Director, Proposal Management and Pricing

L5 Mission Critical; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 140,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

L5 Mission Critical in Chicago seeks a Director, Proposal Management and Pricing to own end-to-end proposal development and pricing strategy for commissioning, facilities management & operations, and project management & retrofit service lines.

This role partners closely with business development, finance, operations, HR, vendor management, and executive leadership to turn opportunities into profitable contracts.

Qualifications

• Experience leading complex, high-value proposals (RFP/RFQ/RFI) and pricing models.
• Strong financial acumen, including cost estimating and margin analysis.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to indirectly lead cross-functional teams and manage deadlines.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end proposal lifecycle from qualification to submission.
• Develop pricing models, cost estimates, and margin targets.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to align on win strategies.
• Present pricing recommendations to executives for go/no-go decisions.

Skills

Proposal management

Financial acumen

Communication skills

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Business/Finance/Real Estate or related field

MBA desirable

Job description

Overview

The Director, Proposal Management and Pricing is responsible for the end-to-end development of competitive, compelling proposals and the pricing strategy behind them for L5’s commissioning, facilities management & operations, and project management & retrofit service lines. This role will be responsible for developing both halves of the win: the proposal process (capture coordination, content strategy, compliance, and production) and the pricing process (cost modeling, margin strategy, and commercial structuring). It is a highly cross-functional role, partnering closely with business development, human resources, vendor management & procurement, operations, finance, and executive leadership to convert opportunities into profitable, signed contracts.

Responsibilities

Proposal Management

• Own the proposal lifecycle from opportunity qualification through submission.
• Develop win strategies, proposal outlines, and compliance matrices in partnership with business development leads.
• Lead and facilitate kickoff meetings, storyboarding sessions and production schedules, holding contributors accountable to deadlines.
• Write, edit, and position technical and management narrative content so it speaks directly to client evaluation criteria and win themes.
• Manage a library of reusable proposal content, past performance references, resumes, and graphics; keep materials current and audit-ready.
• Coordinate subcontractor and teaming partner inputs, ensuring consistency and compliance across the full submission.
• Oversee final production, formatting, and quality assurance to ensure 100% compliance with RFP/RFQ requirements and on-time delivery.
• Support oral presentation and interview preparation when pursuits advance to that stage.

Pricing & Commercial Strategy

• Lead development of pricing models and cost estimates for commissioning, facilities management & operations, and project management/retrofit engagements, in partnership with operations and finance.
• Translate scope, staffing plans, and service-level requirements into accurate, defensible cost build-ups and competitive pricing strategies.
• Partner with finance and executive leadership to set margin targets, evaluate risk, and structure commercial terms (fixed fee, cost-plus, unit rate, etc.) appropriate to each pursuit.
• Benchmark pricing against market and competitive intelligence to inform win-rate and margin trade-off decision.Build and maintain standardized pricing tools, templates, and historical cost data to improve speed and consistency across pursuits.
• Present pricing recommendations and risk considerations to executive leadership for go/no-go and final pricing approval.

Leadership & Process

• Establish scalable proposal and pricing processes, templates, and governance suited to a fast-growing platform business.
• Track and report win rates, pricing trends, and lessons learned to continuously improve proposal quality and pricing accuracy.
• Serve as a key advisor to executive leadership on pursuit strategy, resourcing, and competitive positioning.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Real Estate, or a related field; MBA a plus.
• Experience in commercial real estate outsourcing, facilities management, data center operations, or mission-critical environments strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated success leading complex, high‑value proposals (RFP/RFQ/RFI) and developing competitive cost/pricing models in parallel.
• Strong financial acumen, including cost estimating, margin analysis, and commercial contract structures.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate technical and operational detail into persuasive client‑facing content.
• Proven ability to indirectly lead cross-functional teams and manage multiple concurrent deadlines under pressure.
• Proficiency with proposal and estimating tools (e.g., Microsoft Office/Excel, estimating or CRM/pipeline software).
• Occasional travel for client meetings as needed.

What Success Looks Like

• A repeatable, scalable proposal and pricing process that supports L5’s national growth.
• Improved win rates and pricing accuracy driven by consistent processes, strong content, and disciplined cost modeling.
• Strong, trusted working relationships across business development, operations, finance, and executive leadership.

EEO/AA Employer M/F/D/V

L5 Mission Critical is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law.