Senior Capture Manager

Senior Capture Leader


Position Summary

A growing technology and professional-services organization is seeking a seasoned Senior Capture Leader to guide strategic business pursuits across the federal defense landscape. This individual will lead the development and execution of pursuit strategies for complex, high-value opportunities, bringing together customer insight, technical innovation, competitive analysis, and disciplined proposal execution.


The ideal candidate combines strong federal market knowledge with the ability to turn emerging customer needs into differentiated, executable solutions. This role works closely with senior business leaders, technical organizations, delivery teams, pricing, contracts, and external partners to improve win rates and create sustainable growth.


Key Responsibilities

- Lead assigned strategic pursuits from initial qualification through award decision and transition to delivery.

- Develop capture roadmaps that define customer priorities, stakeholder engagement, solution development, competitive position, teaming, schedule, investments, and decision milestones.

- Establish trusted relationships with government customers, industry partners, and internal stakeholders to support early opportunity shaping.

- Research agency missions, funding signals, acquisition history, program priorities, and buying behaviors to inform pursuit decisions.

- Partner with technical leaders and subject-matter experts to develop solutions that are responsive, practical, and clearly differentiated.

- Translate organizational capabilities, innovation investments, and relevant delivery experience into persuasive value propositions and proposal themes.

- Lead competitive assessments, including structured competitor reviews, to identify likely rival strategies, strengths, vulnerabilities, and countermeasures.

- Select and position the most relevant corporate and partner past-performance references for each opportunity.

- Develop strategic teaming approaches, support partner selection, and help establish roles, responsibilities, and win-win collaboration models.

- Drive pricing and affordability strategy, including cost-volume inputs, staffing assumptions, basis-of-estimate development, and price-to-win analysis.

- Lead capture gate reviews and executive briefings; communicate risks, investment needs, recommended actions, and progress against the pursuit plan.

- Coordinate resources across business development, solution architecture, delivery, proposal operations, finance, contracts, subcontracts, and legal functions.

- Work with proposal leadership to establish compliant outlines, realistic schedules, content ownership, review plans, and quality controls.

- Ensure proposals present a compelling, compliant, and financially sound offer that addresses customer evaluation criteria.

- Maintain complete and accurate opportunity records, capture artifacts, decision documentation, and lessons learned in designated business systems.

- Conduct post-submission and post-award reviews to improve future pursuit performance and support a smooth handoff to the program team.

- Coach capture, business-development, and proposal colleagues on effective pursuit practices.


Required Qualifications

- Bachelor's degree in business, engineering, technology, public policy, or a related field; comparable relevant experience may be considered.

- Active Secret security clearance.

- At least 10 years of experience supporting federal government contracting, including 5 or more years leading capture efforts.

- Demonstrated success leading large, complex federal pursuits, including opportunities valued at $100M or more.

- Deep familiarity with the Department of Defense environment, including military departments, defense agencies, and senior-level defense organizations.

- Established ability to engage government customers and industry partners ethically and effectively throughout the opportunity lifecycle.

- Experience creating capture plans, win strategies, solution concepts, competitive assessments, executive presentations, and proposal artifacts.

- Working knowledge of federal procurement processes, solicitation tools, acquisition timelines, and market-research resources.

- Proven capability in proposal development and management, including compliance, content development, color-team reviews, and deadline-driven execution.

- Strong understanding of pricing strategy, labor and staffing models, cost estimates, and profitability considerations.

- Exceptional written, verbal, facilitation, and executive-communication skills.

- Ability to operate independently, influence senior stakeholders, and lead cross-functional teams in a fast-moving environment.


Preferred Qualifications

- Experience supporting digital modernization, artificial intelligence, data, logistics, enterprise technology, cyber, or mission-support programs.

- Relationships across multiple Defense Department organizations and relevant industry partners.

- Experience using structured capture and business-development processes, including formal go/no-go and investment reviews.

- Record of developing innovative approaches that align commercial technology with government mission requirements.