[Hiring] Proposal Manager @Lynker Corporation

Role Description

The Proposal Manager will play a critical role in supporting Lynker's growth by leading the development of high-quality, compliant, and compelling Federal proposals across the company's priority markets. This is a hands-on proposal leadership role for an experienced Federal proposal professional capable of personally managing major strategic proposals in the $100M–$300M+ range while concurrently supporting multiple smaller task-order, BPA, IDIQ, and rapid-turn proposal efforts. The successful candidate will combine disciplined proposal management with strong writing, editing, compliance, facilitation, and production skills.

Responsibilities

• Proposal Management and Execution:
  • Lead complex Federal proposals from solicitation analysis through final submission.
  • Develop and manage proposal schedules, compliance matrices, outlines, annotated outlines, assignment matrices, review schedules, production plans, and submission requirements.
  • Translate solicitation requirements and evaluation criteria into clear proposal strategies, section structures, writing assignments, and reviewer guidance.
  • Lead proposal kickoff meetings, daily standups, solution sessions, color-team reviews, recovery meetings, and final production activities.
  • Maintain rigorous compliance with solicitation instructions, evaluation criteria, amendments, questions and answers, page limits, formatting requirements, and submission procedures.
  • Coordinate closely with capture managers to translate capture strategy, customer insight, competitive positioning, win themes, discriminators, and solution concepts into evaluator-focused proposal content.
  • Personally write, rewrite, edit, and integrate proposal content when needed.
  • Identify weaknesses, gaps, inconsistencies, unsupported claims, and compliance risks early enough for corrective action.
  • Manage proposal partners, subcontractor inputs, resumes, past performance, technical contributions, and other data calls.
  • Coordinate graphics, desktop publishing, final quality control, document production, and electronic submission.
  • Maintain proposal records, lessons learned, reusable content, and final proposal artifacts.
• Strategic Proposal Leadership:
  • Lead large, complex proposals involving multiple technical disciplines, business units, subcontractors, consultants, and executive stakeholders.
  • Establish an evaluator-focused proposal strategy that makes strengths, discriminators, proof points, and benefits easy to identify and score.
  • Work with capture and technical leaders to identify proposal strengths and convert them into specific, substantiated solution features and customer benefits.
  • Facilitate development of technical, management, staffing, transition, past-performance, and corporate-experience narratives.
  • Maintain proposal momentum and accountability under compressed schedules and competing organizational priorities.
  • Escalate material compliance, solution, staffing, pricing, or schedule risks to the CGO and capture leadership when necessary.
• Task-Order and Rapid Proposal Management:
  • Manage multiple smaller task-order, BPA, IDIQ, and other rapid-turn proposals concurrently with major strategic pursuits.
  • Tailor the proposal process to the size, complexity, value, and evaluation methodology of each opportunity.
  • Establish repeatable approaches for high-volume proposal activity while maintaining compliance and proposal quality.
  • Support short-turnaround responses, oral presentations, RFIs, sources-sought responses, capability statements, and other growth-related submissions as required.
• Business Development and Proposal Process Improvement:
  • Partner with the CGO, capture leadership, Business Unit Leaders, and technical teams to continuously improve Lynker's business development and proposal lifecycle.
  • Help refine capture-to-proposal handoffs, proposal readiness criteria, gate reviews, color-team processes, compliance reviews, content development, lessons learned, and post-submission activities.
  • Develop and maintain proposal templates, checklists, standard operating procedures, review guidance, reusable content, and proposal-management tools.
  • Identify recurring proposal weaknesses or inefficiencies and recommend practical process improvements.
  • Support development of scalable processes appropriate for both large strategic bids and smaller task-order competitions.
  • Help strengthen integration among pipeline management, capture, solution development, proposal development, pricing, staffing, and executive reviews.
  • Contribute to development and maintenance of proposal metrics, including proposal volume, win rates, review findings, compliance issues, production performance, and lessons learned.
• Internal Collaboration:
  • Partner closely with the CGO, Capture Managers, Business Unit Leaders, pricing, contracts, recruiting, technical SMEs, and executive leadership.
  • Establish clear roles, deadlines, and accountability across proposal teams.
  • Work effectively with senior executives and highly technical SMEs who may have limited proposal-development experience.
  • Provide constructive editorial and strategic direction while maintaining productive relationships under deadline pressure.
  • Mentor proposal coordinators, writers, technical contributors, and less-experienced proposal personnel.
  • Support surge proposal activity when priorities require hands-on involvement outside assigned pursuits.

Qualifications

• 8–12+ years of progressively responsible Federal proposal management, proposal development, capture/proposal integration, or related experience.
• Demonstrated experience serving as the lead Proposal Manager on major Federal procurements, preferably including proposals valued at $100M–$300M+.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple concurrent proposals, including smaller task-order and rapid-turn competitions.
• Strong knowledge of Federal procurement processes and proposal practices, including FAR-based acquisitions, IDIQs, GWACs, BPAs, task orders, and best-value competitions.
• Demonstrated proficiency developing compliance matrices, proposal outlines, schedules, writing assignments, review plans, and production schedules.
• Strong understanding of Federal evaluation methodologies and ability to organize proposal responses so evaluators can quickly identify compliance, strengths, discriminators, proof, and benefits.
• Demonstrated ability to lead Pink Team, Red Team, Gold Team, compliance, and final-production reviews.
• Exceptional writing, rewriting, editing, and document-integration skills.
• Ability to convert complex technical information into clear, persuasive, evaluator-focused proposal language.
• Experience coordinating subcontractors, consultants, SMEs, executives, and geographically distributed proposal teams.
• Ability to work independently, manage competing priorities, and make sound decisions under compressed deadlines.
• Strong interpersonal, facilitation, organizational, and executive communication skills.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, SharePoint, Teams, and collaborative document-development environments.
• Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.

Requirements

• Experience leading proposals supporting NOAA, NASA, DoD, DHS, DOE, DOI, FAA, or other Federal science, engineering, environmental, or mission-technology customers.
• Experience with proposals involving science, engineering, environmental services, AI/ML, cloud/HPC, cybersecurity, software development, data systems, or mission-critical IT.
• Experience managing proposals for a growing small or mid-tier Federal contractor where Proposal Managers are expected to personally execute the work, not simply oversee a large proposal staff.
• Experience supporting both unrestricted and small-business acquisitions.
• Experience with technical solution development, oral presentations, scenario-based evaluations, or technical challenges.
• Experience supporting proposal pricing, staffing, workshare, and teaming strategy development.
• Experience developing or improving formal BD, capture, and proposal processes.
• Shipley proposal training, Association of Proposal Management Professionals (APMP) certification, or equivalent formal proposal-management training.
• Experience with TechnoMile CRM, GovWin IQ, Microsoft SharePoint, and Federal opportunity-tracking systems.

Success Measures

• Delivery of compliant, compelling, evaluator-focused proposals on schedule.
• Successful leadership of major $100M–$300M+ strategic proposals.
• Ability to manage multiple concurrent task-order and smaller proposal efforts without sacrificing quality.
• Improved proposal readiness at kickoff and stronger capture-to-proposal handoffs.
• Reduction in late-stage compliance findings, unresolved content gaps, and production risk.
• Consistent incorporation of differentiated win themes, customer benefits, and substantiated proof points.
• Effective management of proposal contributors, subcontractors, SMEs, and executive reviewers.
• Measurable improvement in proposal processes, templates, tools, reviews, and reusable content.
• Positive proposal-team and executive feedback regarding leadership, organization, judgment, and execution.
• Contribution to improved proposal quality and competitive win rate over time.

Benefits

• Comprehensive healthcare for the employee at no monthly cost.
• Healthcare benefit covers medical, prescription drug, dental, and vision.
• Personal Time Off (PTO) Policy plus paid holidays.
• Highly competitive compensation plan regularly calibrated against industry and location benchmarks.
• 401(k) retirement plan with company-matching.
• Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) – we're all company owners!
• Flexible spending accounts.
• Employee assistance program (EAP).
• Short- and long-term disability insurance.
• Life and accident insurance.
• Tuition assistance/Training/Workforce improvement reimbursement per year.
• Spot bonuses for exceptional performance.
• Annual Employee Recognition Awards with bonuses.
• Employee Referral Program.
• Free centralized, self-directed Learning Management System to learn at your own pace.
• Personalized career growth plans for every employee.