Sr. Acquisition & Assistance Specialist

XLA has provided institutional support services to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) for over twenty years.  XLA has a new requirement for someone with senior-level Acquisition and Assistance (A&A) Specialist or Contracting Officer-level experience to support the Acquisition Office at the USAID Southern Africa Regional Mission under an existing contract. This will primarily be a remote position starting in February 2021. 

Responsibilities may include but would not be limited to:

• Providing senior-level advisory support, mentoring and guiding the activities of the locally hired staff;
• Facilitating the procurement process through active participation in the procurement planning and administration of contracts and grants, working closely with the technical, program, and administrative offices, as well as contractors and grantees;
• Reviewing acquisition or assistance package documents to ensure completion in preparation for final review and approval by the USAID Contracting/Agreement Officer.  Package documents may include any required documentation that supports the solicitation, evaluation, award, and administration of contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, interagency agreements, awards to public international organizations, and all amendments/modifications.

Note: As a contractor, the successful candidate will not be able to perform inherently governmental functions such as determining what supplies or services are to be acquired by the Government, participating as a voting member on any source selection boards, awarding or terminating contracts, etc.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field, Master's degree preferred;
• At least 10 years relevant experience including prior experience at the Senior A&A Specialist or Contracting Officer level at a USAID Mission:
• Prior experience working at a USAID Mission in the Southern Africa region would be a plus;
• Fully knowledgeable about A&A systems and processes and able to perform tasks independently with little or no direction provided:
• Demonstrated ability to work remotely in a collaborative team environment;
• Outstanding communications skills including interpersonal communications and strong writing skills;
• Existing or recent Facilities Access Clearance or higher preferred;
• Some international travel to the Southern Africa region may be required.

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