Proposal Manager

Job Description

Job Description

Description:

JOB SUMMARY

The Proposal Manager is responsible for leading the development, coordination, and submission of compliant, compelling, and strategically aligned proposals that support GMRE’s growth objectives within the Department of Defense and federal marketplace.

This role extends beyond proposal administration and production management. The Proposal Manager serves as an operational leader within the Growth organization, responsible for driving proposal execution across cross-functional teams while maintaining schedule discipline, communication clarity, and proposal quality under compressed timelines and evolving customer requirements.

The Proposal Manager also supports pre-RFP and shaping activities including Requests for Information (RFIs), Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) responses, Sources Sought notices, capability statements, technical white papers, presentations, and other customer-facing growth artifacts. This role helps coordinate rapid-response efforts that support opportunity qualification, customer engagement, solution shaping, and early positioning activities across the business development lifecycle.

The Proposal Manager operates as the central integrator between Capture, Business Development, Technical SMEs, Pricing, Contracts, Operations, and Executive Leadership to ensure proposal responses align with the company’s win strategy, customer priorities, and competitive positioning.

This role requires strategic thinking, operational discipline, strong interpersonal judgment, and the ability to maintain execution tempo without creating unnecessary friction across the organization. The Proposal Manager must be capable of balancing tactical proposal execution with broader growth objectives while helping institutionalize repeatable proposal excellence across GMRE.

The Business Development organization operates as a high-accountability, high-trust environment where responsiveness, ownership, preparation, and professionalism are baseline expectations. Success in this role requires the ability to operate effectively with minimal oversight while maintaining consistent execution quality.

This position is not transactional. It requires leadership, influence, composure under pressure, and the ability to coordinate diverse contributors toward a unified and compelling submission strategy.

ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Proposal Management & Strategy

• Lead the proposal development lifecycle for assigned federal opportunities from pre-RFP planning through final submission.
• Analyze solicitations, amendments, evaluation criteria, and customer instructions to establish compliant proposal frameworks and schedules.
• Develop proposal management plans, outlines, compliance matrices, storyboards, and production schedules.
• Partner closely with Capture Managers and Business Development leadership to align proposal execution with overall win strategy.
• Support development of discriminators, win themes, and customer-focused messaging.
• Ensure proposal responses accurately reflect customer mission priorities, operational requirements, and acquisition objectives.
• Manage proposal schedules and execution timelines while maintaining accountability across all contributors.
• Lead proposal kickoff meetings, status reviews, recovery planning, and submission readiness activities.
• Strategic Growth & Pre-Proposal Support
• Lead or coordinate development of RFIs, ROMs, Sources Sought responses, capability statements, technical white papers, oral presentation materials, and other customer-facing business development artifacts.
• Support early opportunity shaping activities by helping structure solution narratives, response strategies, and customer-focused messaging prior to formal solicitation release.
• Coordinate with Capture Managers, Technical SMEs, Pricing, Contracts, and Operations to develop rapid-turnaround responses supporting qualification and positioning efforts.
• Assist with development of executive summaries, briefing materials, gate review content, and customer engagement deliverables.
• Support development of reusable content libraries and response frameworks to improve responsiveness across recurring customer requirements.
• Ensure pre-proposal artifacts maintain consistency with GMRE branding, messaging, technical positioning, and growth strategy.
• Team Coordination & Collaboration
• Coordinate cross-functional proposal teams including, but not limited to, Business Development, Capture, Technical SMEs, Pricing, Contracts, Recruiting, and Executive Leadership.
• Establish clear expectations, deliverable timelines, and review cycles for all proposal contributors.
• Operate effectively within a high-performing Growth organization that relies on accountability, responsiveness, and trust rather than excessive process enforcement.
• Maintain productive working relationships during high-pressure proposal cycles and compressed deadlines.
• Encourage constructive collaboration focused on proposal quality and execution rather than organizational boundaries or hierarchy.
• Facilitate efficient communication flow between internal stakeholders, teammates, subcontractors, and external partners.
• Support development and mentorship of proposal contributors and junior growth personnel.
• Support Proposal Writing & Editing
• Write, edit, and refine proposal sections to ensure clarity, consistency, accuracy, and strategic alignment.
• Develop customer-focused narrative content that clearly communicates GMRE’s technical approach, management methodology, and operational value.
• Ensure messaging consistency across technical, management, staffing, transition, and past performance volumes.
• Translate complex technical concepts into clear, evaluable proposal language.
• Improve proposal readability, structure, and evaluator usability.
• Support development and maintenance of reusable proposal content libraries and templates.
• Proposal Quality Control & Compliance
• Lead proposal compliance reviews against solicitation instructions, evaluation criteria, and submission requirements.
• Conduct and manage color team reviews, recovery efforts, and adjudication of reviewer comments.
• Verify proposal consistency across volumes, attachments, resumes, staffing plans, and pricing references.
• Ensure proposal formatting, production, and submission requirements are fully satisfied.
• Manage final production and submission activities, including electronic submission validation and delivery coordination.
• Maintain proposal discipline and quality standards without sacrificing responsiveness or agility.
• Post-Submission Activities
• Support proposal debriefs, lessons learned sessions, and recovery planning.
• Track proposal submissions, outcomes, customer feedback, and operational metrics.
• Assist with transition coordination and post-award documentation support when required.
• Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives informed by proposal outcomes and customer feedback.
• Continuous Improvement & Innovation
• Contributes to the development and refinement of proposal processes, workflows, templates, tools, and operational standards.
• Support institutionalization of repeatable proposal management best practices across the organization.
• Maintain proposal archives, lessons learned, win/loss analyses, and reusable content repositories.
• Identify operational inefficiencies and recommend process improvements.
• Stay informed on emerging proposal management technologies, AI-enabled proposal tools, and federal proposal best practices.
• Apply automation and AI-enabled tools where appropriate to improve proposal efficiency, consistency, and responsiveness.
• Cultural Leadership & Internal Relationships
• Operate with low ego, high ownership, and a solutions-oriented mindset.
• Demonstrate professionalism, accountability, transparency, and responsiveness in all interactions.
• Build durable, trust-based relationships across Business Development, Capture, Technical Teams, Operations, and Executive Leadership.
• Maintain composure, judgment, and communication discipline during high operational tempo and deadline-driven environments.
• Support an enterprise-first mindset focused on company success rather than individual visibility.
• Mentor and elevate proposal discipline and writing quality across the organization.
• Contribute positively to team culture while maintaining high performance expectations.
• Balance urgency with professionalism and execution discipline.
• This Position May Not Be a Fit If:
• You prefer narrowly defined responsibilities with limited ambiguity.
• You require constant oversight or direction to maintain execution.
• You are uncomfortable coordinating with senior technical contributors and executives under deadline pressure.
• You struggle to maintain professionalism and composure in high-tempo environments.
• You prefer working independently rather than driving collaboration across large teams.
• You rely on authority instead of preparation, organization, and influence.
• You are resistant to process discipline, proposal standards, or continuous improvement efforts.
• You view proposal management primarily as an administrative coordination function rather than a strategic contributor to capture success.
• You are uncomfortable receiving direct feedback during rigorous proposal review cycles.

WHY WORK FOR GMRE?

GMRE is a small veteran owned company who cares about our employees. We offer health, dental, and vision insurance, 401(k), vacation, Paid Time Off (PTO), or Paid Sick Leave (PSL) based on state laws, paid holidays, and life insurance to all permanent full-time employees. GMRE’s mission is to provide high quality engineering and technical services to help our customers grow and succeed.

GMRE is an equal opportunity employer. GMRE is committed to making employment decisions based on valid requirements, without regard to age 40 and over, color, disability, gender identity, genetic information, military or veteran status, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation or any other applicable status protected by state or local laws.

Requirements:

REQUIRED SKILLS/ABILITIES

• Advanced proposal management capability within federal government contracting environments.
• Strong understanding of proposal lifecycle management, federal solicitations, and evaluation structures.
• Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Strong organizational discipline and ability to manage multiple concurrent priorities.
• Ability to lead cross-functional teams through compressed proposal schedules.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and critical-thinking capability.
• Ability to influence contributors and stakeholders without formal authority.
• Strong interpersonal judgment and conflict management skills.
• High attention to detail and proposal quality standards.
• Ability to maintain execution quality under ambiguity and pressure.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite and proposal collaboration platforms.
• Ability to work flexible hours and respond to short-notice requirements as needed.
• Ability to maintain professional appearance and communication standards.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor’s degree in business, communications, English, marketing, engineering, or a related discipline preferred.
• In lieu of degree, equivalent relevant experience may be considered.
• Minimum of 5 years of federal proposal management or proposal development experience required.
• Experience supporting DoD proposals and federal acquisitions required.
• Experience supporting complex technical services, integration, sustainment, engineering, or mission support proposals preferred.
• Shipley Proposal Training is strongly preferred and APMP Certification is a plus.
• Demonstrated experience managing compliant federal proposal submissions.
• Experience coordinating large cross-functional proposal teams preferred.
• Experience supporting IDIQ, task order, and strategic capture pursuits.
• Working knowledge of FAR/DFARS and federal acquisition processes preferred.
• Experience using proposal automation, collaboration, or AI-enabled proposal tools is a plus.

SECURITY CLEARANCE AND OTHER REQUIREMENTS

• Must have the ability to obtain an active U.S. SECRET clearance and be subject to a government security investigation.
• Driving or renting a car for company business is expected with some frequency. For insurance purposes, a valid driver’s license is required.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.

TRAVEL REQUIRED

• Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position for meetings, training, and/or proposal support.
• Position will travel up to 25% of the time out of state and overnight.