Key Responsibilities
- Support pre-award acquisition activities for assigned purchase orders, task orders, and contracts, including market research, procurement planning, historical procurement analysis, and review coordination.
- Assist program offices in developing complete and accurate procurement packages, ensuring requirements are ready to proceed through the acquisition process.
- Prepare, edit, and organize solicitation and acquisition file documents, including Requests for Proposals, Requests for Quotes, Invitation for Bids, combined synopsis/solicitations, memorandums, checklists, determinations, and findings.
- Prepare pre-solicitation and solicitation notices for review and posting through appropriate acquisition channels, including SAM.gov, GSA eBuy, NITAAC, NASA SEWP, and agency platforms.
- Support small business procurement actions, including 8(a) offering letters, Small Business Administration coordination, and entry of required information into the Small Business Customer Experience system.
- Coordinate with government-wide acquisition contract vehicles and servicing agencies when procurements are conducted through GWACs or other interagency acquisition methods.
- Assist with vendor communications, pre-proposal conferences, evaluation meetings, and other procurement-related discussions.
- Support technical and past performance evaluations by helping facilitate discussions, organize evaluation materials, assist with scoring and ranking documentation, and prepare source selection support documents.
- Analyze business and pricing elements of offers or quotes, assist with negotiation objectives, document findings, and support discussions and award recommendations.
- Prepare award documents, supporting documentation, award notices, unsuccessful offeror feedback, debriefing materials, and procurement data reports in FPDS.
- Support post-award contract administration, including kick-off meetings, unilateral and bilateral modifications, option notices, administrative actions, and documentation of contract terms and conditions.
- Provide acquisition support and guidance to program officials and contractors on contract administration matters.
- Assist with de-obligation actions across various contract types, including Firm-Fixed-Price and cost-type contracts.
- Create, maintain, and submit complete digital contract files for purchase orders, task orders, contracts, and modifications in accordance with required timelines.
- Respond to data calls, attend workload meetings, and provide timely support to contracting personnel and program stakeholders.
Requirements
Required Qualifications
- 3-5 years experience supporting federal acquisition, procurement, or contract administration functions.
- Working knowledge of federal contracting processes, including pre-award, solicitation, evaluation, award, and post-award activities.
- Experience preparing or reviewing acquisition documentation such as RFQs, RFPs, IFBs, combined synopsis/solicitations, memorandums, checklists, award documents, and contract modifications.
- Familiarity with FAR-based procurement requirements, contract file documentation, market research, and acquisition planning.
- Experience supporting vendor communications, evaluation documentation, award packages, and procurement reporting.
- Ability to manage multiple procurement actions, meet deadlines, and maintain organized electronic contract files.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to coordinate effectively with contracting officers, program offices, vendors, and other stakeholders.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office tools, including Word, Excel, Outlook, and Teams.
Preferred Qualifications
- Familiarity with acquisition systems and platforms such as SAM.gov, GSA eBuy, NITAAC, NASA SEWP, FPDS, SBCX, or similar federal procurement systems.
- Experience supporting small business coordination, including 8(a) procurements and SBA documentation.
- Experience with multiple contract types, including Firm-Fixed-Price, task orders, purchase orders, and cost-type contracts.
- FAC-C, DAWIA, or other acquisition-related certification is a plus.
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.
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