USPSC Program Operations Specialist

SOLICITATION NUMBER: 720BHA21R00072 **

ISSUANCE DATE: July 21, 2021**

CLOSING DATE AND TIME: August 18, 2021, 12:00 P.M. Eastern Time

SUBJECT: Solicitation for U.S. Personal Service Contractor (USPSC)

Dear Prospective Offerors:

The United States Government (USG), represented by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Africa (OA) is seeking offers from qualified U.S. citizens to provide personal service as a Program Operations Specialist (POS) under a United States Personal Services Contract (USPSC), as described in the solicitation.

Submittals must be in accordance with the attached information at the place and time specified. Offerors interested in applying for this position MUST submit the following materials:

1. Complete resume. In order to fully evaluate your offer, your resume must include:

(a) Paid and non-paid experience, job title, location(s), dates held (month/year), and hours worked per week for each position. Any experience that does not include dates (month/year), locations, and hours per week will not be counted towards meeting the solicitation requirements.

(b) Specific duties performed that fully detail the level and complexity of the work.

(c) Education and any other qualifications including job-related training courses, job-related skills, or job-related honors, awards or accomplishments. Failure to identify an academic discipline will result in disqualification.

(d) U.S. Citizenship

(e) Optional: How did you hear about this opportunity? (beta.SAM.gov, BHA Jobs, Career Fair, etc.).

Your resume must contain sufficient information to make a valid determination that you fully meet the experience requirements as stated in this solicitation for each grade level(s) for which you are applying. This information must be clearly identified in your resume. Failure to provide information sufficient to determine your qualifications for the position will result in loss of full consideration.

2. USPSC Offeror form AID 309-2. Offerors are required to complete sections A through I. This form must be physically signed. Electronic signatures will not be accepted. AID 309-2 is available at http://www.usaid.gov/forms. **

NOTE REGARDING DATA UNIVERSAL NUMBERING SYSTEM (DUNS) NUMBERS

AND THE SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT

All USPSCs with a place of performance in the United States are required to have a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number and be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) database prior to receiving an award. You will be disqualified if you either fail to comply with this requirement or if your name appears on the excluded parties list. The selectee will be provided with guidance regarding this registration.

NOTE: As of March 28, 2018, all new SAM.gov entity registrations will now require a signed notarized letter identifying the authorized Entity administrator for the entity associated with the DUNS number. Additional information on the format of the notarized letter and where to submit can be found via the below Federal Service Desk link:

https://www.fsd.gov/fsd-gov/answer.do?sysparm_kbid=d2e67885db0d5f00b3257d321f96194b&

sysparm_search=kb0013183

Offerors can expect to receive a confirmation email when offer materials have been received. Offerors should retain for their records copies of all enclosures which accompany their offers. Your complete resume must be emailed to:

OA Recruitment Team

E-Mail Address: BHA.AfricaRecruitment@usaid.gov

Website: www.BHAjobs.net

Any questions on this solicitation may be directed to the OA Recruitment Team via the information provided above.

Sincerely,

Sonja Stroud-Gooden

Contracting Officer

I. GENERAL INFORMATION

1. SOLICITATION NO.: 720BHA21R00072

2. ISSUANCE DATE: July 21, 2021

3. CLOSING DATE AND TIME FOR RECEIPT OF OFFERS: August 18, 2021, 12:00 P.M. Eastern Time

4. POINT OF CONTACT: Africa Recruitment Team, BHA.AfricaRecruitment@usaid.gov

5. POSITION TITLE: Program Operations Specialist (Multiple Positions)

6. MARKET VALUE: $72,750 - $94,581 equivalent to GS-11 (includes locality pay)

The initial grade level of this position will be the equivalent of a GS-11 with the opportunity for advancement to the GS-12 equivalent after at least two years at the GS-11 level, if the individual receives a recommendation from the supervisor for advancement along with an Exceeds Fully Successful performance evaluation. Advancement to the GS-12 level is not guaranteed.

Salaries over and above the top of the pay range will not be entertained or negotiated.

If the position is for a Washington based PSC, offerors who live outside the Washington, D.C. area will be considered for employment, but no relocation expenses will be reimbursed.

7. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: Five (5) years.

8. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE: Washington, D.C.

9. ELIGIBLE OFFERORS: U.S. Citizens

10. SECURITY LEVEL REQUIRED: Ability to obtain and maintain a Secret up to Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information level clearance as provided by USAID.

11. STATEMENT OF DUTIES

POSITION DESCRIPTION

BACKGROUND

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) is responsible for facilitating and coordinating U.S. Government (USG) humanitarian assistance overseas in response to all types of international disasters, including slow-onset disasters such as droughts or famine, natural disasters such as earthquakes or floods, or man-made disasters such as conflict or war. BHA is responsible for planning, coordinating, developing, achieving, monitoring, and evaluating international humanitarian assistance falling into two conceptual areas:

● Humanitarian Response activities comprise needs-based humanitarian assistance provided to save lives, alleviate suffering, and protect human dignity during and in the aftermath of emergencies. Humanitarian assistance is grounded in humanitarian principles and is directed toward the most vulnerable populations.

● Early Recovery, Risk Reduction, and Resilience (ER4) activities will set the initial foundations for longer-term recovery as appropriate, and will work in close conjunction with humanitarian assistance. Early recovery is an approach that supports communities impacted by crises to protect and restore basic systems and service delivery. Early recovery builds on humanitarian response efforts and establishes the initial foundations of long-term recovery. Early recovery activities are implemented for a specified, appropriate timeframe that assists populations recovering from an identifiable shock. Risk reduction is the prevention of new and reduction of existing disaster risk and management of residual risk, which contributes to strengthening resilience and to the achievement of sustainable development. Resilience is the ability of people, households, communities, countries, and systems to mitigate, adapt to, and recover from shocks and stresses in a manner that reduces chronic vulnerability and facilitates inclusive growth.

BHA has seven offices, as follows:

The Bureau’s three geographic offices are: (1) Office of Africa; (2) Office of Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean; and (3) the Office of the Middle East, North Africa and Europe. Each geographic office designs, provides, and assesses humanitarian assistance for their respective regions, including assistance related to responding to, recovering from, and reducing the risk of man-made and natural disasters, while linking with other USAID investments that build resilience.

The Office of Global Policy, Partnerships, Programs, and Communications (G3PC) shapes and influences USAID’s role within the international humanitarian system; leads engagement on a range of policy, programmatic, and operational issues; and positions the Agency to influence collective response to emergency needs across the globe.

The Office of Technical and Program Quality (TPQ) leads the Bureau's efforts to provide high-quality programmatic and technical leadership, oversight, and guidance. In addition, TPQ leads the Bureau’s external engagement with academia and coordinates research to advance the effectiveness, efficiency, and impact of humanitarian and multi-year programming.

The Office of Humanitarian Business and Management Operations (HBMO) is responsible for maintaining 24/7 operability by providing leadership, planning, quality assurance, technical expertise, and process management. HBMO ensures effective stewardship of the Bureau’s support services, including workforce planning, staffing, financial management, internal controls, facilities operations and infrastructure.

The Office of Field and Response Operations (FARO) leads and manages operational assistance and the purchase and delivery of goods and services in response to declared foreign disasters and international humanitarian needs in key functional areas, including supply-chain management, procurement, logistics, oversight, and operational coordination with the U.S. military.

INTRODUCTION

BHA is committed to fostering an equitable and inclusive workplace with a diverse workforce. BHA encourages qualified candidates of all races/ethnicities, genders, cultural backgrounds, abilities, and socioeconomic statuses to apply.

The Office of Africa designs, provides, and assesses humanitarian assistance, including assistance related to responding to, recovering from, and reducing the risk of man-made and natural disasters, while linking with other USAID investments that build resilience. To achieve these objectives, humanitarian experts based overseas coordinate with local authorities and USAID Missions, while humanitarian experts based in Washington coordinate with USAID Regional and Pillar Bureaus. The Office of Africa consists of five (5) geographic divisions: East Africa; Central Africa; Sudans; West Africa; and Southern Africa. These divisions are responsible for the provision of emergency humanitarian assistance through grants and cooperative agreements to non-governmental organizations (NGOs); international organizations (IOs) including United Nations (UN) agencies; and to other partners to ensure the implementation and delivery of this assistance. These divisions also oversee BHA Office of Africa’s nonresponse efforts in disaster risk reduction (DRR), resilience, and humanitarian transition.**

OBJECTIVE

BHA requires the services of Program Operations Specialists to provide administrative, budgeting, writing, and organizational support to assist the Africa Senior Leadership Team (ASLT) in providing strategic direction, operational guidance, and administrative support to the division.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The Program Operations Specialists will be hired at and serve at the GS-11 level with the opportunity for advancement to the GS-12 level after at least two (2) years of service and a performance rating that exceeds fully successful. In order to be considered for advancement to the GS-12 level, the USPSC must also meet the minimum education and experience requirements as described below. Neither advancement nor extension of the contract is guaranteed.

At the GS-11 Equivalent:

● Assist the Management and Integration Team (MIT) with executive secretariat functions.

● Provide administrative support to the MIT and other teams working on the division’s vision and accompanying work plan.

● Assist the Team Leader or Division Chief in all staffing functions to include approvals, recruitment, tracking and analysis, and onboarding.

● Assist the Deputy Office Director with management of the overall division budget to include collating information on routine and ad-hoc budget planning scenario taskers and related narrative.

● Provide administrative support to the Deputy Office Director for special projects and office-wide initiatives.

● Train in basic program functions and backstop the program teams, including functions such as:

○ Monitor incipient disasters, international disaster response plans and efforts, and major humanitarian issues and challenges in the area of responsibility through a wide range of USG and international sources.

o Review and monitor national DRR efforts and plans in the area of responsibility in collaboration with regional teams.

o Maintain regular contact with BHA field representatives and the BHA Regional Offices to maintain current triangulated understanding of existing and impending humanitarian crises in the area of responsibility.

● Serve as a primary point of contact/specialist in the area of responsibility for BHA Senior Leadership Team (SLT).

● Develop and maintain a detailed understanding of BHA’s program strategy and the implementation of the resulting awards.

● Support regional team efforts to develop appropriate programmatic strategies for disaster responses and disaster risk reduction efforts in the area of responsibility.

● Provide written and oral responses to requests for information on BHA’s activities in the area of responsibility for a wide range of USG and public audiences to include briefing papers, memorandums, talking points, formal presentations, and informal briefings.

● Review and process all award documentation according to BHA’s Emergency Application Guidelines, USAID Automated Directives Systems (ADS), and Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) including coordinating multi-unit participation and ensuring timely award approval.

● Represent BHA in meetings with individual partners discussing programmatic priorities, objectives, progress, results, and challenges.

● Attend bureau-wide coordination meetings as BHA’s primary point of contact (POC) in the area of responsibility.

● Participate in other interagency and partner-wide meetings as assigned by the Team Leader, Division Chief, Deputy Office Director or Office Director.

General Duties:

● Become certified and serve as an Agreement Officer’s Representative/Contracting Officer’s Representative (AOR/COR), as assigned. The AOR/COR provides financial and programmatic oversight of all aspects of managing the agreement or contract; this includes but is not limited to reviewing invoices, requests for approvals, program/project deliverables (i.e. work plans, annual reports, month status reports), travel requests, key personnel requests, and financial/budget reports. They are responsible for drafting and submitting the annual contractor performance evaluation in the Contract/Assistance Performance Assessment Review System (CPARS/APARS). They prepare and review contract/assistance modifications documentation and assist the Contracting/Agreement Officer to ensure performance is compliant with the terms and conditions of the contract/agreement, the FAR, and USAID policy. AOR/CORs are responsible for all related requirements in the COR designation letter and the AOR designation letter.

● May serve, as needed, on teams which may require immediate (within 24 hours) deployment in a different country for an extended period of time; and

● As needed, may serve on temporary detail within the office. Duties performed while on detail will be aligned with the Team’s existing duties and responsibilities and will be directly related to the scope of work provided.

● Become certified and serve in administrative support and relevant functional positions for Response Management Teams (RMTs) and Disaster Assistance Response Teams (DARTs) as needed such as Communications and Records Coordinator (CRC) and Program Officer (PO).

At the GS-12 Equivalent: *(If the PSC is promoted during contract performance)*

Duties include the following functions in addition to those listed at the GS-11 level above.**

● Provide administrative support to the ASLT including but not limited to task prioritization, scheduling, and information coordination.

● Assist MIT with executive secretariat functions for the division to include problem solving challenges that may arise.

● Provide administrative support to MIT and other teams working on the division’s vision and accompanying work plan to include tracking and analyzing overall division progress towards goals and objectives.

● With Deputy Office Director’s guidance, take the lead for the Office of Africa in all staffing functions to include approvals, recruitment, tracking and analysis.

● With Deputy Office Director’s guidance, facilitate the management of the overall division’s budget to include clarifying routine and ad-hoc budget planning scenario taskers, working to develop guidance and processes for input and review from leadership, reviewing and providing feedback on results.

● Provide both administrative support and independently implement division and office-wide special projects and initiatives.

● Stay current on major changes in program functions and backstop the program teams at the Humanitarian Assistance Officer (HAO) level. Such as:

o Participate actively in the development of programmatic strategies for technical sectors.

o Ensure implications of policy decisions at BHA, USAID, and interagency levels on the portfolio are understood by the OA Senior Leadership Team (ASLT).

o Independently manage all aspects of award management throughout the award cycle.

o Recommend approaches to, write and deliver integrated priority messages in written and oral responses to requests for information on BHA’s activities in the area of responsibility for a wide range of USG and public audiences to include: briefing papers, memorandums, talking points, fact sheets, formal presentations, and informal briefings.

o Represent BHA in meetings with individual partners, interagency and partner-wide meetings as assigned by the Team Leader.

o Represent BHA in coordination meetings in the area of responsibility as appropriate.

o With guidance from the Team Leader, participate in bureau-wide humanitarian coordination meetings.

General Duties:

● Become certified and serve as an AOR/COR, as assigned. The AOR/COR provides financial and programmatic oversight of all aspects of managing the agreement or contract; this includes but is not limited to reviewing invoices, requests for approvals, program/project deliverables (i.e. work plans, annual reports, month status reports), travel requests, key personnel requests, and financial/budget reports. They are responsible for drafting and submitting the annual contractor performance evaluation in Contract/Assistance Performance Assessment Review System. They prepare and review contract/assistance modifications documentation and assist the Contracting/Agreement Officer to ensure performance is compliant with the terms and conditions of the contract/agreement, the FAR, and USAID policy. AOR/CORs are responsible for all related requirements in the COR designation letter and the AOR designation letter.

● May serve, as needed, on teams which may require immediate (within 24 hours) deployment in a different country for an extended period of time.

● As needed, may serve on temporary detail within the office. Duties performed while on detail will be aligned with the Team’s existing duties and responsibilities and will be directly related to the scope of work provided.

● Become certified and serve in administrative support and relevant functional positions for RMTs and DARTs as needed such as CRC and PO.

SUPERVISORY RELATIONSHIP:

The USPSC will take direction from and report to the assigned Team Leader or his/her designee.

SUPERVISORY CONTROLS:

The supervisory controls will shift throughout the contract based on the USPSC’s place in the career ladder.

At the GS-11 Equivalent:

Supervisor sets overall objectives and resources available and works with the USPSC to develop deadlines, work to be done and methodology. The USPSC is responsible for carrying out assignments, and consults with the supervisor for policy interpretations.

At the GS-12 Equivalent:

Supervisor sets overall objectives and resources available. The USPSC consults with the supervisor to develop deadlines, projects and work to be done. The USPSC is responsible for planning and carrying out assignments. The USPSC is responsible for planning approaches or methodology to be used in carrying out assignments.

12. PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The work is generally sedentary and does not pose undue physical demands. During deployment on DARTs (if required), and during site visits, there may be some additional physical exertion including long periods of standing, walking over rough terrain, or carrying of moderately heavy items (less than 50 pounds).

13. WORK ENVIRONMENT

Work is primarily performed in an office setting. During deployment on DARTs (if required), and during site visits, the work may additionally involve special safety and/or security precautions, wearing of protective equipment, and exposure to severe weather conditions.

14. START DATE: Immediately, once necessary clearances are obtained.

II. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION

EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION

(Determines basic eligibility for the position. Offerors who do not meet all of the education and experience factors are considered NOT qualified for the position.)

For the GS-11 Equivalent Level

Bachelor’s degree in any discipline, and at least three (3) years of progressively responsible work experience in an office setting, to include administrative, operations, and writing responsibilities.

OR

Master’s degree in any discipline and at least two (2) years of progressively responsible work experience in an office setting, to include administrative, operations, and writing responsibilities.

For the GS-12 Equivalent Level

Bachelor’s degree in any discipline, and at least five (5) years of progressively responsible work experience in an office setting, to include administrative, operations, and writing responsibilities.

OR

Master’s degree in any discipline, and at least four (4) years of progressively responsible work experience in an office setting, to include administrative, operations, and writing responsibilities.

III. EVALUATION AND SELECTION FACTORS

The Government may award a contract without discussions with offerors in accordance with FAR 52.215-1. The CO reserves the right at any point in the evaluation process to establish a competitive range of offerors with whom negotiations will be conducted pursuant to FAR 15.306(c). In accordance with FAR 52.215-1, if the CO determines that the number of offers that would otherwise be in the competitive range exceeds the number at which an efficient competition can be conducted, the CO may limit the number of offerors in the competitive range to the greatest number that will permit an efficient competition among the most highly rated offers. FAR provisions of this solicitation are available at https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far.

SELECTION FACTORS

(Determines basic eligibility for the position. Offerors who do not meet all of the selection factors are considered NOT qualified for the position.)

● Offeror is a U.S. Citizen.

● Complete resume submitted. See cover page for resume requirements. Experience that cannot be quantified will not be counted towards meeting the solicitation requirements.

● USPSC Offeror form AID 309-2. Offerors are required to complete sections A through I. This form must be physically signed. Electronic signatures will not be accepted.

● Ability to obtain and maintain a Secret up to Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information level clearance as provided by USAID.

● Ability to obtain and maintain a Department of State medical clearance. **

● Must not appear as an excluded party in the System for Award Management (SAM.gov).**

● Satisfactory verification of academic credentials**

OFFEROR RATING SYSTEM

The offeror rating system factors are used to determine the competitive ranking of qualified offerors in comparison to other offerors. Offerors must demonstrate the rating factors outlined below within their resume, as they are evaluated strictly by the information provided. The evaluation of writing tests will also take into consideration the quality of written responses. Aspects of written responses including, but not limited to typos, grammatical errors, spelling errors, and incomplete sentences will be factored into the evaluation process. The rating factors are as follows:

Professional Experience (40 Points)

● Demonstrated skills and experience with integration or operational responsibilities for an office or organization such as: personnel support tasks, data collection, responding to ad hoc requests, tracking communications, disseminating communications, administrative on-boarding of staff, supporting staff recruitment, and supporting knowledge management systems.

● Demonstrated ability to implement a range of administrative tasks such as: scheduling, preparing meeting notes, making travel arrangements, time and attendance, creating/updating trackers, and drafting communications.

● Demonstrated experience working within teams.

● Demonstrated verbal and written communication skills in communicating to groups across a range of meeting types and range of participants.

Interview Performance (40 points)

Timed Writing Test (10 points)

Satisfactory Professional Reference Checks (10 points)

Total Possible Points: 100

BASIS OF RATING: Offerors who meet the Education/Experience requirements and Selection Factors will be further evaluated in accordance with the Offeror Rating System. Those offerors determined to be competitively ranked may also be evaluated on interview performance and satisfactory professional reference checks.

Offerors are required to address each factor of the Offeror Rating System in their resume, describing specifically and accurately what experience, training, education and/or awards they have received as it pertains to each factor. Be sure to include your name and the announcement number at the top of each additional page. Failure to address the selection factors and/or Offeror Rating System factors may result in not receiving credit for all pertinent experience, education, training and/or awards.

The most qualified offerors may be interviewed and required to provide a writing sample. BHA will not pay for any expenses associated with the interviews. Professional references and academic credentials will be evaluated for offerors being considered for selection. Note: Please be advised that references may be obtained independently from other sources in addition to the ones provided by an offeror. BHA reserves the right to select additional offerors if vacancies become available during future phase of the selection process.

Via email: BHA.AfricaRecruitment@usaid.gov