Proposal Manager III

Seneca Holdings; Chantilly (VA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Seneca Holdings is seeking a highly experienced Senior Proposal Manager to lead the development and delivery of complex federal government proposals for DoD and Federal Civilian agencies. The role requires managing multiple high-value bids, coordinating cross-functional teams, and ensuring fully compliant, compelling submissions that align with capture strategies.

Strong Shipley/AFI-based practices and oral presentation prep are essential.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• APMP Foundation or higher or Shipley Proposal Management certification.
• 10+ years of federal government proposal management experience.
• Experience leading proposals under FAR and DFARS.

Responsibilities

• Lead full lifecycle of complex federal competitive proposals.
• Manage multiple concurrent proposals from pre-RFP to submission.
• Coordinate cross-functional teams including writers, pricing, contracts, and SMEs.
• Ensure compliance with Section L and M evaluation criteria.
• Develop and manage detailed proposal schedules and compliance matrices.
• Prepare and deliver oral presentations and address technical challenges.

Skills

Proposal leadership

Leadership

Communication skills

Organizational skills

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree

APMP Foundation or Shipley certification

Tools

MS Office

SharePoint

Adobe Acrobat Pro

GovDash

Loopio

AutoGenAI

Job description

Our team of talented individuals is what makes us successful. To support our team, we provide a balanced mix of benefits and programs. Your total rewards package includes competitive pay, benefits, and perks, flexible work-life balance, professional development opportunities, and performance and recognition programs. We offer a comprehensive benefits package that includes medical, dental, vision, life, and disability, voluntary benefit programs (critical illness, hospital, and accident), health savings and flexible spending accounts, and retirement 401K plan. One of our fundamental principles is to offer competitive health and welfare benefits to our team members, providing coverage and care for you and your family. Full-time employees working at least 30 hours a week on a regular basis are eligible to participate in our benefits and paid leave programs. We pride ourselves on our collaborative work environment and culture, which embraces our mission of providing financial and non-financial benefits back to the members of the Seneca Nation.

Seneca Holdings is seeking a highly experienced Senior Proposal Manager (Proposal Manager III) t o lead the development and delivery of complex federal government proposals supporting both Department of Defense (DoD) and Federal Civilian agencies.

This role is responsible for managing multiple high-value competitive proposal efforts simultaneously, leading cross-functional proposal teams through the full proposal lifecycle, and ensuring the delivery of fully compliant, compelling, and strategically aligned proposals that position the company for contract awards. The Senior Proposal Manager plays a critical leadership role in translating capture strategies into winning proposals and coordinating technical, management, pricing, and executive stakeholders across the organization. This position requires deep expertise in federal competitive procurements, Shipley-based proposal management practices, and oral presentation preparation for technical evaluations and challenges. This position also requires a high-level of organization, process adoption, and adaptability due to the complexity of the organization and varied lines of business.

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to :

• Federal Competitive Proposal Leadership Lead the full lifecycle of complex federal competitive proposals from pre-RFP planning through submission and post-submission activities.
• Manage multiple concurrent proposal efforts ranging from $10M to $500M+, ensuring strict adherence to proposal schedules, compliance requirements, and quality standards.
• Develop proposals for GWACs, IDIQs, BPAs, and large multi-award contract vehicles.
• Translate capture strategies, win themes, customer hot buttons, and discriminators into compelling proposal structures aligned with Section L and Section M evaluation criteria.
• Develop and manage detailed proposal schedules, compliance matrices, annotated outlines, and proposal management plans.
• Proposal Support Team Leadership Direct and coordinate cross-functional proposal teams including writers, BD leads, capture managers, technical subject matter experts, contracts, pricing teams, subcontractors, and executive leadership.
• Facilitate proposal kickoff meetings, strategy sessions, storyboarding workshops, and daily proposal progress meetings.
• Drive accountability across the proposal team to ensure timely delivery of high-quality, compliant content.
• Facilitate pre-proposal preparation activities for all assigned competitive and recompete opportunities.
• Proposal Development and Quality Management Ensure proposals are fully compliant, compelling, and responsive to solicitation requirements while clearly communicating the company’s strengths and differentiators.
• Oversee development and integration of technical, management, staffing, and past performance volumes.
• Conduct detailed reviews of proposal drafts to ensure clarity, accuracy, consistency, and alignment with evaluation criteria and make actionable recommendations to SMEs and writers on how to improve or strengthen the content.
• Structured Proposal Review Process Lead structured proposal reviews including Pink Team, Red Team, Gold Team, and RFI Reviews in accordance with industry best practices.
• Facilitate incorporation of review feedback and ensure continuous improvement throughout the proposal lifecycle.
• Oral Presentations and Technical Challenges Lead preparation for oral proposal presentations and technical challenges, including: Development of presentation storylines and slide content Coordination of visual storytelling and graphics development Speaker coaching and rehearsal facilitation Conducting timed rehearsals and mock evaluation panels Collaboration with Capture and Business Development Partner closely with capture managers and business development leadership to ensure alignment between capture strategy and proposal execution for competitive bids.
• Support opportunity qualification and proposal readiness activities during the capture phase.
• Assist with review of RFPs, RFIs, and draft solicitations to inform capture and proposal strategies.
• Proposal Operations and Continuous Improvement Ensure adherence to company proposal processes, branding, and best practices.
• Contribute to the development and maintenance of corporate proposal libraries, reusable content, and knowledge management resources.
• Participate in lessons learned (after action review) sessions.
• Recommend and assist in implementing improvements to proposal processes, tools, and workflows.
• Support proposal process improvement efforts.
• Mentorship and Team Development Provide mentorship and guidance to junior proposal managers, writers, and proposal team members.
• Serve as peer reviewer on junior proposal managers’ competitive proposal outlines and pre-Red Team compliance.
• Promote best practices in proposal development, persuasive writing, and proposal strategy execution.
• Provide on-the-job guidance and mentoring to Business Development and Capture professionals with less experience in competitive bid and proposals.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• APMP Foundation or higher or Shipley Proposal Management certification.
• 10+ years of federal government proposal management experience supporting both DoD and Federal Civilian agencies.
• Demonstrated experience managing full-and-open competitive procurements under FAR and DFARS regulations.
• The ability to thrive in a fast-paced proposal environment with multiple concurrent efforts under aggressive deadlines.
• Experience leading proposal teams supporting opportunities valued at $100M+.
• Experience managing proposals within ISO 9001, ISO 20000, ISO 27001, or CMMI-aligned organizations.
• Experience supporting IT services, financial management, or healthcare professional services contracts.
• Strong understanding of Section L and Section M requirements, proposal compliance, and evaluation criteria alignment.
• Demonstrated experience supporting oral presentations, technical challenges, or live proposal demonstrations.
• Experience coordinating cross-functional proposal teams including technical SMEs, pricing teams, subcontractors, and executive leadership.
• Strong knowledge of federal acquisition regulations including FAR, DFARS, and agency supplements.
• Excellent writing, editing, and communication skills with the ability to synthesize complex technical information into persuasive proposal content.
• Exceptional organizational and project management skills with meticulous attention to detail.
• Customer service oriented with the ability to prioritize work and meet tight deadlines.
• Ability to work flexible hours as needed – possibly including some nights and weekends.
• Expertise with MS Office suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.).
• Expertise with SharePoint file management and permissions.
• Expertise with Adobe Acrobat Pro.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience supporting DoD agencies such as DHA, Army, Air Force, Navy and federal civilian agencies.
• Experience with proposal management tools such as GovDash, AutoGenAI, Loopio, or similar platforms.

Equal Opportunity Statement:

Seneca Holdings provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex/gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, marital status, genetic information and/or predisposing genetic characteristics, victim of domestic violence status, veteran status, or other protected class status. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including, but not limited to, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leave of absence, compensation and training. The Company also prohibits retaliation against any employee who exercises his or her rights under applicable anti-discrimination laws. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company does give hiring preference to Seneca or Native individuals. Veterans with expertise in these areas are highly encouraged to apply.