Please ensure you review the announcement in its entirety for required skills, documents and eligibility. The Lead Pharmacy Technician exercises team leader authorities over staff members. They participate in the management of workflow, ensuring the work assignments of assigned staff are carried out according to policies and procedures. The incumbent must be proficient in spoken and written English, maintain good working relationships and coordinate with internal and external customers. Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. Education or Experience: A high school diploma or equivalent; or at least 3 months experience. Certification: Certification by the National Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) is required at grades GS-6 and above. Loss of Credential: An employee in this occupation who fails to obtain licensure/certification/registration within the required time frame, or who fails to maintain the required licensure/certification/ registration must be removed from the occupation, which may also result in termination of employment. For occupations which require an active credential (licensure/certification/registration) at all grade levels, at the discretion of the appointing official, an employee may be reassigned to another occupation for which he/she qualifies if a placement opportunity exists. For occupations which require an active credential (licensure/certification/registration) in assignments above the full-performance level only, at the discretion of the appointing official, an employee may remain at an appropriate lower grade level in the occupation when both of the following apply: the credential is not a requirement and a placement opportunity exists" Grandfathering Provision: The following is the standard grandfathering policy for all Title 38 hybrid qualification standards. Some of these provisions may not apply to this occupation. Please carefully review the qualification standard to determine the specific education and/or licensure / certification / registration requirements that apply to this occupation. All persons employed in VHA in this occupation on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series and grade held, including positive education and licensure / certification / registration that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply: Such employees in an occupation that does not require a licensure / certification / registration, may be reassigned, promoted, or demoted within the occupation.-Such employees in an occupation that requires a licensure/certification/registration, may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journey) level, or demoted within the occupation, but may not be promoted beyond the journey level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions. Such employees in an occupation that requires a licensure/certification/registration only at higher grade levels must meet the licensure/certification/registration requirement before they can be promoted to those higher grade levels. Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis, until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard. Employees initially grandfathered into this occupation, who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure / certification / registration that meet all the basic requirements of this qualification standard must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation. If an employee who was retained in an occupation listed in 38 U.S.C. § 7401(3) under this provision leaves that occupation, the employee loses protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019. English Language Proficiency: Pharmacy technicians appointed to direct patient care positions must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Policy. References: VA HANDBOOK 5005/15, PART II, APPENDIX G28. Grade Determinations: Creditable Experience: To be creditable, the experience must have required the use of knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics associated with the scope of pharmacy technician practice. Quality of Experience: To be creditable, pharmacy technician experience must be documented on the application and verified in an employment reference, or through other independent means. Part-time Experience: Part-time experience as a pharmacy technician is credited according to its relationship to the full-time workweek. For example, a pharmacy technician would receive 1 week of full-time credit for each 2 weeks of half-time work. Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates: GS-07 Lead Pharmacy Technician Requirements: Experience: One year experience at the next lower level and must fully meet the KSAs at the next lower level. In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following technical KSAs and the potential to acquire the assignment specific KSAs designated by an asterisk (*): Knowledge, Skills and Abilities at the next lower grade level (GS-06): Ability to solve problems and make recommendations, e.g., troubleshoot operational problems and refer for appropriate action. Knowledge of the operation and care of automated equipment. Knowledge of, and ability to follow, written instructions for compounding with aseptic technique for hazardous materials such as oncology agents. Knowledge, and ability to perform, compounding with aseptic technique for routine sterile products. Knowledge of policies and procedures for inventory management in specialized areas such as emergency carts. Knowledge of the computerized prescription process demonstrated by the ability to input prescriptions and medication orders. Must be able to Demonstrate Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities at the GS-07: Ability to evaluate, analyze workflow, and coordinate work activities. Ability to independently gather, evaluate, and analyze data to generate reports and/or for other projects/statistical purposes. Knowledge of pharmacy policies and procedures sufficient to train and orient new employees and other staff. Comprehensive knowledge of the operation and care of specialized pharmaceutical equipment. Comprehensive knowledge of the procurement and formulary process. Comprehensive knowledge of investigational drug policies and procedures. Comprehensive knowledge of controlled substance policies and procedures, and the ability to identify and investigate discrepancies in these policies and procedures. Comprehensive knowledge of, and ability to, analyze data in VA information systems. ["Major duties include, but are not all inclusive:\nLead Pharmacy Technician Duties: Continually provides oversight and makes recommendations to improve the utilization of resources. Incumbent is responsible for developing and recommending additional management reports to assist in providing timely and accurate information for all current and future customers. Participant in the development and implementation of both short and long-term policies and plans for CMOP. Monitors all prescription throughput of allocated workload to insure timeliness, accuracy, and successful processing. Incumbent is responsible for coordinating these efforts with other production areas, logistics, and information technology (IT) staff. Assists in facilitating employee mandatory training including, but not limited to equipment safety, equipment orientation, The Joint Commission, mandatory annual training, and all competency related areas. Assists in the coordination and planning of staffing and resources required to update each production area to keep at maximum efficiency. This would include but not be limited to checking individual production percentages in each major filling area, monitoring new and different drug activity, and moving drugs from one production area to another as appropriate. Reviews daily staffing and resources for effective reallocation and coordinates concerns with the the shift Supervisory Pharmacist. Incumbent will also prioritize placement of drugs to ensure efficient use of all subsystems. He/she utilizes software knowledge to move drugs based on pack size, strength, and usage for efficiency to avoid potential conflicts of similar names, shapes, colors, etc. He/she tracks unreleased orders to ensure timely fulfillment. Coordinates the timing of upgrades and repairs based on production needs. He/she monitors system to ensure pick speeds and safety gaps are optimized on various automated devices. Manipulates available workload to maximize usage of all available zones, cells, pucks, or totes. Incumbent monitors priorities to ensure correct quantities are dispensed by the right component. Ensures that there is adequate work assigned to the active queue to keep manual subsystem at maximum efficiency. Assure continuity of operations/automation services. The incumbent shall be cross trained in all production areas and capable of performing area requirements as needed. Monitors back orders and provides information for on hand stock in order to coordinate with procurement and the medical centers for possible shortage situations and the changes that occur with such problems (i.e. change In brand, strength, or replacement with different product). The incumbent communicates to assigned inventory management specialist. Monitors workload ratio of all subsystems and shifts work accordingly. This involves analyzing data on an ongoing basis and making appropriate changes to ensure each subsystem has optimal production, efficiency, and timeliness. Advises and recommends changes or deletions to existing SOPs and develops new SOPs as required. Assists management officials in research and collection of data on problems reported by sites, patients, or staff. Incumbent also serves in roles that support quality planning, quality assessment, and quality control. Promotes compliance with all existing safety and security measures, procedures, and policies. Incumbent also reports all safety infractions directly to the chair of the appropriate environmental committee in a timely manner. Incumbent also notifies CMOP Director, Associate Director, or VA security personnel (as appropriate) of all security violations immediately. Resolves problems or complaints when possible using knowledge of overall CMOP operations and policies. Refers unresolved issues to supervisor for follow-up. Trains and orients new personnel, volunteers, students, etc., in the technical phase of CMOP operations in the area assigned and reports the progress of those trainees to the supervisor. Performs all duties of the GS-6 Pharmacy Technician. Assists in hiring process. Performs other duties as assigned. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-07. Work Schedule: 3pm - 11:30pm CST\nTelework: Not available\nVirtual: This is not a virtual position.\nRelocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized\nPermanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized\nFinancial Disclosure Report: Not required"]