Supervisory Public Affairs Specialist

Summary
This position is the Facility Communications Officer/Public Affairs Officer (CO/PAO). Located in the Office of the Director for the St. Cloud VA Health Care System (STCVAHCS), the officer directs the facility Office of Communications, which provides public affairs advising and support services to facility staff and leadership, and serves as the Staff Advisor and Subject Matter Expert for all communications – public affairs and related issues and functions.

Qualifications
To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the announcement closing date of 05/11/2026. 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. For a GS‑13 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS‑12. 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. In this instance you must provide an additional SF‑50 that clearly demonstrates one‑year time‑in‑grade.

NOTE: Time‑In‑Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

Specialized Experience

One (1) year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS‑12 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Managing an organization's communication and public affairs program; developing long‑ and short‑term goals for a facility communications and public affairs program; advising executive leadership on cohesive branding and marketing strategies; developing and evaluating communication and outreach strategies;

Managing a facility's Internet and intranet content, including maintenance of public websites, email marketing, social media, and other digital public information platforms;

Supporting media needs and requests from facility education programs, training and instructional videos, publicity, marketing, and information materials;

Coordinating conferences, special events, and press releases; establishing and maintaining working relationships with the media, congressional and legislative representatives, Veterans Service Organizations, and stakeholders;

Leading or supervising a facility's communications staff, setting annual plans and priorities, and preparing work schedules.

Competencies

Administration and Management

Customer Service

Multimedia Technologies

Oral Communication

Writing

Preferred Experience

Strong written and verbal communication skills.

Ability to build coalitions with internal and external stakeholders.

Knowledge of Department of Veterans Affairs public relations policy, media relations, and congressional liaison.

Physical Requirements
Work is generally sedentary but may require walking, standing, bending, carrying/traveling with items such as books and a portable laptop.

Work Environment
Work is usually performed in an office environment or meeting rooms. Travel involves the normal risks and discomforts of automobile, bus, rail, or air transportation.

Duties

Consult with executive leadership to advise, plan, coordinate, and facilitate effective communications activities, programs, and policies.

Develop communication plans and implementation strategies that ensure communications are presented clearly, concisely, persuasively, and systematically in a timely manner.

Manage the facility public affairs program.

Establish short‑ and long‑term goals and objectives for facility communications and public affairs programs.

Ensure consistent messaging to Veterans, employees, and the public.

Develop and evaluate communication and outreach strategies incorporating a wide variety of media.

Manage facility Internet and intranet content, including maintenance of public websites, email marketing systems, and all social media and digital public email marketing systems.

Collaborate with subject matter experts (SMEs) to plan communication campaigns.

Coordinate news conferences, special media events, press releases, and facilitate feature stories.

Establish and maintain effective working relationships with members of the media, congressional and legislative representatives, Veterans Service Organizations, and other specialized groups.

Supervise the facility's Office of Communications staff.

Represent the facility in public and private forums and events, including federal, state, and local government agencies, private organizations, educational institutions, and other entities.

Perform related duties as assigned.

Work Schedule
Monday through Friday, 8:00 am – 4:30 pm. Compressed/Flexible: Not Authorized. Telework: Not Authorized. Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Relocation and Incentives
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized. Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized.

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