Proposal Manager

Essentia, Inc.; United States; On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Essentia, Inc. is seeking a Proposal Manager to own the proposal scope from opportunity intake through final submission.

You will lead internal and external communications, drive cross-functional inputs, and ensure timely delivery of polished, executive-ready proposals reflecting Essentia’s standards for Speed, Trust, and Expertise. The role requires 5+ years in proposal management, strong writing, and commercial acumen.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in proposal/bid management or equivalent project leadership in B2B services.
• Ability to lead cross-functional teams and manage multiple deadlines with high quality.
• Strong professional writing and editing skills for executive-ready deliverables.
• Commercial acumen to coordinate pricing inputs and surface risks/margins.
• High attention to detail and disciplined processes (version control, checklists).
• Fluent professional English (written and spoken).

Responsibilities

• Lead proposal planning, cadence, milestones, and review gates.
• Own compliance, content development, and voice consistency across the package.
• Coordinate pricing inputs with Estimating, Sales, Ops, and Engineering.
• Facilitate internal reviews and drive submission readiness.
• Manage production, submission logistics, version control, and archiving.

Skills

Proposal management

Cross-functional leadership

Technical writing

Commercial acumen

Attention to detail

English proficiency

Tools

HubSpot

SharePoint/Drive

MS Office

Adobe Acrobat Pro

Teams/Outlook

Google Earth

Job description

The Proposal Manager (PM) owns the proposal scope of Essentia’s Quotes & Proposals (Q&P) process from opportunity intake (S4) through final submission. The PM leads internal and external proposal communications, drives cross-functional inputs, and ensures on-time delivery of polished, executive-ready proposals that reflect Essentia’s standards for Speed, Trust, and Expertise.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead proposal planning and cadence: kickoff, workplan, responsibilities, milestones, and review gates aligned to customer due dates.
• Own compliance and content development: interpret requirements, build compliance matrices, coordinate SME inputs, draft/assemble narrative, and maintain a consistent voice and structure.
• Coordinate pricing inputs with Estimating, Sales, Operations, and Engineering; consolidate inputs and ensure the commercial narrative aligns with leadership-defined pricing posture and risk/margin guardrails.
• Facilitate internal reviews (Pink/Red/QC): schedule reviews, consolidate feedback, drive closure, and ensure submission readiness.
• Manage production and submission logistics (portal/email), including confirmation, version control, and archiving of the final package.
• Provide executive-level status reporting and proactive escalation of blockers, risks, and decision points.
• Support post-award / post-loss processes: win/loss capture, lessons learned, and continuous improvement updates to templates and process documentation.
• Maintain disciplined systems hygiene across HubSpot, SharePoint/Drive, and eSpeed AIR to support transparency, forecasting, and repeatable execution.

Required Qualifications

• 5+ years of proposal/bid management experience or equivalent project leadership in a B2B services environment; telecom/infrastructure strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams and manage multiple concurrent deadlines with high quality standards.
• Strong professional writing and editing skills; able to produce executive-ready messaging and client-facing deliverables.
• Commercial acumen: ability to coordinate pricing inputs, manage approvals, and surface risk/margin tradeoffs for leadership decisions.
• High attention to detail and strong organizational discipline (version control, checklists, and documented processes).
• Fluent professional English (written and spoken).

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting U.S.-based sales organizations and executive stakeholders.
• Experience with telecom network build programs (fiber, permitting, construction, O&M) or adjacent infrastructure services.
• Familiarity with CRM-driven sales governance (HubSpot, Salesforce, or equivalent) and shared repository governance.

Core Competencies

• Executive communication and stakeholder management
• Process discipline and operational rigor
• Analytical problem-solving and risk awareness
• Ownership mindset; proactive escalation and decision management
• Collaboration across Sales, Engineering, Ops, Estimating, Finance, and Leadership

Success Measures (KPIs)

• Bid cycle time (S4 to submission) and bid velocity/throughput.
• Proposal quality (QC pass rate, rework reduction, leadership satisfaction).
• Process adherence and hygiene (HubSpot stage accuracy, required uploads, SharePoint folder compliance, AIR accuracy).
• Win/Loss documentation completeness and timeliness; continuous improvement adoption.

Tools & Systems

• HubSpot CRM (opportunity stages, hygiene, uploads, reporting views)
• SharePoint/Drive (bid folders, library governance, version control, archiving)
• Microsoft Office (Word/Excel/PowerPoint) and Adobe Acrobat Pro (final packaging)
• Microsoft Teams/Outlook (meetings, scheduling, communications)
• Google Earth (KMZ/KML) as applicable for mapping and route visuals

Additional Notes

During onboarding and transition periods, external client communications may be limited to observation and/or conducted under leadership direction. Final proposal approval and pricing posture decisions remain with Essentia senior leadership unless delegated in writing.

Essentia is an equal opportunity employer. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or any other protected status.