Lead Pricing Analyst

RAND Corporation; Pittsburgh (Allegheny County); Hybrid; USD 102,000 - 157,000; Full time

Job summary

The RAND Corporation is seeking a Lead Pricing Analyst responsible for leading pricing strategies and budget development in a hybrid role based in Pittsburgh. This position demands extensive experience in pricing proposal preparation for diverse clients, requiring strong analytical skills and the ability to mentor less experienced team members. Compensation aligns with industry standards and is complemented by robust benefits.

Benefits

Health insurance coverage

Life and disability insurance

Savings plan

Paid time-off

Qualifications

• Minimum of 10 years of related experience; 14 years preferred.
• Expertise in price and cost proposal preparation.
• High proficiency in developing budgets for contract types.

Responsibilities

• Leads pricing for RAND's complex opportunities and manages proposal cost teams.
• Conducts market research and price analyses to optimize pricing strategies.
• Provides training and support to less experienced pricing staff.

Skills

Communication

Collaboration

Problem-solving

Education

BS/BA degree

Tools

Salesforce

Adaptive Planning

Pro Pricer

Job description

Job Type:

Regular

Description

The Lead Pricing Analyst has senior level responsibility and works on the most complex and consequential budget analyses for a wide variety of detailed proposal pricing and financials, operational- and process-focused activities within the Proposal Development Services (PDS) team. Reporting to the Manager - Pricing and Analysis, the Lead Pricing Analyst leads the development of budgets to support proposal opportunities across all contract types for federal, state, local, commercial, and foundational clients.

Additionally, the Lead Pricing Analyst establishes pricing strategy and has ownership of business/pricing volumes for proposals (depending upon tier) ensuring key financial and organizational information are included alongside a detailed budget justification for the services offered to clients.

The Lead Pricing Analyst is expected to support and contribute to cross-divisional and internal trainings, provide mentoring to less experienced pricing staff, and work on process-focused improvement opportunities.
Specific responsibilities include:

• Leads pricing on RAND's most complex and important opportunities, serving as the lead interface with Principal Investigators, Division leadership, proposal management and others related to pricing - ensuring competitive and timely pricing and business/price volume development.

• Responsible for pricing support functions from pre-RFP activities through proposal negotiations. These activities include forming, planning, and guiding the proposal cost team, along with managing all cost volume development activities such as compiling cost, schedule, and technical elements in accordance with the Request for Proposal (RFP) specifications.

• Ensures the business/price volumes are consistent with all other proposal submission documents.

• Dissects RFP and determines pricing requirements for use in pricing and business/price volume development.

• Leads development of pricing strategies for proposals to ensure competitiveness and client acceptance. This includes translating requirements into robust win strategies, testing and validation of solutions with clients, advance value proposition and differentiate bid elements based on compelling features and benefits.

• Supports the price to win process.

• Conducts market research, price analyses and comparisons to determine most effective pricing models and strategies.

• Contributes to documenting and refining of pricing processes and procedures that drive operational efficiencies and quality.

• Provides training and supports to less experienced team members on pricing types, budgeting, price/business volume creation, price analyses and similar initiatives,

• Works closely with proposal development, contracts and grants, and research technical staff to ensure alignment with overall business objectives.

• Stays abreast of competitor pricing moves and market dynamics to ensure competitive positioning, understanding of pricing trends, competitive pricing strategy, and customer willingness to pay.

• Contributes to documenting standard operating procedures, processes, and participate in/lead instructions and training to external division stakeholders to develop understanding of proper price proposal process and content.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 10 years related experience; 14 years' experience preferred.

• Expert experience with all aspects of price and cost proposal preparation, including business risks, analyses, compliance and estimating practices for the US government and for commercial and international clients.

• High proficiency developing budgets for all contract, cooperative agreements, and grant types (e.g. T&M, FFP, CPFF, Grant).

• Extensive experience developing price strategies.

• Experience pulling internal and external pricing data for cost comparisons and analyses to ensure price competitiveness.

• Experience with Salesforce and other technology platforms commonly used in the Professional Services Industry; experience in Adaptive Planning and Pro Pricer is preferred.

• Experience with routinely submitting proposals greater than $5M in total value.

• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to work effectively with clients and cross-functional teams.

• Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to think creatively to develop innovative solutions; Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously and prioritize tasks effectively.

• Experience with and pricing for federal contracts and grants and associated pricing types (e.g. Firm Fixed Price, Time and Materials, Cost Plus, etc.)

Education Requirements
Minimum: High School diploma; Preferred: BS/BA
Experience

Security Clearance
The ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance, which requires U.S. citizenship, is required.

Location
Washington, DC, Pittsburgh, PA, or Santa Monica, CA. We offer a hybrid work arrangement, combining work from home and on-site options. Fully remote work will also be considered.

Salary Range: $102,800 - 156,500

RAND considers a variety of factors when formulating an offer, including the specific role responsibilities; a candidate's work experience, education/training, skills, expertise; and internal equity. In addition, RAND provides strong benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, a savings plan, paid time-off, and more.

Equal Opportunity Employer