Secretary (Office Automation)

About the role

This position is located in the VA Medical Center in Salem, VA, in the Executive Office of the Associate Director. The secretary provides executive level administrative and secretarial services to the supervisor and provides direction to medical center clerical and administrative staff.

Responsibilities

• Exercises control over supervisor's appointments with complete authority for commitments of time; establishing priorities at own discretion; setting up, rearranging, and when necessary, coordinating meetings with staff offices;
• Maintains calendar of future events for up to the next 12 months, on monthly, bimonthly, and weekly basis, scheduling briefings and updating the calendar as required;
• Plans conferences, major inspections, visits by high ranking officials and other information that may have an impact on scheduling appointments and activities for the supervisor are added as information is received from various sources;
• Tracks Medical Center memoranda;
• Ensures correspondence conforms to regulations and special policies of the Medical Center;
• Establishes Executive Office secretarial policies and procedures and provides guidance for medical center clerical staff;
• Receives telephone calls and greets visitors to the office;
• Makes travel arrangements for travel, meetings, and community activities;
• Maintains timecards;
• Takes and transcribes personal and telephone conversations;
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Requirements

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:45 am until 4:30 pm. Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized

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) - See "Required Documents" below for details.

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;
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

• Typing Proficiency: This position requires the skills of a qualified typist. In addition to meeting the experience and/or education requirements, you must be able to type at least 40 words per minute.
• In addition to meeting the Typing Experience, to qualify for this position at the GS-8 level, you must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-7) in the federal service that has given you the particular knowledge, skills and abilities required to successfully perform the duties of this position, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. Specialized experience includes providing administrative support to an organization and performing a variety of clerical and administrative duties; compose a range of communication/correspondence; knowledge of medical terminology; coordinating travel; serving as a liaison with management and support staff; and utilizing office automation software such as Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint and Outlook).
• 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.
• Education: There is no educational substitution at this grade level.