What is a Proposal Leader? It’s not a traditional title, and for a non-traditional space company like York, it reflects our unique approach to winning business. A York Proposal Leader is someone who understands and can perform anywhere within the full capture and proposal lifecycle. He or she is someone who brings both proposal knowledge and best practice, but also a proactive, problem-solving mindset that recognizes how to tailor traditional processes to meet the lean and agile culture of York. Organization, clear and confident communication (oral and written), and personal accountability are the hallmarks of a Proposal Leader. At times, this person will be tasked with managing large capture efforts; at others, he or she will be an individual contributor, responsible for drafting original proposal content.
At York, the BD and Proposal team manages all proposal activity with guidance from executives under the leadership of the Capture and Proposal Director. We exercise a true collaborative approach to all bid opportunities, meaning that the Proposal Leader will be expected to support at various levels of responsibility. You may find yourself as a Volume Lead at times, or an editor and proofreader for another leader’s proposal. Those who show the aptitude will be given opportunities to step up and manage our larger captures. For the right candidate, this role provides visibility at the highest levels of York with additional opportunities to contribute to strategy, process improvement, and other ways that leverage your entire skillset.
The Proposal Leader joins a team of high-achieving proposal experts, including authors, graphic artists, desktop publishers, and subject matter experts. You will bring your own unique skillset and experiences while being supported by the others on your team. Together we will pursue and win new business for York in a time of great company achievement and growth.
The ideal candidate for this role thrives in a go-fast environment and can step in at any level of proposal preparation to bring strong performance, leadership, and a problem-solving mindset.
Responsibilities
· Flexibly support team proposal efforts as individual contributor and/or manager.
· Conceptualize, plan, and write winning proposal content.
· Coach and mentor other authors and volume leads.
· Lead capture and proposal teams through small and large scale efforts.
· Exhibit an aptitude for interviewing subject matter experts and translating into winning proposal narratives.
· Work with company executives to develop superior value propositions and capture plans.
· Assemble and organize input from authors, graphic artists, etc. into winning proposals.
· Streamline and tailor processes without sacrificing quality or effectiveness.
Qualifications
· Bachelor's degree, technical/writing disciplines preferred.
· 5+ years working winning captures and/or proposals.
· Proven ability to conceptualize and write concise, compelling, marketing-oriented proposal narrative and oral presentation slides.
· Executive presence—the ability to show confidence, poise, and leadership in any room.
· Demonstrated soft skills in problem-solving to overcome obstacles, high emotional intelligence to lead and inspire colleagues, and professional grace under pressure.
· Familiarity with VP/VDS, color reviews, storyboards, and other capture best practices.
· Working knowledge of Federal business acquisition process, the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and industry standard proposal development (e.g., Shipley).
· Demonstrated success supporting strategic, complex captures for government and commercial customers, ranging in size, scope, and solicitation types.
· Expert level MS Office user (Word, Excel, PowerPoint). Proficiency in Project or other tools desirable.
· Active Top Secret clearance desirable. Must be able to obtain a security clearance.