Proposal Lead

KODA Technologies; Huntsville (AL); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

KODA Technologies is seeking a Proposal Manager to lead the development of competitive federal proposals. You will drive the process from kickoff to submission, ensuring compliance, timely delivery, and high-quality responses through collaboration with leadership, contracts, finance, and technical staff.

The ideal candidate is highly organized, deadline-driven, and an excellent writer/editor with a deep understanding of government contracting. On-site work in Huntsville, AL is required.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience in a related field.
• 7+ years of federal government proposal development/management.
• Strong understanding of federal procurement and proposal processes.
• Excellent writing, editing, and verbal communication skills.
• Strong project management and organizational abilities.
• Ability to coordinate with executives, technical staff, and partners.
• Detail-oriented with commitment to compliance and quality.
• Proficiency with MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, and SharePoint.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end proposal development for federal solicitations.
• Review requirements, amendments, instructions, and evaluation criteria.
• Develop schedules, outlines, compliance matrices, and writing assignments.
• Plan kickoff, status, and review meetings; manage inputs and deadlines.
• Coordinate inputs from technical staff, contracts, finance, and partners.
• Write, edit, and ensure content aligns with solicitation needs.
• Maintain templates, templates, and compliant submission formats.
• Oversee proposal reviews (Pink/Red/Gold, etc.) and revisions.
• Manage final production and submission; mentor team members.

Skills

Proposal development experience

Excellent writing & editing

Strong project management

Effective communication

Deadline driven

Attention to detail

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business/Communications/English/Marketing or related, or equivalent

Tools

Microsoft Word

Excel

PowerPoint

Teams

SharePoint

Job description

Proposal Manager

Company Overview

KODA is a people-first company and a three-time Fortune Best Workplace®, Great Place to Work®, Best Place for Working Parents®, and a seven-time Huntsville Best Places to Work® winner.

We're a small business making a big impact on national-priority missions in missile defense, hypersonics, DoD space, and civil space. At KODA, you'll find:

• Competitive pay & great benefits
• Career growth & professional development
• A culture of trust, integrity, and teamwork

The name KODA, meaning "allies," reflects our commitment to our people, our customers, and our community. Join us and build a career that matters!

Position Overview

KODA Technologies is seeking an experienced Proposal Manager to lead and manage the development of competitive proposals for federal government customers. This position is responsible for managing the proposal process from solicitation release through final submission, ensuring proposals are compliant, compelling, responsive, and submitted on time.

The Proposal Manager will work closely with Business Unit Leads, Contracts, Finance, technical staff, company leadership, and external partners to coordinate proposal activities and develop high-quality responses. The ideal candidate is highly organized, deadline-driven, an excellent writer and editor, and knowledgeable about the federal government contracting and proposal development process.

Key Responsibilities

Proposal Management & Development

• Lead the end-to-end proposal development process for federal government solicitations, including RFPs, RFQs, RFIs, task orders, and other responses.
• Review and analyze solicitation requirements, amendments, instructions, evaluation criteria, and contract requirements.
• Develop proposal schedules, outlines, compliance matrices, writing assignments, and other proposal management tools.
• Plan and lead proposal kickoff meetings, status meetings, and proposal review sessions.
• Coordinate proposal inputs from technical staff Contracts, Finance, Human Resources, subcontractors, and other contributors.
• Manage proposal schedules and deadlines to ensure timely completion of all required activities and deliverables.
• Write, edit, and integrate proposal content to ensure consistency, clarity, responsiveness, and alignment with solicitation requirements.
• Ensure proposals comply with solicitation instructions, page limitations, formatting requirements, and submission requirements.
• Manage proposal reviews, including Pink Team, Red Team, Gold Team, or other company-established review processes.
• Incorporate reviewer comments and coordinate final proposal revisions.
• Manage final proposal production, quality control, and submission.
• Provide training and mentorship to proposal team members and aspiring proposal team members

Proposal Strategy & Coordination

• Work with leadership and proposal team to understand customer requirements, win themes, discriminators, competitive positioning, and proposal strategy.
• Help identify opportunities through regular monitoring of government RFIs, RFPs, etc.
• Manage and mentor business development analysts in opportunity qualification and proposal development.
• Support opportunity qualification and go/no-go decisions by assessing proposal requirements, schedules, resources, and potential risks.
• Translate capture strategy and technical solutions into clear and compelling proposal content.
• Coordinate with Finance and Contracts personnel to ensure consistency among technical, management, contractual, and pricing proposal volumes.
• Coordinate with teaming partners and subcontractors to obtain required proposal information, including technical inputs, resumes, past performance, representations, certifications, and other required documentation.
• Identify proposal risks, gaps, and compliance issues and communicate them to appropriate stakeholders.

Proposal Content & Knowledge Management

• Develop and maintain a library of reusable proposal content, templates, graphics, resumes, past performance information, corporate capabilities, and other proposal resources.
• Maintain proposal files and documentation in SharePoint and NextStage (CRM tool) and other designated company systems.
• Work with Human Resources and technical leadership to maintain current employee resumes and qualifications for proposal use.
• Maintain and improve past performance descriptions and corporate experience information.
• Develop and maintain proposal templates, checklists, compliance tools, and standard operating procedures.
• Conduct post-submission lessons learned and recommend improvements to the company's proposal processes.
• Support development of capability statements, presentations, white papers, responses to RFIs, and other Business Development materials as needed.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Communications, English, Marketing, or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience.
• Seven or more years of experience in federal government proposal development or management
• Strong understanding of the federal government proposal development and procurement process.
• Demonstrated ability to interpret solicitations and develop compliant proposal responses.
• Excellent writing, editing, proofreading, and verbal communication skills.
• Strong project management and organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines.
• Ability to coordinate effectively with executives, technical experts, business development personnel, and external partners. Strong communication skills.
• Strong attention to detail and commitment to proposal compliance and quality.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, and SharePoint.
• Ability to work extended or flexible hours when required to meet proposal deadlines.

Preferred Qualifications

• Fifteen or more years of experience in federal government proposal development or management.
• Experience managing proposals for Department of Defense and/or other federal government customers.
• Experience managing complex, multi-volume proposals and task order responses.
• Familiarity with Shipley or similar structured proposal development methodologies.
• Experience with federal contract vehicles, IDIQs, GWACs, and task order proposal processes.
• Experience with GovWin and/or NextStage or similar government contracting opportunity platforms.
• Experience developing proposal graphics and working with Adobe Creative Suite, Canva, or similar tools.
• APMP certification or other proposal management certification.
• Experience supporting capture management and business development activities.
• Experience working in a small or mid-sized federal government contracting environment.
• Experience leading end-to-end proposal responses for federal best-value tradeoff acquisitions, including point-scored and highest technically rated offeror (HTRO) source selections

Other: On-Site, Full-Time in Huntsville, AL.

KODA Technologies Inc. provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy, status as a parent, national origin, disability (physical or mental), family medical history or genetic information, political affiliation, military service, or other non-merit based factors. If you are unable to complete this application due to a disability, contact [e-mail] to ask for an accommodation or an alternative application process.