Summary
This position is located within the Director's Office at the Veterans Affairs (VA) Central Iowa Health Care System in Des Moines - Iowa. You will serve as spokesperson for the Medical Center - and as such is the point of contact for local and national media; is the liaison for veterans' service organizations - congressional staffs - community groups - professional organizations - etc.
Qualifications
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Possess one (1) year of specialized experience equipped with the knowledge - skills - and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the Public Affairs Specialist position. To be creditable - this experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-11 level in the Federal service. Specialized experience includes: working experience in a public affairs office performing duties such as writing news releases - blogs - feature stories - speeches - annual reports - information packets - media kits - fact sheets - and produces various graphic materials such as newsletters - fliers - and brochures and other publications for a large health care system or complex organization; planning - developing and producing a variety of materials and publications including print - visual - Web-based - multimedia - and video materials to convey information about a health care organization or complex organization to a variety of stakeholders; evaluating information from a variety of sources and provides feedback to senior management on public affairs trends and stakeholder attitudes to assess program effectiveness and make improvements; serving as an agency spokesperson - including responding in writing and orally to questions about or criticisms of the agency's activities or policies and explaining point of view of the agency. (This experience must be documented in your resume.) Preferred Experience: Prior Public Affairs and/or media experience. Physical Requirements: Work is generally sedentary with walking required during visits and tours of the Medical Center. Flexibility is required to accommodate events and activities occurring in other than normal duty hours. Mobility is required in terms of staging and assisting staff with equipment and other required materials. Work Environment: The work environment involves normal everyday risks and discomforts of office settings. The work area is lighted - heated and ventilated. Coordination and participation in meetings and other community relations activities requires presence in a variety of in-house and off-station areas and facilities. Has access to office automation and computer equipment. 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/.
Duties
- ***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION - YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION*** Duties can include but are not limited to the following: Conducts the public affairs program for tile Medical Center with responsibility for developing and providing staff direction involving all public information - internal communications - Veterans Service Officer (VSO) liaison - and community relations activities
- Represents the Medical Center Director - participating at public - civic or social events to improve perception of the Medical Center as a valued part of the medical profession - government and community
- Develops reports along with recommendations to the Medical Center Director including implementation and monitoring strategies
- Responsibilities for the development - coordination - implementation and maintenance of public information and community relations programs that are designed to promote understanding - confidence and goodwill between the Medical Center - surrounding communities - individuals - volunteers and groups who are interested in and affected by the Veterans Affairs (VA)
- Creates presentations to audiences with opposing points of view or erroneous understanding of Medical Center position to achieve a more balanced perception
- Plans - initiates and implements comprehensive public affairs activities to enhance the understanding of the Medical Center's programs among the general public and specialized groups and organizations
- Performs other duties as assigned
- Work Schedule: Monday through Friday - 7:30am to 4:00pm Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Telework: This position may be authorized for Ad-Hoc telework
- Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.
