Summary Executive Assistant to the Director and Deputy Directors of Compensation Service (CS) in the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA). Responsible for the coordination of administrative activities and providing technical support to CS Leadership. Assists CS Leadership with an extensive scope of matters other than those involving policy decisions and major management actions. Coordinates office activities for the front office and with other top VBA management officials. Duties
Specific duties include:
- Serves as the Executive Assistant to the Deputy Executive Director (DED) of Policy and Procedures in Compensation Service.
- Reviews internal processes and procedures and provides recommendations for process improvements, as appropriate.
- Provides regular and comprehensive administrative and operational oversight and guidance in Policy and Procedures, ensuring compliance with VBA directives and its overarching mission.
- Reviews organizational proposals for Policy and Procedures and advises the Deputy Executive Director on implications of the proposals, and makes recommendations to approve, disapprove, or modify specific proposals, many of which have Department-wide impact.
- Evaluates the content of new or modified legislation for projected impact on VBA's transformation and innovation efforts and assigns work as appropriate within Policy and Procedures staffs.
- Responsible for detailed staff coordination and operations to ensure the DED is continually prepared for all decisions, administrative matters, and sensitive items, throughout the program.
- Ensure policies and/or issues have been fully coordinated, vetted, and staffed, and advises the DED on implications, key issues, to include affected relationships with interested groups, both internal and external, and recommends courses of action.
- Reviews calendars, events, documents, etc. to ensure coordination with required offices is complete and conflicts are resolved before DED review.
- Responsible for coordination of major staff actions and events, ensuring consistency with overall direction and guidance. Coordinates with VBA leadership and external partners for major, sensitive, and cross functional issues.
- Uses expert skill in creating, organizing, reviewing, and editing a variety of documents to ensure they are technically sound and grammatically correct, and are appropriate for the intended audience.
- Regularly advising senior management officials on complex, sensitive, controversial, and highly sensitive issues which may impact or shape the future direction of Operations programs.
- Communicates with internal and external customers in a courteous, tactful, and helpful manner. Interacts in a businesslike and courteous manner with others to facilitate the accomplishment of work. Demonstrates the ability to adjust to change, handle difference of opinion in a harmonious fashion, and follow instructions conscientiously.
- Analyzes and evaluates situations requiring the Director's personal action, develops management options, and advises the Director of the potential consequences of each. Maintains a critical awareness of sensitive program developments and problems. Advises on the development of directives for Policy and Procedures activities. Ensures the efficient operation of the Office of the DED through proactive management and effective problem resolution. Plays a key role in addressing issues that cross organization staffs and directly affect Policy and Procedures.
- Gathers background material and develops speeches/testimony on a wide range of Operations subjects for the DED's presentation to service organizations, congressional staff, and other stakeholders. Also, prepares and/or coordinates responses to inquiries from Congressional members, VSOs, and other stakeholders.
- Maintains continued awareness of overall activities in order to evaluate effectiveness and to keep the DED informed and recommends actions to strengthen operating and administrative policies and procedures, and/or to advise staff elements of the Director on priority matters of concern. Takes final action in connection with the application of managerial and administrative functions that are within delegated authority. Incumbent is required to be aware constantly of the overall Policy and Procedures programs and to recognize those areas with which the DED should not be burdened, what actions and commitments should be made without reference to them and what matters require his/her counsel or decisions before arriving at final conclusions.
- Works closely with leadership on analysis and interpretation of workload and other data for appropriate resource allocation which requires the incumbent to be knowledgeable about Policy and Procedures.
- Participates in risk management including developing, testing, monitoring, documentation, and corrective action.
Work Schedule: Full time, Monday through Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm
Compressed/Flexible: Not available
Telework: 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#: Executive Assistant; PD39126A
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:11/06/2026.
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-14 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-13 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-14 or higher and the promotion potential of your current position must be at least GS-14.
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 as described below:
GS-14 Grade Level:
- Specialized Experience must include: Applicants must have one (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-13) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.
- Specialized Experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position(s), and that is typically IN OR RELATED TO the work of the position to be filled. Specialized Experience is defined as experience demonstrating all of the following: The applicant must document knowledge of program management pertaining to planning, development and execution of worldwide program and be able to prepare various documents including program justifications.
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: This work at this level is primarily sedentary.
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 There is no education substitution for GS-14.
Requirements
As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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.
Additional Conditions of Employment are as follows:
- You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
- Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
- You may be required to serve a probationary or trial period
- 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 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.
How you will be evaluated IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position.
You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):
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- Attention to Detail
- Customer Service
- Decision Making
- Flexibility
- Influencing/Negotiating
- Integrity/Honesty
- Interpersonal Skills
- Learning
- Reasoning
- Self-Management
- Stress Tolerance
- Teamwork
- Advisory - Demonstrated ability to advise, provide managerial advice, and serve as a technical advisor to senior-level executives.
- Knowledge of Laws, Regulations, and Policies - Knowledge of applicable laws, regulations, policies and procedures in order to conduct studies, briefings, and prepare written communications to improve the operation of these programs.
- Oversight - Ability to provide oversight responsibilities that require the direction and integration of work through various sources of communication.
- Written Communication - Skill in preparing briefing papers and presentations for Congressional and internal/external stakeholders.
- Problem Solving - Demonstrated ability to identify problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.
- Organizational Skills - Well-developed organizational skills including ability to maintain office records and communication files.
Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.
To preview the application questionnaire, click the following link:https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13107739
The USA Hire Assessments includes a cut score based on the minimum level of required proficiency in these critical general competencies. You must meet or exceed the cut score to be considered. You will not be considered for the position if you score below the cut score or fail to complete the assessment.
Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or an interview.
Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.How to apply Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply and be considered for this position, you must complete all required questionnaires, assessments and submit all required documentation as specified in the How to Apply and Required Documents section.
The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. (EST) on 11/06/2026 to receive consideration. It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date.
The application process is as follows:
- Click the Apply Online button.
- Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation.
- Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on the announcement closing date.
- If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice.
- Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials.
- Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended.
- Set aside about two (2) hours to take the USA Hire Assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link.
- Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused.
Visit the USA Hire Applicant Resource Center for practice assessments and assessment preparation resources at https://support-usahire.opm.gov/hc/en-us.To update your application, including supporting documentation: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed.
To view the announcement status or your application status: Visit https://help.usajobs.gov/how-to/application/status. Your application status page is where you can view your application status, USA Hire assessment completion status, and review your notifications sent by the hiring agency regarding your application.
Beginning September 27, 2025, Federal agencies will only accept resumes up to two pages in length to comply with the Merit Hiring Plan. Resumes longer than two pages will result in ineligibility for further consideration for the position. USAJOBS will not allow you to upload or build resumes longer than two pages, and you will need to update the resumes in your profile before applying for a job. Resumes should include information relevant to the knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies of the position to which you are applying. VA is unable to make assumptions about qualifications if not clearly listed.
Resumes must be legible so they can be reviewed for eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement.Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. We recommend using a sans-serif font size like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans. Make your page margins 0.5 inches. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume. The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started.
Helpful Hints for Creating a Two-Page Resume:
- Prioritize most relevant and recent experience
- Use concise, results focused language
- Align language from the job announcement
- Focus on demonstrating skills and competencies
- Remove outdated or unrelated experience
- Use the USAJOBS resume builder
Additional guidance on this new requirement and resume building tools can be found at:
- USA Jobs Help Center - Resume Page Limit
- Applicant Guidance on the Two-Page Resume Limit
Other information VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.
The 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 your current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified (have a final rating of 85 or more) for this vacancy. 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/.
Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position.
It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.
This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.
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 (TJO). Please visit the Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP), https://www.va.gov/EMPLOYEE/documents/The-Fair-Chance-to-Compete-Act.pdf
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: Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. (https://appsupport-usastaffing.opm.gov/hc/en-us/sections/45063131363475-Reasonable-Accommodation-Information)
For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.