Proposal Manager

Leonardo DRS; Washington (District of Columbia); Hybrid; USD 105,000 - 185,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

401(k) matching

Paid time off

Parental leave

Tuition reimbursement

Life and disability insurance

Job summary

Leonardo DRS Naval Electronics seeks an experienced Proposal Manager to lead development and delivery of compliant, customer-focused proposals for U.S. Government and international opportunities.

The role owns the process from opportunity assessment to final submission, coordinating diverse teams to craft winning strategies, cost inputs, and fully compliant deliverables in a fast-paced environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business, communications, English, engineering, management, or related field; equivalent relevant experience may be considered
• 7+ years of progressive proposal management, capture support, business development, contracts, program management, or related experience in aerospace/defense
• Demonstrated experience managing competitive, high-value proposals for U.S. Government customers
• Thorough understanding of the federal acquisition environment, including solicitation requirements, proposal compliance, evaluation criteria, and common proposal-development practices
• Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams and manage multiple priorities under aggressive deadlines
• Strong written, verbal, presentation, facilitation, and interpersonal communication skills
• Highly organized and detail-oriented, with emphasis on compliance and quality
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, particularly Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Teams, and SharePoint

Responsibilities

• Lead assigned proposal efforts from kickoff through submission and lessons learned
• Analyze solicitations, amendments, and related customer documentation to identify requirements, evaluation criteria, compliance obligations, risks, deliverables, and response strategy considerations
• Partner with VP, Strategic Growth; Business Development; Capture Management; Engineering; Program Management; Contracts; Pricing; Supply Chain; Finance; Operations; Quality; and leadership to develop cohesive, competitive responses
• Facilitate proposal strategy sessions and drive alignment around requirements, win themes, discriminators, proof points, and value propositions
• Lead and influence cross-functional proposal teams without direct authority; establish responsibilities, deadlines, inputs, and issue resolution
• Coordinate proposal reviews and incorporate stakeholder feedback while maintaining version control and compliance readiness
• Ensure proposal content is accurate, responsive, well-integrated, persuasive, and tailored to customer requirements
• Advance proposal capability through templates, knowledge-management, and digital tools
• Maintain discretion handling sensitive business, customer, technical, and proprietary information

Skills

Proposal leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

Internal sales & influence

Customer focus

Compliance discipline

Strategic thinking

Digital fluency

Attention to detail

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience

Tools

Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Teams, SharePoint)

Job description

Proposal Manager

Location: Washington, DC, US, 20003 Johnstown, PA, US, 15904 Frederick, MD, US, 21703 Eagan, MN, US, 55121 Largo, FL, US, 33773 Burnsville, MN, US, 55337

Business Unit: Naval Electronics
Location: Washington, DC / Frederick, MD / Twin Cities, MN / Johnstown, PA / Largo, FL
Career Functional Area: Business Development / Strategic Growth
Telework Type: Hybrid
Type: Full Time
Schedule: 9/80

This position may require periodic travel (estimated at <10%) to Leonardo DRS sites, customer locations, and proposal review events.

• Proposal Leadership: Drives disciplined execution from planning through submission
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Aligns diverse contributors toward a common objective
• Internal Sales and Influence: Gains commitment, motivates contributors, and communicates effectively at everyorganizational level
• Customer Focus: Understands customer priorities and translates them into differentiated, value-based responses
• Compliance Discipline: Ensures every proposal requirement is addressed accurately and completely
• Strategic Thinking: Connects solution strengths, customer needs, and competitive positioning
• Digital Fluency: Identifies and responsibly applies automation, AI-enabled capabilities, and modern collaborationtools to improve proposal quality and efficiency
• Attention to Detail: Maintains quality, consistency, and control in high-pressure environments

Job Summary

Leonardo DRS Naval Electronics is seeking an experienced, highly collaborative Proposal Manager to lead the development and delivery of compelling, compliant, and customer-focused proposals supporting U.S. Government and international defense opportunities.

The Proposal Manager will own the proposal process from opportunity assessment through final submission, coordinating cross-functional teams to develop winning strategies, persuasive content, accurate cost and technical inputs, and fully compliant deliverables. This individual must bring strong defense-industry knowledge, exceptional communication and internal sales skills, disciplined attention to detail, and the ability to drive accountability across a diverse team in a fast-paced environment.

Job Responsibilities

• Lead assigned proposal efforts from kickoff through submission and lessons learned, including development of proposal plans, schedules, outlines, compliance matrices, action trackers, review plans, and production checklists.
• Analyze solicitations, amendments, and related customer documentation to identify requirements, evaluation criteria, compliance obligations, risks, deliverables, and response strategy considerations.
• Partner with the Vice President, Strategic Growth; Business Development; Capture Management; Engineering; Program Management; Contracts; Pricing; Supply Chain; Finance; Operations; Quality; and executive leadership to develop cohesive, competitive, and customer-focused responses.
• Facilitate proposal strategy sessions and drive alignment around customer requirements, win themes, discriminators, proof points, and value propositions. Ensure those elements are consistently incorporated across technical, management, past-performance, cost, and other proposal volumes.
• Lead and influence cross-functional proposal teams without direct authority; establish clear responsibilities and deadlines, secure timely inputs from subject-matter experts and functional leaders, and resolve issues that may affect proposal quality, compliance, competitiveness, or schedule.
• Coordinate proposal reviews and incorporate stakeholder feedback while maintaining rigorous version control, configuration management, compliance discipline, and submission readiness.
• Ensure proposal content is accurate, responsive, well-integrated, persuasive, and tailored to the customer’s stated requirements and evaluation methodology.
• Advance the organization’s proposal capability through improved processes, reusable content, templates, knowledge-management practices, and responsible adoption of digital tools, automation, and artificial intelligence-enabled solutions.
• Maintain professional discretion and sound judgment in the handling of sensitive business, customer, technical, and proprietary information.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Communications, English, Engineering, Management, or a related field; equivalent relevant experience may be considered in lieu of a degree
• 7+ years of progressive proposal management, capture support, business development, contracts, program management, or related experience in the aerospace, defense, government contracting, or similarly complex technical industry
• Demonstrated experience managing competitive, high-value proposals for U.S. Government customers, including Department of Defense organizations
• Thorough understanding of the federal acquisition environment, including solicitation requirements, proposal compliance, evaluation criteria, and common proposal-development practices
• Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams and manage multiple priorities under aggressive deadlines
• Strong written, verbal, presentation, facilitation, and interpersonal communication skills, including the ability to influence stakeholders and gain commitment without direct authority
• Highly organized and detail-oriented, with a demonstrated commitment to compliance, quality, accuracy, and configuration control
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, particularly Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Teams, and SharePoint

Preferred Qualifications

• Advanced degree in a related discipline
• APMP certification or equivalent formal proposal-management training
• Experience supporting proposals involving complex hardware, software, systems integration, sustainment, manufacturing, or defense services
• Familiarity with FAR/DFARS requirements and government-contracting terminology
• Experience with proposal automation, collaboration, content-management, workflow, and knowledge-management tools
• Familiarity with the responsible use of artificial intelligence, generative AI, automation, and other digital tools to improve proposal planning, content development, compliance reviews, data analysis, collaboration, and workflow efficiency. Candidates should understand the importance of protecting proprietary, controlled, export-controlled, customer, and other sensitive information when using such tools.

The salary range for this position is $105,000/year - $185,000/year. This range reflects the good faith estimate of pay the employer is willing to offer at the time of posting. Several factors can influence the pay scale, including but not limited to: Federal contract labor categories and contract wage rates, collective bargaining agreements, geographic location, business considerations, scope, and responsibilities of the position, local or other applicable market conditions, and internal equity. Other factors include the candidate’s qualifications such as prior work experience, specific skills and competencies, education/training, and certifications. In addition to base pay, employees may be eligible for: annual performance-based bonuses, equity awards, and overtime pay (for non-exempt employees as applicable. Our benefits package includes comprehensive health insurance (medical, dental, vision), employer matching 401(k) retirement plan, paid time off including vacation, holidays, and sick leave (including ant state-mandated paid sick leave), parental leave benefits, tuition reimbursement, professional development support, and life and disability insurance coverage.

Taking care of our people is a top priority at Leonardo DRS. We are proud to offer competitive salaries and comprehensive benefits, including medical, dental, and vision coverage, a company contribution to a health savings account, telemedicine, life and disability insurance, legal insurance, and a 401(k) savings plan. We champion wellness programs that focus on physical, emotional, and financial well-being. We develop our talent by offering programs and activities to support career-growth, professional development, and skill enhancement. And we understand there is more to life than work, and the importance of offering flexible work schedules with our 9/80 program, competitive vacation, health/emergency leave, paid parental leave, and community service hours.
*Some employees are eligible for limited benefits only

Leonardo DRS, Inc. and its subsidiaries provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws.

Our Vision. To be the leading mid-tier defense technology company in the U.S.

Our Values. The Leonardo DRS culture is defined by our Core Values and Principles:

- Integrity
- Agility
- Excellence
- Customer Focus
- Community & Respect
- Innovation

We strive to uphold them in all aspects of our business practices to inspire our employees and provide outstanding support for our customers.