Financial Analyst

Summary This position is located in the Black Hills VA Health Care System (VISN 23), Ft. Meade, SD. The Financial Analyst serves within the Finance Service Line. Duties are performed in a manner that promotes adherence to Employee Compensation-related federal laws and regulations and established VA Financial Policies, Procedures and Best Practices, outstanding customer service, and the maintenance of an environment committed to assisting the Health Care System's ongoing mission. Responsibilities Supports the Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Assistant Financial Officer (AFO) and the Customer Service supervisor to provide accurate and timely compensation for all Healthcare System employees. Investigates employee compensation-related errors and/or anomalies through analysis of VA Financial Management and Human Resources automated systems to correct issues identified through customer service requests or internal audit discovery. Reviews and reconciles various types of employee compensation and leave transactions involving General Schedule (GS), Wage Grade (WG), VM, VN, Title 5, Title 5 Hybrids, Title 38, Title 38 Hybrids, Senior Executive Service (SES), Veterans Canteen Service (VCS), and Fee Basis Providers. Uses the following components of the VA financial management system: Defense Civilian Payroll System (DCPS) -The payroll processing system for the 26,000 VA Midwest Healthcare System employees, operated by the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DF AS). The analyst uses DCPS as the payroll system of record to research all payroll related issues and cases. Remedy - DF AS application used by the analyst to report and track escalation cases from start to finish. VA Time and Attendance System (VATAS) - System used by 26,000 VA Midwest Healthcare System employees to record and process work hours and leave requests for payroll processing. Analysts use VATAS to research cases submitted by Healthcare System employees; and run reports to correct potential payroll problems prior to transmission of the timecard. ThinClient/EOS/RSD/PAID - System used to access payroll reports. HR-Smart - System for 26,000 VA Midwest Healthcare System employees and used to provide HR updates to DCPS. Financial Management System (FMS)- Department of Treasury accounting system used to manage the VA Midwest Healthcare Network $5 billion dollar budget used by the analysts to research suspense account for payroll related actions from DF AS collections and stations deposits. Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) Web - TSP application used by the analysts to request TSP history records for further research. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30am - 4:00pm Telework: 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 is authorized for telework, six(6) or more days per pay period. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Financial Analyst/PD23540A Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Bargaining Unit: Yes, AFGE/1272 The VA Midwest Health Care Network advocates for a Whole Health System of care in each of the Medical Centers. This is an approach to healthcare that empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and live their lives to the fullest. As an employee operating in a Whole Health System of care, you will operate in a model with three core elements, seeking to create a personalized health plan for each Veteran. This is done in the context of healing relationships and healing environments and a connection back to the Veteran's community. This aligns with the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Mission Statement to Honor America's Veterans by providing exceptional health care that improves their health and well-being. Requirements Conditions of Employment 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 period Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 06/20/2024. 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-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. 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. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one (1) year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-07 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: experience managing pay and leave entitlements in accordance with United States Code Title 5 and Title 38 (physicians and nurses) which covers pay systems, salary and wages, pay administration, recruitment, relocation, and retention incentives, student loan repayments, leave administration, and work schedules; experience with researching public laws and legal actions impacting payroll; experience with a variety of financial services such as applications, procedures, hierarchy of support, network systems, communications, and equipment to provide advice and assistance to customers; and experience with various program analysis techniques to research and evaluate proposed applications or programs. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or an L.B. or J.D., if related, such as business, finance, accounting, or other fields closely related to the position. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED) OR, Combining Education and Experience: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and education beyond one (1) year of graduate level education. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED). NOTE: One (1) year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement. Preferred Experience: Veterans Affairs Payroll Experience. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Attention to Detail Compensation Customer Service Problem Solving 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. NOTE: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination. Work Environment: The work is performed in a typical office/call center environment, an area of moderate noise, one that is well lighted and air-conditioned. The position involves permanent tours of duty involving day and evening tours of duty. 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 The Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal/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 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/. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.