Bilingual Administrative Positions - AMENDMENT TO CLOSING DATE

Important messages

AMENDMENT TO CLOSING DATE

When you apply to this selection process, you are not applying for a specific job, but to a variety of future vacancies. We have regular needs for positions at the AS-01, CR-05, PM-01 and equivalent levels across the organization in Ottawa. If you meet the qualifications listed below, you may be contacted for further assessment for specific jobs as they become available.

Work environment

At Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), we take pride in what we do. We are an organization dedicated to serving the public. We are here to provide support to both our clients and colleagues. We are committed to delivering high quality service because we understand the importance of agriculture to our economy, communities, environment and human health. At AAFC, we are dedicated to making a continual effort to improve our services.

Intent of the process

To establish a group of qualified candidates by March 31st.

This process is anticipatory and will be used to staff positions at the AS-01, CR-05, PM-01 and equivalent levels with various employment lengths as well as various linguistic profiles and security requirements.

Depending on the position being staffed, additional qualifications may be required by the hiring manager(s). Applicants will be provided the opportunity to submit information or be assessed in relation to any additional qualifications that may be applied.

In the event that an employee of the public service of Canada is qualified through this process, the employee may be considered for acting, assignment, secondment or deployment opportunities and the proper approval will be sought.

Positions to be filled: Number to be determined

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

You must meet all essential qualifications in order to be appointed to the position. Other qualifications may be a deciding factor in choosing the person to be appointed. Some essential and other qualifications will be assessed through your application. It is your responsibility to provide appropriate examples that illustrate how you meet each qualification. Failing to do so could result in your application being rejected.

In order to be considered, your application must clearly explain how you meet the following (essential qualifications)

A secondary school diploma or an acceptable combination of education, training and/or experience.

Degree equivalency

Experience providing a range of administrative support services. Acceptable experience includes a range of services usually covering four or more of the following areas:
• formatting documents
• data entry
• managing an agenda for a senior manager
• scheduling and organizing meetings/teleconferences
• preparing and collating meeting information and background materials
• procuring office equipment and supplies
• maintaining a filing system
• drafting and editing correspondence
• completing organizational forms such as human resources or finance
• other related duties

Experience in the use of Microsoft Office Word and Microsoft Office Excel

Experience providing service to clients

If you possess any of the following, your application must also clearly explain how you meet it (other qualifications)

Ability and willingness to work overtime

The following will be applied / assessed at a later date (essential for the job)

Bilingual - Imperative
You must be able to work in English AND in French (Reading, Writing and Oral proficiency). We are looking for a bilingual profile of BBB/BBB or higher.

Information on language requirements

Second Language Writing Skills Self-Assessment
In order to help you decide if you should apply to a bilingual position, an optional self-assessment of your writing skills in your second official language is available for you to take before completing your application.

For more information, please consult:
Unsupervised Internet Test of Second Language Writing Skills

Demonstrating integrity and respect
Thinking things through
Working effectively with others
Showing initiative and being action-oriented
Attention to detail
Written communication
Oral communication

The following may be applied / assessed at a later date (may be needed for the job)

Graduation from a recognized post-secondary institution in office support or a related field such as secretarial, paralegal, office clerk

We will send you an e-mail shortly after the advertisement closes to request a copy of your proof of education credentials, in the form of a diploma or official transcript. Please click on the link below if you went to school outside of Canada.

Degree equivalency

Experience providing human resources support services

Experience using PeopleSoft outside of employee and/or manager self-service module

Experience providing financial support services

Experience in procurement/purchasing

Experience using a financial management system such as SAP

Experience coordinating travel arrangements and travel claims

Experience using a correspondence tracking system such as ECMS or CCM Mercury (TRECS)

Experience using an information management system such as GCDocs, SharePoint, AgriDocs or RDIMS

In support of achieving a diversified workforce, consideration may be given to candidates self-identifying as belonging to one of the following Employment Equity groups: Aboriginal peoples, Persons with a Disability; Visible Minorities, Women.

Conditions of employment

Reliability Status security clearance - OR Secret security clearance

Other information

HOW WILL YOU BE ASSESSED?

All communication relating to this process, including email correspondence, may be used in the assessment of qualifications; especially attention to detail.

We are providing assessment information so you can start preparing now as we will work quickly to complete this process.

STEP 1 - TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF (in your application)

Tell us about you! We want to know why you would be a great candidate for AAFC’s AS-01, CR-05, PM-01 or equivalent positions. You will be happy to know that a cover letter is NOT required for this process. But you are not completely off the hook… we need to learn a little about you. We need you to complete the screening questionnaire and provide us your resume. We will review your application and determine whether you meet the education and experience requirements, with a vision of notifying all applicants of results as soon as possible. Please note that you can be eliminated by the system based on the screening questions in the application process.

Tips for candidates who wish to apply:
• The application process will take approximately 30 to 60 minutes to complete.
• When submitting your application, please provide complete and thorough details of your education and experience. The system will prompt you with specific questions for each qualification, so ensure to answer the questions.
• When answering the questionnaire, do not assume that the hiring board has any previous knowledge of your background, qualifications, or work history. You must be specific and provide concrete examples and details for each experience and education element, as applications will be evaluated on the information provided. Your résumé will only be used as a secondary source to validate the information.

STEP 2 – DO THE TESTS

a) Second language evaluation (SLE) – to be assessed immediately after your experience and education.
-If you have valid results, you will be asked to provide proof.
-If you need to be retested (reading, writing or oral) you will be contacted to make arrangements.
-If you have never had a SLE you will be scheduled for the reading and writing tests. If you are successful on the reading and writing AND meet all other essential criteria for the process, you will then be scheduled for an oral evaluation.

We also expect you to inform us as soon as possible if there are periods for which you are unavailable before March 31st (if you have pre-booked beach or Europe vacation for example). We would prefer you invite us but we will try to accommodate your vacation when possible if you let us know in advance.

Proof of education will be requested during this phase. You must provide proof of your Canadian education credentials in the form of a diploma/degree or official transcript. Important: Please see hyperlink ‘Degree equivalency’ earlier in this advertisement if you went to school outside of Canada.

b) E-mail Exam
An exam assessing 'Written communication', ‘Working effectively with others’ and ‘Showing initiative and being action-oriented’ will be sent to you by e-mail to be returned to us within 72 hours of receipt. Don't worry; we will let you know the exact date prior to sending the exam.

STEP 3 – INTERVIEW

We will contact you to talk about the competencies ‘Demonstrating integrity and respect’, ‘Thinking things through’; and see how you do with ‘Oral communication’. This will be done through a combination of behavioural and situational questions over the phone.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Applications submitted by email will not be accepted. You must apply through the "Apply online" link below.

Applicants with disabilities:
• If you have disabilities preventing you from applying on-line please contact 1-800-645-5605.
• If you require special accommodation at any stage in the selection process, including technical aid or an alternative method of assessment to ensure an equitable assessment of your qualifications, please inform us as soon as possible.

You will be asked to indicate your preferred official language in your application profile as you are entitled to participate in the appointment process in the official language of your choice (English or French), regardless of the language of the position being staffed.

We will contact you by e-mail and/or via your Public Service jobs account. Please ensure that your e-mail address is valid and accepts messages from unknown users. It is your responsibility to regularly check your e-mail and jobs account for communications regarding this selection process. Should we contact you and you fail to reply within the designated time frames, your application will not be considered further.

If you fail to submit the assessments on time or fail to attend assessments without a valid reason and with reasonable notice, you will be eliminated from the selection process. The following reasons will be regarded as valid:
- Medical reasons with doctor’s certificate;
- Death in the immediate family;
- Confirmation of pre-approved travel plans;
- Religious reasons;
- Other approved reasons with acceptable proof.

In your application, please clearly identify your Citizenship: Canadian or Non-Canadian, Permanent Resident Status or Work Permit. You will be asked to show proof of this status in order to complete the Second language evaluation and security screening required for employment.

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled, diverse workforce reflective of Canadian society. As a result, it promotes employment equity and encourages candidates to indicate voluntarily on their application if they are a woman, an Aboriginal person, a person with a disability or a member of a visible minority group.

The Public Service of Canada is also committed to developing inclusive, barrier-free selection processes and work environments. If contacted in relation to a job opportunity or testing, you should advise the Public Service Commission or the departmental official in a timely fashion of the accommodation measures which must be taken to enable you to be assessed in a fair and equitable manner. Information received relating to accommodation measures will be addressed confidentially.

Preference

Preference will be given to veterans and to Canadian citizens, in that order.

Information on the preference to veterans

We thank all those who apply. Only those selected for further consideration will be contacted.